Austin, TX
What is a pro-Palestine protest? Here’s why U.S. college students are protesting
Dozens of protesters at the University of Texas were arrested Wednesday during a peaceful, pro-Palestinian protest hosted on the campus by the Palestine Solidarity Committee.
“UT Austin does not tolerate disruptions of campus activities or operations like we have seen at other campuses,” the UT Division of Student Affairs said in a statement before the protest.
After about 45 minutes of the crowd marching south on the mall from the Gregory Gym area, Texas Department of Public Safety troopers and campus police ordered the protesters to disperse or “be arrested as per the penal code.”
Here’s why UT-Austin students are protesting:
What is a pro-Palestine protest?
Pro-Palestinian protests are demonstrations in support of Palestinian rights, typically calling for an end to Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories.
Protests began in the wake of the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas, triggered by the Palestinian militant group’s assault on Israeli communities Oct. 7, killing almost 1,200 people.
Israel’s subsequent bombardment and invasion of Gaza has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians — militants and civilians; men, women and children — and has fueled a dire humanitarian crisis.
Where is Palestine located?
Palestine is recognized as an independent state by the United Nations and more than 135 of its members, but it is not recognized by the U.S., according to History. The UN considers it a single occupied entity, but the official borders are undetermined, BBC News reported.
Though its borders have shifted over the years, Palestinian territories used to be what is now Israel, Gaza and the West Bank.
When searching for “Palestine” on Google Maps, the map zooms in on the Israel-Palestine region, and both the Gaza Strip and West Bank territories are labeled and separated by dotted lines. But there is no label for Palestine.
In an email statement, Google said it doesn’t label the borders because there isn’t international consensus on where the Palestinian boundaries are located.
Why are college students protesting?
The Palestine Solidarity Committee, a registered UT student group and a chapter of the national Students for Justice in Palestine, planned a protest Wednesday at the UT campus in solidarity with students across the U.S., including at Columbia University, Yale University and New York University, who are calling for an end to the Israel-Hamas war.
Across the country, pro-Palestinian student protesters have occupied campuses in tent encampments this week in a campaign to urge their universities to divest, an action students over the decades have demanded from their schools’ administrators.
At pro-Palestinian rally at UT-Austin, protesters arrested
Multiple protesters on UT-Austin’s campus were arrested during a pro-Palestinian rally held by students.
What is ‘divest’?
The word “divest” refers to diverting money from a university’s endowment — the pool of money a college has and tries to grow through investments. Some of the biggest university endowments in the country total nearly $50 billion and comprise thousands of funds.
The protesters opposed to Israel’s military attacks in Gaza say they want their schools to stop funneling endowment money to Israeli companies and other businesses, like weapons manufacturers, that profit from the war in Gaza.
“The university would rather enforce and put money into policing our communities and policing their own students then they would to supporting them,” said Anachí Ponce, a UT student who attended the protest. “These are students who are protesting a genocide and the lack of action from UT administration for the way that they haven’t been super helpful against hate crimes against Muslim students on campus.”
“It’s like, why is our money being used to fund bombs overseas?,” said Layla Saliba, a student protester researching endowment investments with the group Columbia University Apartheid Divestment. “Let’s reinvest this money in our community instead,” she said.
In addition to divestment, protesters across the U.S. are calling for a cease-fire and student governments at some colleges have also passed resolutions in recent weeks calling for an end to academic partnerships with Israel.
Are universities investing in Israel?
Protesters have called for a halt to investments in Israel, but experts say that might be too simplified a take on what colleges have done with their funds. To begin with, it’s difficult to define what an “investment” in Israel entails, said economist Sandy Baum, a senior fellow at the Urban Institute who studies college finances.
She said bigger investments are more obvious than smaller ones tucked away in mutual funds — an investment tool that pools money and spreads it out over many assets, and a type of financial tool on which many colleges rely.
Universities hire private companies to manage their endowments to preserve their funds over the long run, Baum said.
Debates about the investments of college endowments are complicated, Baum said, because some university stakeholders argue the money needs to produce the biggest return on investment possible to fund teaching and necessary programming and services.
“The purpose of the endowment is to have money that will allow the university to permanently provide educational opportunities so that they don’t have to go out and raise new money every year to continue operating,” she said.
The bigger a university’s endowment, the more is at stake. That’s one reason why pro-Palestinian student protesters at wealthy universities are fighting so hard this week, she said. There’s a lot of money involved.
“There are always going to be differencesof opinion about what you don’t want to invest in,” Baum said.
AUSTIN, Texas – A Texas agency is concerned that the flesh-eating New World screwworm could be getting closer to Texas without commercial livestock movement.
Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller is sounding the alarm again for livestock owners to remain vigilant in watching for signs of the parasite in their animals.
Screwworm sighting near Texas
The latest:
Miller said in a Thursday release that a screwworm had been detected in a cow in González, Tamaulipas, a little more than 200 miles from the southern Texas border.
According to the commissioner, the cow had no reported history of movement outside Tamaulipas, and is the third active case reported there.
Officials in Mexico have not reported a known population of the worm in Tamaulipas. They’re working with U.S. authorities to investigate further into the new case.
What they’re saying:
“The screwworm now may be moving closer on its own, with no apparent link to commercial animal movement,” Commissioner Miller said. “Texas producers must act now—stay informed, stay vigilant, and prepare immediately. We cannot drop our guard for even a moment.”
Inspect livestock for screwworm
What you can do:
Miller urged immediate action from ranchers along the Texas border.
“Inspect your animals daily,” Miller said. “Check every open wound. If anything looks suspicious, report it right away. Better a false alarm than a delayed response—early detection and rapid reporting are our strongest defenses against this devastating pest.”
U.S. plan to fight screwworm in Texas
Big picture view:
The threat to cattle has been deemed so potentially devastating to the U.S. food supply that the federal government is committing $850 million to fight it.
Most of that money will be spent on building a sterile male fly production facility near the border.
The facility will produce 300 million sterile male flies a week to be dropped into target areas where the screwworm is now. Those male flies help to reduce the population size through mating without reproducing.
A much smaller portion of the funding will be used for screwworm detection technology.
In addition, the federal government has already spent $21 million on a sterile fly production facility in Mexico.
What are New World screwworms?
Dig deeper:
The insect gets its name because it’s only found in the Americas.
It lays its eggs in the open wounds of animals, and its larvae become parasites, threatening livestock, domestic animals, and even people.
The screwworm was mostly eradicated in Texas and the rest of the United States in the 60s. But now, it’s moving north up from Panama and has a known presence a little over 300 miles south of the Texas-Mexico border.
The Source: Information in this article comes from Sid Miller.
Austin, TX
LD Systems expands Texas Footprint with Austin Location and welcomes ILIOS Productions — TPi
For over two decades, ILIOS Productions has been a key part of the live events community in Austin, TX, transforming spaces and audience experiences with a vast range of lighting and video design, as well as event production services across a diverse client portfolio. Now, with the backing of parent company Clair Global, LD Systems, a Houston-based premier provider of audio, video, and lighting for event production and installed technology solutions, is welcoming ILIOS Productions to the team, marking the group’s fourth location in Texas. ILIOS Productions will now operate under the LD Systems brand.
LD Systems will further resource ILIOS’ existing Austin operation to include additional services such as audio and rigging for live events, as well as integration solutions and services. This addition helps round out LD Systems’ ability to locally serve major metropolitan areas across Texas, including Houston, San Antonio, Dallas-Fort Worth, and Austin and reflects Clair Global’s continued focus on offering global resources while maintaining strong local-market expertise and responsiveness.
ILIOS Productions’ experience spans the concert and festival sector, corporate and activations, and high-end private, philanthropic and charitable events. The company’s commitment to critical event delivery has established trust with major brands including Lollapalooza, SXSW, Austin City Limits, Google, YouTube, the University of Texas System and many more.
Founder, President & Sr Ops Manager of ILIOS Productions, Bryan Azar, said: “After many years of working alongside LD Systems in Austin and beyond, we are delighted to be joining their world-class organisation. This is an exciting new chapter for a bolder future together.”
Zach Boswell, General Manager, ILIOS Productions, added: “We are passionate about the work we do, and the community and business culture found at LD Systems is the ideal next step for our dedicated employees to progress as a united workforce.“
LD Systems co-founder and President, Rob McKinley commented: “We are delighted to amplify our service offerings in Austin with the addition of Bryan and his exceptional team of technology professionals. They have made a significant difference to many Texans with the work they undertake, and LD Systems is proud to welcome both their talent and ethos to the company.”
Building on this momentum, LD Systems also announced plans to expand its San Antonio facility into a new location in January 2026. Together with the addition of ILIOS Productions in Austin, this investment reinforces the organisation’s long-term investment in Texas and its dedication to meeting growing client demand with enhanced capacity and infrastructure.
www.ldsystems.com
AUSTIN, Texas — Austin-Bergstrom International Airport is one step closer to getting a major makeover after finalizing lease agreements with airlines that will support future renovations, including the addition of 32 new gates.
The airport on Wednesday announced the completion of Airline Use and Lease Agreements and Signatory Cargo Agreements with several major airlines and cargo companies, including Southwest Airlines, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, American Airlines, Alaska Airlines, FedEx and UPS.
According to a press release from the airport, the use-and-lease agreements allow companies to commit funding to the project through rent and fees “generated under the agreements’ cost-recovery structure, supporting the airport’s ability to deliver projects that expand capacity, strengthen resiliency, and improve the passenger experience.”
The agreements will support the following projects at Austin-Bergstrom over the next 10 years:
- The addition of Concourse B, which will add 26 new gates, including 18 for Southwest Airlines and five with United Airlines.
- Concourse M, adding six new gates, a bus to transport travelers to and from the Barbara Jordan Terminal, new concessions, restrooms and passenger amenities.
- Enhanced seating and amenities, increased space and modernized concessions in Concourse A (home to all international flights). Delta Air Lines will have 15 gates, American Airlines will have nine, Alaska Airlines will have one and there will be eight common-use gates.
- Updates to HVAC systems, electrical system, IT and telecommunications, storm drainage, water quality and de-icing infrastructure.
In a statement, District 2 Councilmember Vanessa Fuentes applauded the future job creation that’s to come out of the project.
“This expansion program represents a tremendous economic opportunity for Austin—not only through the trades and construction jobs created during the buildout, but also through long-term jobs in concessions, airport operations, and airline services after the program is complete,” Fuentes said.
“This agreement reflects years of partnership, thoughtful negotiations, and shared vision with our airline partners. Their commitment provides the financial foundation we need to modernize our facilities, transform customer experience, and build the infrastructure needed to support Central Texas’ continued growth for generations to come. AUS would not be where it is today without the collaboration and investment of our airlines, and we are deeply grateful for their trust and partnership as we shape the future of air travel in Central Texas,” said Ghizlane Badawi, CEO of Austin-Bergstrom International Airport.
The final cost of the project is still under development, but is anticipated to grow from an estimated $4 billion to $5 billion. According to the airport, funding sources include airport cash reserves, airport revenues, bond proceeds and grants from the Federal Aviation Administration.
“No local Austin taxpayer dollars are used to fund the airport’s expansion program,” the release said.
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