Delilah Barrios

Marriage rights to any genders, Inclusive legislation in regards to LGBTQ, Equal pay. It is of concern the rise in transmissive legislation targeted at trans youth and women in particular. Such aggressive legislation as SB8 and any other laws against bodily autonomy are a threat to public safety. I myself, although in a happy relationship and with three children have refused marriage to my partner because we do not have equality in this state. I aim to do all that I can to change that. We must fight for people we love and also for those we do not know. Our fight is for humanity, for justice, for equality for all.

A free people must have the right to bear arms. “Civil Wars happen when the victimized are armed. Genocide happens when they are not.”
― A.E. Samaan

This is something I feel deeply about. If you live here, you deserve to make enough to live. There are many reasons people cannot work full or part time and that doesn’t mean these folks don’t contribute to society. What I believe is that if you cannot work, and happen to be on disability for example you should have enough money to support yourself. Ideally we will offer supplemental income to people to help them with necessary expenses to include: shelter, food, water, internet, transportation. We advocate for better wages and living conditions for farmers and farm workers as well. Less taxes on private land owners would help keep Texas natural beauty and ecosystems in place. We also support raising the minimum wage to $20 an hour. Over the decades, wages have remained stagnant while expenses have only risen. The hard truth is, people cannot afford to survive. We aim to help in that department because we want people to be happy and healthy.

In the state of Texas for many years women have struggled with access to reproductive healthcare. As a medical professional, I know that women’s lives are at risk when they are prevented from seeking medical attention for reproductive health. We must focus on the long term health of our citizens without bias to gender. Abortion specifically is medical care and should be regarded as such, any attempts to discourage, discriminate or prevent access to necessary care will be penalized.

I have seen the disastrous effects of fracking. Towns water sources have dried up, people are left with contaminated water and the natural gas industry simply leaves residents in the dust. Coastal communities are being affected by oil spills and pollutants dumped into the water. Anyone with any geographical knowledge could tell you, damaging waterways is foolish and short sighted. With ocean temperatures rising, they are creating dead zones in the oceans. This affects all of our ecosystems and I support every initiative to mitigate the threat of pollution to our communities. We must ban fracking and regulate the electric grid in Texas.

Many of our elected officials are in the pockets of the oil and gas industry. It is reflected in their policies and positions regarding pollution, water conservation, land rights and protecting our natural resources. It is imperative that our people are provided a clean, safe environment to allow future generations to enjoy living here. Part of our agenda would be to stop all fossil fuel subsidies and transition those funds for public transit, sustainable energy and farming.

We must address the climate crisis now. If we do not lower our carbon emissions, we will see a mass extinction and climate refugees like we have never seen. We still have time to make the changes necessary to provide a future for our children and many generations thereafter but we must take climate change seriously. We have to address this as the crisis that it is. Furthermore, with regards to our defense spending, we certainly could afford to prioritize preventing loss of life and habitat for our country. I fully support #LandBack and The Red Deal. https://www.commonnotions.org/the-red-deal

Many patients benefit from the use of marijuana and cannabis. If marijuana was legal for recreational use, these consumers would have less costly and more variety of options to choose from. I feel confident most of our population would support this because it would also open up the market to struggling farmers. Little known fact, bee populations do well where marijuana grows and we do depend on them for pollination and healthy crops. All around, I’ll be happy to make this promise to my fellow Texans.

Texas has a higher incarceration rate than the United States. That’s a serious problem. To me, it means we spend more time and money locking people up than we spend on education or medical care. That doesn’t speak to our nature as Texans in my opinion. I know plenty of people who would be kind enough to give another person shelter or even the shirt off their backs. I believe we must reform the prison industrial complex so we can be more in the practice of helping people rather than hurting them.

During this turbulent time of Climate Crisis, Housing/Food/Shelter insecurity and growing inequality, it is imperative that we realize and organize our collective power. I have supported mutual aid and direct action for most of my adult life. Whether it was for basic human rights or for environmental protections, water rights etc. It has become clear that at this moment, our only option is to push directly for the change we need to see. How else are we to determine our rights to survive and thrive? That is why I support a general strike. The corporations have the means to pay people living wages and provide the basic necessities for overall health and happiness. They are the very same who prevent us from freedom or liberation as they lobby the law makers to advance their purposes and greed. I think it’s time the people rise up against oppression. I have been working with colleagues on this and I urge you to read this manifesto and continue dialogue so that we can finally have the revolution and liberation we need.