Race relations have suffered in the past decade, with agitators in the media promoting racial strife, the Diversity-Equity-Inclusion agenda being promoted in virtually every institution, and left-wing politicians smearing those who oppose their agenda as being racists.

Look at this disturbing graph from Gallup. As recently as 2013, 72% of white adults rated black/white race relations as being either Very Good or Somewhat Good. That fell to 43% by 2021. For black adults, that figure dropped from 66% to 33% in the same 8-year span.

This is absolutely heartbreaking.

It was in late 2014 that the famous shooting of Michael Brown occurred in Ferguson, MO. Since then, there has been unrelenting, wall to wall media coverage of “racism in America.” Cities burned, employers embraced social justice in the workplace, and the joyous Texas holiday known as Juneteenth became a federal holiday, but it was rebranded as a racial struggle session of guilt and national shame.

What’s shown in this chart is not a surprise. What you see was always the intent. The institutional left has sought to racially balkanize this country, and they are having great success.

Texas A&M has historically been a more conservative and patriotic university than most colleges. Individual Aggies have always shared a passionate kinship and loyalty to their fellow Aggies, and the identity group they take pride in has nothing to do with skin color or ethnicity.

They’re identity is “Aggie.” Or was.

Things changed. Across all races, the percentage of students surveyed by the university who feel that they “belong” at A&M has collapsed.

What happened? You know exactly what happened. Around 2010 Texas A&M made a commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion, bringing racial divisiveness to the campus, and replacing Aggie Pride with racial awareness and resentment.

At Texas A&M, a Different Kind of “Climate Change” - Efforts to make the campus more welcoming have alienated students

Diversity training for faculty search committees became a norm in 2014. Faculty Affairs concerned itself with weaving “diversity, inclusion and respect into the culture of the institution.” DEI events on campus crowded out alternatives. Hate-reporting systems were installed. All members of the campus community were taught to believe that, in the words of the 2010 report, diversity is “an indispensable component of academic excellence.” In other words, efforts to “improve the climate” at TAMU looked very much like they have everywhere else in the country.

Greg Abbott is now in his 3rd term as Governor of Texas. All the decline shown in that chart above has happened on his watch. Whatever weak protestations he has made about campus wokeness, he served two full terms without making any actual efforts to save Texas universities from being taken over by anti-American race-baiters promoting racial hatred in the name of DEI.

Somewhat related, The University of Texas and Texas A&M have been open and brazen about employing racial discrimination in hiring and admissions. (But you know, the good kind of discrimination that targets whites and Asians.)

With Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and several legislators announcing that they’d be introducing legislation to put a stop to DEI in hiring and admissions in this legislative session, Gov. Abbott finally took some action. He had a letter sent to all universities and state agencies last month advising them that discriminating by race in pursuit of DEI objectives is illegal and violates anti-discrimination laws.

Shortly thereafter Texas A&M announced that they were suspending their race-based hiring and admissions practices.

Texas A&M System cuts diversity, equity, inclusion considerations in hiring, admissions

The Texas A&M University System is removing diversity, equity and inclusion statements from its employment and admission practices, according to an announcement by the system's chancellor.

“No university or agency in the A&M System will admit any student, nor hire any employee based on any factor other than merit,” Texas A&M System Chancellor John Sharp said in a news release Thursday.

I don’t believe the words spoken by A&M’s Chancellor, nor do I believe he has the backbone to actually enforce a prohibition on racial discrimination if he were to order it, but at least he realizes that DEI is no longer publicly defensible.

Not so at the University of Texas System, however, where they’re still trying to parse words to hide their intent to continue practicing illegal racial discrimination.

The A&M move comes about a week after University of Texas System board Chairman Kevin Eltife announced during a regents board meeting that the UT System was pausing all new DEI policies at all of its campuses, including UT-Austin. The UT System Board of Regents has also asked for a report on existing DEI policies at all institutions within the system.

Let me translate, “We are not going to expand our race-based protocols for now, but we will maintain our existing racial discrimination practices.”

Songs of the Season

Since we’re talking about Texas, and since today is the 187th anniversary of the day when the heroes of the Alamo gave their lives, how about a song to celebrate the beauty of Texas in March?

While Texas may be barely habitable in summer, in early spring the weather is delightful, and the explosion of wildflowers is a stunning natural wonder. A drive from Houston to Fredericksburg along Highway 290 in the month of March is like driving through a 250-mile long blooming garden.

Here’s a sentimental song about the beauty of Texas in spring: ”I’d Like To Be In Texas for the Wildflowers In The Spring”

In the parlor of a manor home, one cold gray winter day
Some wise old folks were spinning yarns, to pass the time away
They told of places they had been, and different things they’d seen
Some preferred the Broadway lights, while others New Orleans

In the corner in an old armchair, sat a man whose hair was gray
He listened to them eagerly, to what they had to say
They asked him where he'd like to be, his clear old voice did ring
I'd like to be in Texas for the wildflowers in the spring

I can see the prairie rolling, in a palette of all hues
The primrose and the paintbrush, and the deep bluebonnet blue
The beauty that unfolds, the splendor that March brings
I'd like to be in Texas for the wildflowers in the spring

The limestone hills a-drenched in blue, ‘midst the flower-covered land
Like driving in a painting that’s created by God’s hand
The roadways flanked with endless blooms, would make my old heart sing
If I were back in Texas for the wildflowers in the spring

I’ve seen New England in the Fall, the aspen way out west
The fog roll in the Golden Gate, to see them I’ve been blessed
There’s majesty across this land, from sea to shining sea
But nothing’s quite like Texas and the wildflowers in the Spring

And when my earthly race has run, and I take my last breath
Please take me back and lay me down, for my eternal rest
Where I’ll repose forever more, and hear the angels sing
While pushing up the wildflowers in Texas every Spring

[buck.throckmorton at protonmail dot com]