At a recent conference that featured a sitting state senator, so-called “TEXIT” supporters celebrated their movement’s incremental gains.

WACO — Standing in front of a massive state flag on Saturday, Claver Kamau-Imani outlined his utopian vision of a Nation of Texas that he believes is just on the horizon.

No taxes or Faucis, no speed zones or toll roads. No liberals, no gun laws. No windmills, no poor people. A separate currency, stock market and gold depository. “Complete control of our own immigration policy.” World-class college football, a farewell to regulators. And unthinkable, unimaginable wealth.

“We are going to be so rich,” he chanted. “We’re gonna be rich. We are gonna be rich. We. Are. Going. To Be. Rich! … As soon as we declare independence, we’re going to be wealthy. I personally believe that our personal GDP will double in five to seven years.”

“The independence of Texas is good for humanity as a whole,” he added to cheers.

Kamau-Imani, a Houston-based preacher, was among 100 or so people who spent the weekend at the Waco Convention Center for the first conference of the Texas Nationalist Movement, which since 2005 has advocated for the Lone Star State to break away from the United States — a “TEXIT,” as they call it.

Supporters of the movement said they are more energized and optimistic than ever about the prospect of an independent Texas, and pointed to appearances or support from current and former lawmakers — including state Sen. Bob Hall, R-Edgewood, who spoke at the event — as evidence that their movement is far from fringe. The get-together also came as TEXIT supporters celebrated what they believe is crucial momentum: Days before the meeting, the Texas Nationalist Movement announced that it was more than halfway to the roughly 100,000 signatures needed to put a non-binding secession referendum on the Texas Republican primary ballot.

  • DevCat@lemmy.worldOPEnglish
    7·
    1 year ago

    There is only one proper response to this:

    https://www.texasstandard.org/stories/texas-population-majority-latino-census-bureau-update/

    Texas has been majority white since at least the mid 1800s, but Hispanics have been expected to overtake the majority for some time. Now, new data shows that happened at some time in 2022.

    The U.S. Census Bureau updated its official population estimates, and the numbers confirm Latinos have officially made up the largest share of the state’s population since at least last July.

    Lloyd Potter, state demographer of Texas and director of the Texas Demographic Center, said Hispanic Texans made up 40.2% of the state’s population last summer, edging out non-Hispanic white Texans, who made up 39.8%.

    “When we look at demographic and population change, there’s what we refer to as components of population change,” Potter said. “The three major components are births, deaths and net migration. So when we look at and when we compare population change between the non-Hispanic white population and the Hispanic population, the dynamics of those elements are different.”

    For example, Hispanics tend to have higher birth rates than the non-Hispanic white population, Potter said.