09.10.2026_Defender-e-FULL

37 YEARS AND COUNTING

Nate Griffin Delivers energy to morning sports

Volume 95, issue 47 September 10, 2026

PRO OFILE

FEATURE

CH HRIS WIILLIAMS

REGAN HUTSELL

The noted Lucille’s chef is investting in the legacy of Black art.

The Houstonian has been crowned the new Miss Americ ca.

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Currently, there are no plans to reschedule the Labor Day debate between Letitia Plummer (left) and Orlando Sanchez.

Message from the Managing Editor lawsuit filed by three former dancers alleging harassment, discrimination and The race to become the next Harris a hostile work environment is still moving County judge was supposed to include forward. Lizzo denies those allegations. a debate on Sept. 7. Instead, voters got But that case has also narrowed, includtechnical difficulties, a disappearing livesing the dismissal of fat-shaming and tream and, eventually, no debate. weight-discrimination claims. That matDemocrat Letitia Plummer and Repubters because few accusations could have lican Orlando Sanchez are competing in been more damaging to someone whose November to replace outgoing County brand was practically synonymous with Judge Lina Hidalgo. The two were schedbody positivity.

ReShonda Tate uled for a virtual debate, but problems And damaging they were. began almost immediately. Plummer initially couldn’t hear But those lawsuits became part of Lizzo’s identity in the Sanchez or the moderator. That issue was resolved, and public imagination. That’s why her team needs to be just as the candidates apparently debated for about 10 minutes, loud about every legal victory as the world was about every except the public couldn’t hear it because the stream had allegation. Because allegations get breaking-news alerts. gone offline.

Dismissals? Apparently, you have to go looking for those.

Then things got messy. Plummer’s campaign says she waited about 40 minutes to resume and was later told San- RIP Houston actress Carla Jeffrey chez did not want to continue that night. Plummer accused Every now and then, I see somebody’s age in an obithim of quitting. Debate organizers, however, blamed an uary and have to read it twice. Carla Jeffery was 33. The influx of unexpected volume and technical problems and Houston-born actress, best known to younger audiences said the event would be rescheduled. Sanchez’s campaign for playing Bree in Disney’s Zombies franchise, died Sept. had not publicly responded to the accusation.

1. Her family announced her death on social media, and I don’t particularly care who won the virtual coin toss or as of this writing, no cause has been publicly released. who was irritated with whom. I care about hearing these Jeffery had already spent much of her life working. She candidates debate. appeared in Phat Girlz as a child and later built a résumé The Harris County judge helps steer the government that included Shake It Up, iCarly, Curb Your Enthusiasm, of the nation’s third-largest county, with responsibilities American Vandal, and the hugely popular Zombies movies. touching everything from budgets and emergency manHer talent agency said she was more than a client. She agement to public health and infrastructure. And for the was family. I didn’t know Carla Jeffery personally. But there first time in eight years, voters will elect someone new to is something about seeing 33 next to the words “passed the job. away” that stops you.

So fix the wi-fi. Fix the stream. Pick another night. Or We spend so much time assuming there will be more gasp, schedule something in person. Then put Plummer time. More birthdays. More opportunities. More chances and Sanchez in front of Harris County voters and let us to call somebody, forgive somebody, chase something we hear what they have to say. keep putting off, or simply enjoy the life we are working so hard to build.

Lizzo won. Did anybody hear about it?

Then you see 33. Jeffery accomplished more professionHere’s something interesting about scandal: Everybody ally in those years than many people manage in twice that hears the accusation. Far fewer people hear what happens time. Still, she deserved more roles. More laughter. More afterward. ordinary Tuesdays. More life.

Lizzo just scored another legal victory after a federal Rest well, Carla. Thirty-three years was nowhere near judge dismissed the remaining claims against her touring enough. company in a lawsuit brought by former employee Asha Daniels. Lizzo herself had already been dismissed from ON THE WEB the case.

• Houston Haitians push back against TPS terminations.

Now, before the Lizzo Defense League starts celebrating, • September Black History to remember. she is not completely out of the legal woods. A separate • Let little Black girls be little Black girls!

Harris County voters deserve a debate

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DN News African American Memorial Conservancy receives $500K grant

By Raquel Rogers

The African American Memorial Conservancy has received a $500,000 grant from Houston Endowment to help sustain and expand the newly built African American Heritage Monument + Park at Bates Allen Park in Fort Bend County.

The grant, which runs through July 2027, will help the conservancy transition from developing the monument to operating it as a year-round historical, educational, and cultural destination.

“This transformational investment from Houston Endowment is a defining milestone in the Conservancy’s journey,” said Lucy Bremond, founding board chair of the African American Memorial Conservancy. “Their partnership enables us to strengthen our organizational capacity while honoring our shared history and creating a lasting educational and cultural legacy. We are deeply grateful for Houston Endowment’s confidence in our mission and their commitment to building stronger communities through

history, education, and opportunity.”

The monument honors freed Black Texans who founded Kendleton during Reconstruction, purchasing land, and establishing their own local government, schools and other institutions.

“The African American Memorial Conservancy has created a powerful place for history to be shared and experienced,” said Bao-Long Chu, Houston Endowment program director for Arts & Culture and Greenspaces.

Funding will support professional staff, leadership development, governance, and financial systems, community partnerships and fundraising efforts. The grant also will help lay the groundwork for future educational programming, including plans for the organization’s Legacy Learning Center.

Fort Bend County Precinct 4 Commissioner Dexter L. McCoy, who helped shepherd the monument through construction, said the investment will help visitors understand the accomplishments of those who came before them.

Organizational Capacity Building Grant will help AAMC sustain the Kendleton monument as a living resource for education, wellness, and economic opportunity. Credit: AAMC.

The conservancy also plans to expand programming focused on education, wellness, arts and culture, environmental

stewardship, and economic opportunity.

The monument is located at Bates Allen Park in Kendleton.

Texas approves controversial Islam curriculum for Separation of Church and State said the curriculum “extol[s] Christianity’s historical influence while treating Islam with hostility.”

“The board should not be imposing a curriculum on students that favors one faith and disparages another,” said President and CEO Rachel Laser.

By Gregory Stevenson

Texas’ 15-member State Board of Education has approved a controversial overhaul of the state’s high school social studies curriculum that Muslim Texans and civil liberties advocates say presents Islam in a discriminatory and historically distorted way.

The new standards require students to learn that “radical Islam” motivated the 9/11 attacks. They also describe the Prophet Muhammad as a “brutal” warrior whose military campaigns involved violence, slavery, and the taking of female captives.

A last-minute effort to remove the word “brutal” failed. Board member Brandon Hall argued that removing it would be a “grave mistake” and called describing Muhammad’s actions that way a “moral imperative.”

“We’re whitewashing and watering down a part of history that I think is very consequential to understanding world events throughout history,” Hall said.

Some view Hall’s comments and the board’s actions as a sign of white Christian nationalism—described by many theologians as a white supremacist perversion of Christianity—winning the day regarding the shaping of K-12 lessons approved by the state.

Other lessons emphasize Christianity’s positive influence on Western society. However, Christianity’s role regarding endorsing American slavery, Jim Crow, segregation, redlining, lynching, land theft, white domestic terrorism, and various other atrocities

State education officials face criticism for new history standards that critics argue unfairly characterize Islam while promoting a Christian-centric worldview. Credit: John Moore/Getty Images.

against Black people and others are absent from the Texas social studies curriculum.

Muslims push back Muslim Texans who testified before the board urged members to teach Islam with the same historical balance afforded to other religions.

“Uphold Islam to the same standard as other religions by teaching students its core principles and contributions,” Bahia Amawi told the board.

She also urged members to remove standards that reduce Islam to violence.

The board previously removed a proposed standard that would have taught students about Muslim contributions to algebra and astronomy. Amawi questioned whether the curriculum could lead students to distrust Muslim classmates and neighbors.

That concern comes as Texas has already approved new statewide reading requirements that include Bible passages and Christian texts. Those changes are scheduled to take effect beginning with the 203031 school year.

The advocacy group Americans United

Fight likely continues The Council on American-Islamic Relations and its Texas chapter said they will work to overturn the curriculum before it takes effect and protect teachers and students who refuse to teach it.

The groups argued that the curriculum presents a distorted picture of Islam and said even experts appointed by the board raised concerns about whether portions of the standards withstand historical scrutiny.

The board also approved updated standards covering U.S. history, world history, world geography, U.S. government, and portions of financial literacy.

For Black Texans, the debate is about more than Islam. It raises a larger question about who gets to shape the history Texas children learn—and whether public schools will teach the complicated histories of race, religion, power, and oppression with the same scrutiny applied to every group.

And for Texas students, those lessons will help shape how they understand not only the past, but the increasingly diverse state in which they live.

4 | September 10, 2026 |

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DN News

Acres Homes gets more affordable housing

By Tannistha Sinha

A historic Houston neighborhood is getting a fresh investment in homeownership.

The Houston Area Urban League, in partnership with Park Street Homes and Citizens Trust Bank, recently broke ground on Legacy Oaks at Bland Street. It’s a new development that will bring 23 single-family homes to the historic Acres Homes community, Houston’s largest unincorporated Black community.

“Legacy Oaks reminds us that freedom must be accompanied by opportunity,” said President and CEO of the Houston Area Urban League Judson W. Robinson III. “Homeownership remains one of the most effective tools for building generational wealth and strengthening communities. This development reflects our commitment to ensuring families in Acres Homes benefit from continued investment while preserving the neighborhood’s rich history and character.”

Prices start at mid-$200,000s.

Robinson added that the price range suits those making $28-$35 an hour.

“Over the course of the year, that adds up to the right number to where you can afford a home in Acres Homes,” he said. “There are lots of job opportunities, lots of entertainment, and safety. It’s a very different community than it was 20-30 years ago.”

Legacy Oaks is more than a neighborhood— it’s an investment in opportunity, homeownership, and a stronger future for Acres Homes.”

KEVAN SHELTON CEO and co-founder of Park Street Homes

HAUL president Judson Robinson III and Council Member Tarsha Jackson join Ayesha and Kevan Shelton, owners of Park Street Homes, during the groundbreaking ceremony for the Legacy Oaks at Bland Street development. Credit: Park Street Homes.

Pointing to the issue of gentrification in Acres Homes, Robinson added that it is increasingly difficult to live near family due to rising costs. Housing initiatives like Legacy Oaks will address the issue. He urged more residents to come forward to partner with the Houston Area Urban League.

A site rooted in community giving

Legacy Oaks will rise on nearly five acres of land donated by Cameron Iron Workers and Charity Social Club, a partnership model that brings together a nonprofit and private capital.

The result, organizers say, will be affordable housing designed to expand attainable homeownership while respecting the character and history of a neighborhood that has long been central to Houston’s Black community.

They added that the endeavor offers Acres Homes residents an opportunity to stay in their communities.

Kevan Shelton, CEO and co-founder of Park Street Homes, emphasized the development’s long-term impact on future residents.

“These 23 homes, along with

the community center, will create opportunities for generational wealth while providing supportive services, strengthening neighborhood connections, and helping families thrive for years to come,” Shelton said. “Legacy Oaks is more than a neighborhood—it’s an investment in opportunity, homeownership, and a stronger future for Acres Homes.”

Houston City Council Member Tarsha Jackson, who represents the area, said the single-family homes ref lect a commitment to sustainability and long-term neighborhood investment.

“Legacy Oaks on Bland St. will bring 23 single-family homes that will be affordable, creating attainable homeownership opportunities while preserving the character and heritage of Acres Homes,” Jackson said.

Addressing a broader housing gap

Houston, like many major U.S. cities, continues to face a shortage of attainable housing for working families. The Legacy Oaks groundbreaking arrives as Houston confronts housing affordability issues, especially for first-time and moderate-income

buyers, such as limited inventory and financial constraints.

According to a study by Rice University’s Kinder Institute of Urban Research: • Harris County lost 19,000 owner-occupied households, 7,750 Black-homeow ner households in Houston • More than half of renters and a quarter of homeowners in Houston and Harris County are cost-burdened,

spending more than 30% of their income on rent • Despite adding 30,000+ multifamily units, affordable homeownership remains out of reach for many families • Homeowners’ insurance premiums are increasing faster than home values • Eviction filings remain high, with Harris County averaging one filing per 10 households

VOLUME 95, NUMBER 47 - SEPTEMBER 10, 2026 Publisher | CEO Sonceria Messiah-Jiles Strategic Alllance Clyde Jiles Managing Editor ReShonda Tate Associate Editor Aswad Walker Content Manager Terrance Harris

Culture/Lifestyle Reporter Laura Onyeneho Special Assignments Reporter Tannistha Sinha Sports Terrance Harris Jimmie Aggison Video Editor Bryan Erdy

The Defender newspaper is published by the Houston Defender Newspaper Inc. and audited by Alliance for Audited Media (AAM). Only digital subscriptions are available at: www.defendernetwork.com/subscribe No paper subscriptions available. All materials covered by 2026 copyright. No materials herein may be reproduced without the written permission of the Publisher. 713-663-6996 | P.O. Box 8005, Houston, TX 77288

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DN News

Voting Rights Act turns 61 Leaders highlight weakened protections

By Tannistha Sinha

Sixty-one years after President Lyndon Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act on Aug. 6, 1965, civil rights leaders and politicians in Texas are warning that the law’s protections have been effectively dismantled and that Texas has become ground zero for what comes next.

The anniversary this year falls in the shadow of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Louisiana v. Callais, which found Louisiana’s congressional map to be an unconstitutional racial gerrymander, a ruling some argue has made it significantly harder to draw majority-minority districts anywhere in the country.

“Essentially, the voting rights of 1965 have been gutted completely, like it’s been annihilated,” said Rev. James Dixon, pastor of the Community of Faith Church and president of the NAACP Houston Chapter.

“We need to understand that the biggest issue for us is that we cannot elect leaders who represent us based on racially determined districts and precincts.”

The VRA and redistricting efforts

Dixon traced the current moment back to Texas’s mid-decade congressional redistricting last year, which he said began “when Governor Abbott [was] yielding to the demand of President Trump, who said he wanted five more Republican seats.”

The redraw effectively consolidated Houston’s two Black-held congressional seats into one, while preserving one Hispanic-held seat.

Dixon added that the fight is inseparable from the pulpit.

He pointed to a Houston-based organizing effort called Freedom Rising 2026, which is working with churches and civil

Community of Faith Church pastor Dr. James Dixon said weakened voting protections threaten Black political representation. Credit: Tannistha Sinha/Defender.

rights groups on voter registration and turnout ahead of November. He argued that voting rights cannot be separated from a broader pattern he sees playing out, such as the rollback of DEI policies and the removal of Black historical figures from public recognition.

“If any of us are going to be free, all of us have to be free,” he said.

A historical viewpoint

We need to understand that the biggest issue for us is that we cannot elect leaders who represent us based on racially determined districts and precincts.”

REV. JAMES DIXON Pastor of the Community of Faith Church and president of the NAACP Houston Chapter

Congressman Christian Menefee cited a 2016 federal court ruling from a decade ago that found Texas lawmakers had targeted Black voters “with almost surgical precision” through a voter ID law. Menefee said Tennessee’s move to redraw Memphis-area districts after the Callais ruling shows the pattern spreading nationally, and argued that Houston’s own loss of a congressional seat is a preview of what other Southern cities can expect.

“I will never forget the day the decision came out,” Menefee said of the Callais ruling. “I saw two Americas in the House of Representatives. I saw a Republican side in the House of Representatives who were joyful that people had had their right to vote taken away. I saw a Democratic Caucus

that was in strategy mode, trying to figure out how to combat this. Then I saw a Congressional Black Caucus who saw the faces of their grandparents, who heard the voices of the ancestors as the right to vote was being stripped right there in real time.”

At a Houston campaign stop, Democratic gubernatorial nominee Gina Hinojosa framed the VRA Christian as the foundation for Menefee gains ranging from B a r b a r a Jord a n’s election to Congress in the 1970s to the expansion of Latino political power in South Texas.

She warned that with the VRA weakened, Texas RepubliGina Hinojosa cans are positioned to redraw maps again in the next legislative session, and again after the 2030 census, when Texas is expected to gain additional congressional seats.

“When an election is decided before a single ballot is cast, it does not matter which party you belong to. We all lose,” Hinojosa said, pledging to veto any gerrymandered map if elected governor.

The Houston remarks echoed a broader national reckoning with the anniversary.

Eric Holder, the former U.S. attorney general who now chairs the National Democratic Redistricting Committee, said the country is experiencing “a modern-day political Jim Crow” where “too many Republicans act with impunity to dilute the voting power of Black and Latino communities across the country.”

“Our nation now finds itself at a crossroads, and the outcome of the November elections will determine whether we continue to repeat a sordid history or if we can seize the necessary political power to put our country back on a path toward Martin Luther King Jr.’s Promised Land,” Holder said in a statement.

The League of Women Voters, meanwhile, reported that more than 6,600 people turned out for nearly 400 events nationwide during an Aug. 8 “Unite & Rise for Voting Rights” Day of Action tied to the anniversary.

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DN InFocus

WATCH

VIDEO

F Nate Griffin

By Terrance Harris

37 YEARS AND COUNTING

Delivers energy to morning sports

or nearly four decades, Nate Griffin has been a fixture in Houston sports, covering everything from professional franchises and major college programs to HBCU athletics and Friday night high school football.

Griffin is celebrating 14 years as the morning sports anchor and reporter at Fox 26, where he has carved out a lane unlike anyone else in the Houston television market. While most local sports coverage is delivered from behind an anchor desk or during evening newscasts, Griffin has built his mornings around going directly into the community, often broadcasting live from schools, restaurants and wherever Houston’s sports stories take him.

He is also currently the only Black man working in television sports in Houston, a distinction that stands out in one of the nation’s most diverse cities and in an industry where Black men are often far more visible on the field than in the press box.

But understanding what has allowed Griffin to remain relevant after 37 years in a rapidly changing television industry requires seeing him before the camera comes on.

Nate Griffin Is Everywhere.

That’s the Point.

Nate Griffin says the key to his longevity as a sports anchor has been his hard work, uniqueness, and the freedom from Fox 26 executives to be himself. Credit: Jimmie Aggison/Defender.

Nate Griffin joins the KTSU Sports Talk Show crew that includes Kevin “Silver Fox” Allen, host Devan Wade (middle), and Ralph Cooper (right) in the studio.

Courtesy: Nate Griffin.

Nate Griffin is getting the Manvel football team ready for action before the taping of his morning segment. Credit: Jimmie Aggison/Defender.

On a recent Friday morning at Manvel High School, Griffin was everywhere.

He positioned the cheerleaders and gave them their cue to shake their poms. He checked the spacing of the dance team. He talked with the band about when the music should start. He told the football players when to get rowdy, while reminding them not to get too rowdy. They did, after all, have a game to play later that night. Even the coaches and administrators got a little coaching.

Then the camera came on. The band played. The cheerleaders erupted. Players shouted. Griffin moved through the crowd with the energy of a man who had simply wandered into a pep rally and decided to join the fun. What viewers didn’t see was that Griffin had spent the minutes before airtime producing nearly every second of what looked spontaneous.

“It’s organized chaos with Nate. He organizes the chaos,” said Alvin ISD Superintendent Rhonda Mason, who had gone through the same routine with Griffin an hour earlier at Iowa Colony High School. “The fact that he comes with so much exuberance and so much energy and positivity, yet gets everyone organized, is amazing. He wants everybody to have fun.”

That combination of preparation and personality has become Griffin’s calling card. It has also helped him remain relevant through nearly four decades in an industry known for constant change and turnover.

An unlikely path to television

None of this was necessarily the plan.

Griffin, who was born in Los Angeles and raised in Mississippi, played wide receiver at Southern Miss before finishing his undergraduate degree at Texas Southern University. He then enrolled in TSU’s law school.

The courtroom, however, lost out to the television camera.

Thirty-seven years later, Griffin has built the kind of career that is increasingly rare in local television, where shrinking newsrooms, changing viewing habits and constant industry turnover have made longevity difficult.

“I love it. I absolutely love it,” Griffin said.

“The station allows me the freedom, and I certainly do appreciate it. Management has given me the freedom to explore and do different things to grow our sports core.”

That freedom has produced a morning sports segment that looks little like the traditional guy-behind-a-desk sportscast. Griffin might be at a high school one morning and a neighborhood breakfast spot the next. His guests can range from coaches and athletes to longtime Houston sports personalities, either sitting beside him or joining by Zoom.

And while the tone is often light, Griffin isn’t simply a cheerleader for Houston sports.

He weighs in on the Texans and quarterback C.J. Stroud, the Astros’ front-office decisions and Kelvin Sampson’s University of Houston basketball program. He also regularly makes room for Prairie View and Texas Southern, programs that historically haven’t always received the same attention as the city’s larger college programs.

Prairie View football coach Tremaine Jackson said Griffin’s playing background shows in the questions he asks.

“He always asks detailed questions because he played,” Jackson said. “He has an intimate knowledge of what he is talking about. And I’ve always appreciated that he has been fair with us and given us an opportunity.”

Texas Southern coach Cris Dishman, who remembers Griffin from Dishman’s playing days with the Houston Oilers, said trust is part of Griffin’s longevity.

“Some reporters try to trick you into stories,” Dishman said. “But he is very open and honest about what he is going to ask you. He’s very fun-loving. He’s like a big brother you are talking to.”

The station allows me the freedom, and I certainly do appreciate it.

Management has given me the freedom to explore and do different things to grow our sports core.”

NATE GRIFFIN

Nate Griffin has delivered exciting news and sometimes heartbreaking news during his 14 years manning the morning sports anchor desk at Fox 26.

Courtesy: Nate Griffin.

Nate Griffin has worked as a color analyst for Rice football games for the last 19 seasons. Courtesy: Nate Griffin.

Making difficult television look easy

The ease viewers see every morning is deceptive. Griffin is not simply showing up, turning on a microphone and talking sports.

Guests have to be booked. Locations have to be coordinated. Interviews have to be researched. Segments have to be planned. And on mornings like the one at Manvel, dozens of moving parts have to somehow move in the same direction when the red light comes on.

Griffin says another five hours of preparation can follow the morning show.

“It takes a lot,” he said. “It’s about managing your time. So if I ever look exhausted on the air towards the end, that’s probably why, because we are running on fumes.”

And Fox 26 isn’t his only job. For 19 years, Griffin has served as color analyst for Rice football. He also emcees community and sports events around Houston, including the Labor Day Classic kickoff press conference.

That schedule is one reason Griffin describes himself as a homebody. When the work is finished and there isn’t another event waiting, he heads home to his wife and daughter.

“When I leave work, I go straight home,” he said. “Preparation requires rest.”

Still having fun

Longevity in television can make some broadcasters fixtures. Griffin has managed to remain curious.

KCOH sports host Ralph Cooper believes that is part of why viewers have incorporated Griffin into their morning routines.

“Nate has turned the mornings for Channel 26 into an institution,” Cooper said.

“They feel that if they miss, they are going to miss something very important.”

There is also something notable about Griffin’s ability to move between generations. Coaches who remember him from decades ago know him. Current professional and college athletes know him. So do high school players who weren’t alive when Griffin began working in television.

At Manvel, linebacker Samuel Weary was participating in Friday Football Fever for the third year.

“He brings a lot of energy,” Weary said, “and I feel like it puts us on the map.”

For Griffin, that’s part of the point. “I love Friday Football Fever,” he said. “I get a chance to run around with the kids and have fun. They keep me young.”

8 | September 10, 2026 |

DEFENDER NETWORK

DN Feature

Houston Art Alliance Celebrates 20 years of community impact

By Laura Onyeneho

In 2011, Emanuelee Bean received his first real budget as an artist.

A $7,000 grant from Houston Arts Alliance (HAA) for a poetry festival called Speak Green forced him to do something he had never done before. To put a dollar value on his own work as a poet, not just the venue and the other performers he was paying.

“There’s no doubt in my mind that I got my National Endowment of the Arts grant because I got an HAA grant,” said Bean, who performs as “Outspoken Bean” and later became Houston’s poet laureate. “When you get one grant, that begets you getting other grants.”

Houston Arts Alliance has distributed $182 million in arts grants since its founding in 2006, and as the organization marks its 20th anniversary at the Gilded & Golden Gala on Sept. 26, Black artists and institutions who built their careers on that funding say the investment did more than pay bills; it validated their place in the field.

Twenty-year anniversary HAA administers city arts grants ts, civic art commissions, and disaster recovery programs through a contract with the City of Houston, funded by the hotel occupancy tax, a revenue stream Texas authorized in 1959 and Houston adopted in 1969.

The city expanded the tax to theaters and museums in 1977, the same year the Cultural Arts Council of Houston, or CACH, was incorporated to steward those dollars.

In 2006, the city consolidated CACH with the Municipal Arts Council, the Municipal

We really wanted to think about the historical prejudices and marginalization that’s existed within the funding context to figure out how we could boost resources to these communities.”

TAYLOR JACKSON

Art Conservation Office, and the Civic Art Committee, bodies dating to 1965, to form Houston Arts Alliance.

CEO Taylor Jackson, HAA’s youngest leader and the first woman and person of color to hold the role, said the agency’s 2024 Creative Impact Boost was built with that history of inequity in mind. Artists and organizations serving marginalized communities, or those identified as led by people of color, can receive a 45% boost on top of their grant award.

“We really wanted to think about the historical prejudices and marginalization that’s existed within the funding context,” Jackson said. “ To figure out how we could boost resources to these communities so that they’re able to not only sustain themselves, but they can really see their work grow.”

A financial stepping stone Bean went on to serve as Houston’s poet laureate from 2021 to 2023, a position also funded through HAA, and returned to the grant program in 2024 with two projects: “Let Creativity Happen,” a citywide public art campaign, and “Message By Air,” a storytelling event at the Deluxe Theater ryte built around oral histories of Fifth b Ward, where Bean now lives.

“Getting an HAA grant puts you in front of invisible eyes,” Bean said. “It’s not just the logo, eeventually it’s on your CV, your resume, and that’s a stamp that says you’re trusted with money.”

The Ensemble Theatre, the oldest continuously operating Black professional theatre company in the Southwest, has worked with HAA and its predecessor organizations since the 1980s. Founded in 1976 by George Hawkins and celebrating its own 50th anniversary this year, the Midtown theater relies on HAA funding to support its six-show main stage season, which engages more than 150 contract artists annually.

“Without that support, we would not be able to engage the over 150 contract artists that get to come to us,” said Rachel Hemphill Dickson, the theater’s associate artistic director. “We would have to really figure that out, make some significant shifts in order to sustain without HAA funding.”

Early grant dollars also helped shape the theater’s leadership structure decades ago, funding its first managing director role alongside its artistic director. But Dickson said disparities persist. As a culturally specific organization, the Ensemble still receives funding disproportionate to the number of people it serves compared with organizations that are not culturally specific.

Houston Arts Alliance is marking two decades since four distinct cultural and civic art entities merged in 2006. Credit: Gemini.

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DN Profile

Chef Chris Williams Invests in Black art legacy

By Laura Onyeneho

Lucille’s owner, Chef Chris Williams, and the nonprofit Street Art for Mankind are running an active fundraising campaign to complete a mural honoring the legacy of famed Houston artist John Biggers, with a public unveiling planned for this fall.

The mural, designed for a parking structure at The Forme, a luxury residential tower in the Museum District, anchors a new partnership between Williams’ Lucille’s Hospitality Group and the property.

The collaboration also includes c udes Thee Branch, a c ,

a wellness-focused venture expected to open on the property later this summer, but Williams said the mural is what drew him to the project.

“I wanted those babies to see themselves in whatever went up on that wall,” Williams said, referring to the roughly 8,000 children who pass by The Forme daily from the nearby Children’s Museum of Houston.

“The mural was my way of making sure the massive new development felt like it belonged to the whole neighborhood, both sides of Third Ward and the surroundingg Museum useu District. st ct.”

Chef Chris Williams is the chef-owner of Lucille’s, a fine-dining Southern restaurant that opened in Houston in 2012.

Courtesy: Chris Williams.

Make donations at: Lucilles1913.org UNVEILING CEREMONY November 7, 2026 Forme, 5501 LaBranch

The mural is inspired by the visionary works of Diego Rivera and John Biggers through themes of diversity, resilience, and community. Courtesy: Street Art For Mankind.

Williams said the idea took shape as he watched the tower rise across the street from Lucille’s, the Southern restaurant he opened in 2012 as a tribute to his great-grandmother, Lucille B. Smith.

Rather than mark the partnership with a standard grand opening, Williams and The Forme instead launched it on July 4 with Liberty and Lux, a fundraiser benefiting the mural. That event has passed, but the fundraising campaign remains active through September.

Thibault Decker, co-founder of Street Art for Mankind, which has curated 58 murals across downtown Houston since its founding, said the collaboration with Williams grew out of an earlier meeting at a Lucille’s event.

The mural will be painted in a style inspired by Biggers, the longtime chair of Texas Southern University’s art department, and Mexican muralist Diego Rivera, whose work influenced Biggers’ own. His murals across the city are considered foundational to its public art movement.

“He’s a great creative, and it’s a real pleasure to work with a man like him,” Decker said. “With my team, basically, we worked on a theme, taking his ideas and trying to express physically what

he had in mind.”

The piece will depict people from different eras of Houston and U.S. history looking toward the horizon, a design meant to represent unity and generational progress tied to the country’s 250th anniversary. The organization said funding for one of the two sections of the mural is secured, and the fundraiser is now focused on completing the second.

“The artist commissioned to paint the mural is based in Houston and has previously recreated several of Biggers’ own works,” Decker said. “It’s a mural that honors the enduring belief that while the union can always be perfected, each generation has kind of helped strengthen, and together we’re making progress.”

The campaign is structured so community members can contribute directly, with donor signatures scaled onto the finished mural. Williams said the goal was to give ordinary residents a visible stake in the project. Donations start at $1,000 and can be made through Lucille’s 1913, the nonprofit Williams founded during the pandemic that has since provided hundreds of thousands of meals to Houstonians in need and now serves as the local conduit for funds to Street Art for Mankind.

The mural is expected to be unveiled this fall, with a public celebration planned in partnership with the Children’s Museum of Houston.

10 | September 10, 2026 |

DEFENDER NETWORK

DN Sports

Quinton Murray

Emerges as the next great TSU cornerback?

By Terrance Harris

Quinton Murray had a list of all the things that were important to him during the college football recruiting process while he was at Pearland.

Arizona State and Central Florida seemed to check initial boxes.

Great academics Great football opportunity A place where he could grow as a man and a football player But the list of needs-to-haves expanded the moment Murray encountered Texas Southern coach Cris Dishman at a mega camp for defensive backs. It only took a few drills for Dishman to see Murray had all the intangibles to excel at the next level, and a quick conversation with the former Oilers cornerback for Murray to Quinton Murray realize exactly what he needed in a college coach to reach the heights he wanted.

Suddenly, the money and opportunities that Arizona State and UCF could offer didn’t matter.

“Really, what helped me was Coach Dishman being a corner and playing in the league (NFL),” Murray said to the Defender.

“I was really big on getting all of the information, getting all of the technique, and all of the skills.

“It was really the teaching for me. I wanted to play for a coach who was from the league. I really have aspirations of going to the league. Having a coach who played in the league was a big difference in my recruiting process.”

It was Coach Dishman.

He brought me in with open arms and welcomed me here.

That really made me feel very comfortable in coming here.”

QUINTON MURRAY

Texas Southern sophomore cornerback Quinton Murray played as a reserve for the Tigers last season, but is expected to assume a starting role this season. Credit: Quinton Murray’s IG page.

Just as expected and needed, Dishman pushed, challenged, taught, and put Murray into situations where he could be successful last year, as a true freshman. But the training wheels have come off for the 6-foot-2, 185pound cornerback who is fully expecting a breakout season in 2026.

“I feel like I bring the length, I bring the play-making ability and everything really – anything that you can think of in a corner,”

said Murray, who was an All-District performer at Pearland High School. “And I can really play any position on the field. I bring all of the versatility in a DB role.”

While more measured in his assessment of how special a season Murray could have with the season fast approaching, Dishman didn’t hold back this past spring when talking about expectations for the rising sophomore.

“He is a stud. He is a guy. I’m expecting him to make All-SWAC,” Dishman said during spring practices. “He has great ball skills, and he can run. He is what you want as a corner. He can play the field, and he can play the boundary.”

What jumps out immediately is his prototype stature, athleticism, and ability to make plays. Murray played in 11 games last season, but not as a starter. Dishman dropped him strategically into positions where he could make plays and learn. And Murray responded, totaling 19 tackles, nine solo, three pass breakups, and one interception as a freshman.

Murray believes that gaining that experience, getting more comfortable with the speed of the college game, and the increased physicality were huge.

“It was very helpful,” he said. “They put me in games where we might be tied up, and we are counting on these last six seconds of the game like the PV game. They put me in games in the last little minutes of the game and really counted on me to bring it home. So that really helped me out as a young guy.”

Dishman saw Murray’s talent last season and gave him more opportunities when warranted.

“He wasn’t ready,” Dishman said of why he didn’t play Murray as much early last season. “I only play guys who are ready, and he wasn’t ready last year.

“This year, he is doing everything we are asking him to do. So he is probably ready this year.”

Dishman says Murray’s size, athleticism, and understanding of the game have impressed him this fall camp.

“I can go on and on about what I like about him. But his football IQ is so high,” Dishman said. “I think it has to do with family upbringing. His dad used to coach, and I think that has a lot to do with it.”

Knowing that his coaches have confidence in him has meant everything to Murray as he looks to prove them right this season.

“It feels good to have everybody at TSU supporting me, knowing that I’m going to be the next big guy, putting the weight on my shoulders,” Murray said. They know I’m a young guy and know what I can do out there and do it. I can take care of the business and go out there and win, and bring PBUs (pass breakups) and things like that.

“I know that they are really counting on me this year, and hopefully I can have a big year this year, and I’m counting on myself to have a big year this year.”

September 10, 2026 |

DEFENDER NETWORK

| 11

DN Sports GOAL: Converting Playoff Streak To

Nimitz district championship

By Jimmie Aggison

For five straight seasons, Nimitz has found a way to extend its season.

Last year, the Cougars continued that tradition by finishing in a three-way tie for first place in 6A Region II District 14, earning another playoff berth. It marked the program’s longest postseason streak since the school opened in 1979.

Now, Nimitz enters the 2026 season with a new challenge.

After graduating quarterback Albert Brown, leading receiver Malachi Augustus, and all three all-district offensive linemen, the Cougars must replace significant offensive production.

But with a defense loaded with returning talent, led by senior linebacker Elijah Taylor and senior weak safety Jamari Bondi, Nimitz believes its experience can help it accomplish what the program has not done in nearly three decades: Win an outright district championship.

“Making the playoffs five straight years says that our plan and expectations are clear and set, but we need to continue to raise the bar and be the standard,” said Nimitz head coach Cornelius Harmon. “Winning an outright district championship for Nimitz would be a great accomplishment. It’s one of our goals for the year, but not our ultimate goal, as we have bigger goals and aspirations.”

However, taking the next step will require the Cougars to replace several key offensive contributors from last season’s playoff team.

When a team loses players such as Brown, Augustus, and its all-district linemen, offseason and summer workouts become crucial for preparing the next group to step into those roles.

“Replacing those guys will be difficult, but we look forward to the challenge; each of our players has the capability to fill those roles,” said Harmon.

After rushing for more than 550 yards and eight touchdowns last season, Da’Kari Franklin used the offseason to improve his game as he prepares to assume a key running back role.

“I focused on improving my balance and strength, keeping my feet moving, and getting faster,” said Franklin. “I’ve also been working to become a better leader and to set an example for my teammates.”

With new athletes stepping into starting roles, the Cougars’ offense must build its identity as a unit rather than relying on individual pieces.

“We have a few people who will need to step up as leaders and set an example,” said Franklin. “We have to trust each other, work together, and hold each other accountable.

Nimitz High School head football coach Cornelius Harmon reminds his team of the importance of playing with intensity and not taking plays off as they prepare for the upcoming 2026 season. Credit: Jimmie Aggison/Defender.

If everyone does their job and steps up when their number is called, we can have a really good offense this year.”

Junior Edwin Brown brings versatility to the offense, capable of playing both quarterback and receiver. He is prepared to contribute at multiple positions for the Cougars this season.

“I’ve been playing wide receiver and quarterback my whole life,” said Brown, who added muscle and improved his stamina as he prepares his body to play both positions if asked. “I put on 15 to 20 more pounds. I attended summer workouts at Nimitz and worked with my QB trainer, Brian Swain, and my wide receiver trainer, Kevin Brown.”

The work with coach Brown focused on hand-eye coordination and footwork, while the work with coach Swain focused on mechanics.

Aggressive senior tight end Donovan Jordan should also bolster the Cougars’ offense. His presence could force defenses to respect Nimitz’s option attack while accounting for the Cougars’ ability to pass or run.

“Last year, I didn’t have to run as many routes because of our explosive senior offense, but now that I’m a senior, I’ll be

playing a bigger role and running more routes,” said Jordan.

While the offense continues to develop new playmakers, the Cougars believe their defense has the experience to keep them competitive from the start.

Senior Jamari Bondi, who accounted for 97 tackles and 11 tackles for loss last season at linebacker, has moved to weak safety. He understands the importance of senior leadership.

“Being a leader of this defense is truly a blessing,” said Bondi. “Coach Eric Buchanan has taught me how to succeed in this defense and in life. Being a leader in this defense makes me realize how hard I have to push every day, knowing my teammates are counting on me.”

Along with Bondi, senior linebacker Elijah Taylor returns after recording 82 tackles and 10 tackles for loss last season.

The Cougars also return 6-foot-3, 180pound senior cornerback Emmitt Hines, who has the size to defend receivers across the district, and fellow senior defensive back Romello Pierre, who was effective in coverage and a reliable tackler last season, accounting for 52 tackles.

“My experience gives me a lot of confidence because I got a lot of reps last season,”

said Hines. “You don’t see many high school defensive backs with my size and length.”

With a defense capable of carrying the team early, the biggest question is whether the offense can develop quickly enough to help Nimitz compete for a championship.

“A successful 2026 season for Nimitz football is making sure we grow as a program, develop the young guys, and have the opportunity to see how this thing will go,” said Harmon. “As long as we get better week in and week out, our challenges will depend on how quickly we grow up. Like many programs across the state, we need to find depth on the offensive and defensive line.”

For the Cougars, however, the opportunity extends beyond developing young players and returning to the playoffs. The ultimate goal is to make Nimitz history.

“To bring the first outright district championship to Nimitz since 1998 would mean the world to the team,” said Bondi. “To carry that with us for the rest of our lives, knowing that we changed Nimitz history, would truly be a blessing.”

“Our standard is the standard, and that won’t change. Win District, 100% passing rate,” said Harmon.

12 | September 10, 2026 |

DEFENDER NETWORK

DN Feature HOUSTONIAN

Regan Hutsell Makes history as Miss America 2027

By ReShonda Tate

Houston native Regan Hutsell has danced on some of the world’s biggest stages. Now, the 25-year-old is stepping onto another one as Miss America 2027 — and making history along the way.

Hutsell, who represented Texas, became just the fourth Miss Texas to capture the national title and the first since Shirley Cothran won more than 50 years ago in 1975 when she took home the crown at the 99th Miss America competition in West Palm Beach, Florida.

But Hutsell’s victory came with another milestone particularly significant for Black women and girls. According to the Miss America Organization, she became the first woman of color to win the crown while wearing her natural hair.

Hutsell told People that choosing to compete with her natural curls was important

because she wanted girls watching her to see beauty that reflected their own. She said embracing her natural hair also represented a shift in how she viewed beauty herself.

The crown is the latest chapter in a life largely spent performing.

Hutsell began dancing at age 4 and launched her professional career at 18 as a Radio City Rockette. She later joined England’s Birmingham Royal Ballet in 2021, performing in productions including Romeo and Juliet, The Nutcracker, Swan Lake and The Sleeping Beauty. That dance background paid off during Miss America.

Hutsell performed a jazz routine during the talent competition and won preliminary awards in both talent and fitness.

Yet behind the accomplishments is a deeply personal struggle that now shapes Hutsell’s advocacy.

She has spoken openly about developing

an eating disorder while navigating the pressures of professional dance, perfectionism and body image. Her experience inspired her community service initiative, “Your Body Is Your Home,” which promotes healthy self-worth, positive inner dialogue and the message that a person’s value should never be determined by appearance.

Hutsell is also pursuing an education in health sciences with plans to become a physical therapist. Through the Miss America program, she has earned nearly $90,000 in scholarships, including $50,000 with her national win.

“Miss America has always represented hope and inspiration,” Hutsell said. “I look forward to encouraging individuals of all generations to walk boldly in their purpose, pursue their wildest dreams, and never give up on themselves.”

Regan Hutsell

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