City News

Celebrities help Texas weather storm aftermath in this Dallas news roundup

Matthew McConaughey University of Texas Austin longhorn hook em

Matthew McConaughey donated funds to help feed families in Dallas.

There was really only one thing that happened this week in Dallas: the epically awful winter weather storm. Now we wade through the aftermath, with generous donations from celebrities, politicians, and chefs.

Here's what happened in Dallas this week:

AOC raises a million for TX
While Texas Sen. Ted Cruz was scuttling back from his aborted Cancun getaway, N.Y. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was raising $1 million for Texans. On February 18, she launched a fund-raiser for five Texas organizations including The Bridge Homeless Recovery Center, Ending Community Homeless Coalition (ECHO), Family Eldercare, Houston Food Bank, and Feeding Texas, all of whom have been working around the clock to assist houseless, hungry, and senior Texans in Travis and Dallas County, and beyond. She managed to raise the money in four hours. UPDATE 2-20-2021: AOC has now raised more than $3.2 million and is volunteering on Saturday at the Houston Food Bank.

Dak & McConaughey donate
While Texas Sen. Ted Cruz was making reservations for $309 per night at the Ritz Carlton in Cancun, Dak Prescott and Matthew McConaughey were teaming up with Dallas charity OurCalling, who oversaw the opening of the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center as a warming center for those displaced from their homes. McConaughey and Prescott both donated money to purchase meals for individuals and families.

Trash collection is back
The winter storm delayed trash collection and other basic city services across DFW, but those are all back online or will return by next week. That includes the U.S. mail, which suspended delivery for three days because of the weather and power outages, as well as garbage and recycling.

In Dallas, full operations will restart on Monday on the normal collection schedule.

In Fort Worth, garbage and recycling resumed on February 19. The city has suspended its usual policy requiring that garage cart lids be closed through February 27. Extra garbage can be placed in the cart even if the lid does not close, and up to two additional bags of garbage can be placed next to or behind the cart.

Soup's On! later
The 13th annual Stewpot Alliance Soup's On! Luncheon and Art Sale goes virtual Thursday, March 4 at 12 pm featuring award-winning chef, restaurateur, and humanitarian José Andrés. This is a new date; the event was originally February 25. Robert Wilonsky, Communications Director for Heritage Auctions and op-ed columnist for the Dallas Morning News joins Chef Andrés for a conversation about how his efforts ensure people worldwide are fed in the wake of catastrophe.

Proceeds from the luncheon benefit The Stewpot which now, in its 46th year serves our neighbors who are experiencing and at risk of homelessness by providing meals (over 8,000,000 to date), counseling and case management, medical and dental services via onsite partners, youth and family stabilization programs, as well as therapeutic and vocational activities.

This year, the art sale, featuring original pieces of art from the artists at The Stewpot will take place online in conjunction with the virtual luncheon. Single tickets begin at $250, which includes a gift box with sponsorships opportunities available. Since the 2021 event is virtual, a $35 view-only option will be offered. For more information, sponsorship and tickets, visit estewpot.org/soups-on.

politics city-news-roundup

closing the gaps

Texas no longer leads U.S. for racial progress, new report says

The Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center in Dallas

The Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center/Facebook

WalletHub's report is released annually ahead of MLK Day.

Texas has been overtaken as the No. 1 state that has made the most racial progress, according to a new study.

The Lone Star State led the nation in 2025, but now ranks in third place behind Georgia (No. 1) and Mississippi (No. 2). It also ranked No. 5 nationally in the list of states with the most racial integration.

WalletHub's "States That Have Made the Most Racial Progress" study is released annually ahead of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. The report compares all 50 states and the District of Columbia across 22 relevant metrics divided into two main rankings: racial integration (which the study defines as "the current integration levels of white people and Black people") and racial progress (defined as "the levels of racial progress achieved over time").

The report's author clarifies that the study focuses only on the racial integration between Black people and white people "in light of racial tensions in recent years that sparked the Black Lives Matter movement."

"We released this report ahead of the holiday honoring Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., who played a prominent role in the Civil Rights Movement to end segregation and discrimination against Black people," the report says.

The study further divided each ranking into four main categories measuring the gaps between white people and Black people over time; spanning employment and wealth, education, social and civic engagement, and health. Texas performed the best in education and health, ranking No. 4 nationally in both categories, and it ranked in sixth place for its social and civic engagement. The state ranked 16th in the category for employment and wealth.

According to WalletHub, Texas has "done a lot" to reduce gaps in health outcomes for white and Black residents, such as reducing gaps in health insurance coverage, and reducing the share of Black Texans suffering from "poor health" and diabetes. It also notes that Texas "made the second-most progress when it comes to obesity," but it did not acknowledge the racial bias in body mass index (BMI) that has been increasingly flagged in recent years.

The report further praises Texas for reducing the gap in business ownership between white and Black Texans, and for its improvement in reducing discrimination in the parole system. WalletHub does not offer data behind the parole claim.

"It’s encouraging to look at the data and see that some states have made significant strides toward racial equality over the past few decades," said WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo regarding the overall report. "This change demonstrates that state-level policies and residents’ attitudes regarding equality have grown considerably better."

Though racial disparity gaps are closing between white and Black people, racial profiling and discrimination is still a major issue affecting Black people and other people of color across the country.

In 2023, a senate bill banned public Texas universities from having diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) offices and programs, prompting warnings of discrimination against Black, Hispanic, and other marginalized students, including those with disabilities.

The top 10 states with the most racial progress in 2026 are:

No. 1 – Georgia
No. 2 – Mississippi
No. 3 – Texas
No. 4 – North Carolina
No. 5 – Maryland
No. 6 – Florida
No. 7 – New Jersey
No. 8 – Massachusetts
No. 9 – Louisiana
No. 10 – New Mexico

wallethub texas report mlk day