Unfair Representation

On April 7, Carlos Mendoza wrote an article discussing the unfair representation of the Texas Legislature. His position is solid and one that’s hard to argue with. He starts with the most important piece of information to be considered: white Texans are rapidly falling from their position as the majority in the state. Hispanics are closing the gap and will soon become the plurality. Mendoza’s example of the recent Planned Parenthood cases is a perfect way to further convince his audience of unfair representation. The best interests of women and minorities are not going to be adequately considered, or even understood, by a group of wealthy, highly educated, white men.

Now how can we fix this problem? Mendoza points out that the true flaw is in the way the system is set up – which is to fail us. Even if we can get a more diverse group of people educated on and interested in becoming local politicians in order to better the state, how can the average person afford to take 140 days off of their daily lives and work schedules in order to attend the legislative sessions? They can’t. And that’s why, as Mendoza puts it, we have a Legislature composed of rich people representing the rich people of Texas.

Again, the article is hard to find a flaw in. His arguments are straightforward and backed up with enough evidence to show this is a real issue. The only critique I can come up with is he could have concluded with suggesting a way to change the structure and how the legislature is run so that average citizens have a chance in participating in their local government proceedings and decision-making.