WiseUp TX

Roland Gutierrez is a Texas State Senator running for US Senate to defeat Ted Cruz. Roland will be on the ballot for the TX Democratic primary. On this podcast, hear his position on guns, healthcare, and a ceasefire in Gaza. March 1 - Last day to Vote Early March 5 - Election Day You can visit his website here: https://rolandfortexas.com Learn more about WiseUp TX, volunteer, or donate by finding...

In this interview, host Areeba Amer interviews Judge Juli Mathew Fort Bend County Court at Law #3.  Judge Juli Mathew is up for re-election on November 8 and was first elected to this position in 2018.  She has been a lawyer for decades, and a resident of Fort Bend County.  She describes herself as a proud immigrant. They discuss the importance of the position of Judge, and why vote...

Host Alishba Javaid interviews Texas State Rep. Gene Wu.  Gene represents Texas State District 137 - he has been in the state legislature for ten years.  In this episode he shares what he's learned over the years about how to be effective politician and get things done, he talks about why representation matters, and some of the issues he thinks are most important for Texas going into the...

Host Alishba Javaid interviews Arati Singh who is running for reelection  on the Austin Independent School District Board.  Arati was first elected to the board in December 2018 and is the first Indian-American to serve on the Austin ISD school board. They discuss her path from teacher to elected official, and how she believes we can create an inclusive setting for students of all identi...

In 2019, WiseUp TX Founder and President, Azra Siddiqi interviewed Adnan Syed's  criminal justice advocate, Rabia Chaudry.  Rabia took Adnan's story to the Serial podcast. It went viral and showed the public the failures of the criminal justice system in his case, including how Islamophobia played a role in his wrongful prosecution.  Now,  after 23 years in prison for murdering...

In this episode, your host Punam Kaji, gets Back to the Basics, covering why this 2022 Midterm is so important!  Many seats are up for election - The Governor of Texas, Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, Texas State Senators and House members, AND U.S. House Reps are up for election, just to name a few.  We are calling this the Masala Midterm because it is a big deal for our communit...

In this episode, Alishba Javaid talks to Jan McDowell, running for the United States House of Representatives.  She hopes to defeat incumbent Republican Beth Van Duyne, but first, she has to win a Primary Runoff Election coming up on May 24.  She is running in District 24, which covers parts of Dallas, suburbs of North Dallas, Mid-Cities, and suburbs of north Fort Worth, against Derrik G...

Punam Kaji talks to Jay Kleberg, a candidate in the Primary Runoff for Texas Land Commissioner.  This is a state-wide office heading to a Primary runoff on both the democratic side, and the republican side.  Jay is running in the Democratic Primary Runoff, which takes place on May 24, and early voting is May 16-May20.  In this episode, Jay explains what this office does,  from...

Punam Kaji talks to Derrik Gay, running for the United States House of Representatives.  He hopes to defeat incumbent Republican Beth Van Duyne, but first, he has to win a Primary Runoff Election coming up on May 24.  He is running in District 24, which covers parts of Dallas, suburbs of North Dallas, Mid-Cities, and suburbs of north Fort Worth.  Derrik is a former marine, so he kno...

In this episode, host Areeba Amer talks to Farha Ahmed, running for City Council At-Large Position 2 in Sugar Land, Texas.  Sugar Land is a suburb in Houston area with a large South Asian population.  Farha talks about the power of running as an immigrant and a South Asian and how that allows her to work with other communities, and also inspire more people to run.   She is running i...

In this episode, hear from Alex Cornwallis, running for State Board of Education, Place 12.  This seat is up for election in November 2022 and helps shape our Texas schools.  Place 12 includes a number of North Texas counties, including all of Collin county.  Hear Alex's perspective about running as a South Asian candidate and amplifying the issues important to South Asian students...

In this episode, host Punam Kaji talks to Executive Director of AAPI Victory Alliance, Varun Nikore. AAPI Asian American and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs) are receiving national attention with a rapidly growing population and an activated electorate.  Hear how AAPI voters in Texas have become a focus of the national org, AAPI Victory Alliance. About Varun: For more than 30 years, Mr. Nikore has b...

Host Punam Kaji talks to Jared Ross about upcoming the local election on May 7, 2022 and what is at stake for Texans!  Jared is a candidate for Birdville ISD Board of Trustee, and he asked to join the podcast to spread the word to our South Asian followers about the importance of local elections - particularly the school board.  On this episode, Jared helps educate our listeners about lo...

Alishba Javaid talks to Zohaib “Zo” Qadri, a progressive leader running for Austin City Council District 9.  If he wins he would be the first South Asian and first Muslim in the Austin City Council.  Zohaib talks about housing insecurity and the unhoused population in Austin.  He talks about representation and the importance of running for office as a South Asian.  He shares a...

WiseUp TX leaders Punam Kaji and Azra Siddiqi talk about that Texas Primary Results!  The BIG Masala Midterm being this November, but over the last few weeks, Texans went out to vote in the primary to decide who will be on the ballot in November.  Only about 1 out of 5 registered voters voted in the Primary.  Tune in to find out which candidates are heading to the Runoffs in May, an...

Punam Kaji talks to Jessica Huynh, running for District Court Judge (331st) in Travis County. Have you studied your full ballot?  In addition to Governor and state wide offices, there are many Judges on the ballot!  Jessica talks about the importance of having understanding and empathy for the people who enter the courtroom, and her experience as an Asian American attorney and candidate....

Punam Kaji talks to Joy Diaz running for Governor of Texas as a Democrat.  She talks about the importance of being pragmatic and unifying.  She reminds our listeners that it is so important to come out and vote in this Primary! Learn more about Joy by visiting her website here .   Learn more about WiseUp TX, volunteer, or donate on our  website . The WiseUp TX podcast is availa...

Punam Kaji talks to Dr. Suleman Lalani, a candidate for Texas State House in Fort Bend area (suburbs of Houston).  This is an Asian Opportunity  district, meaning census data showed a substantial Asian population in this area!  Dr. Lalani talks about much needed reforms to healthcare and education, and the importance of voting for the Asian community. Learn more about Dr. Lalani on...

Punam Kaji talks to Donna Imam, running for the United States House of Representatives.  She is running as a democrat in the 37th District, which covers a good portion of Austin, Texas.  Among other things, Donna talks about how she would tackle the increasing cost of living in Texas, including housing prices.  She shares how her last run for the U.S. House helped turnout a large ba...

Punam Kaji talks to Manpreet (Monica) Singh, running for Judge of the Harris County Civil Court at Law #4.  Monica shares her journey as a court room lawyer, an activist  for organizations like Sikh Coalition and ACLU Texas, and now as a candidate for Judge.  She talks about her roots as a Houstonian, and a South Asian.   Read more about her campaign on her website here . &nbsp...

Punam Kaji talks to Charlie Gearing, a democratic candidate running for Texas State House District 114 (East Dallas). Charlie is an attorney who has dedicated much of his time to volunteerism and service work. Charlie talks about why Texans need medicaid expansion, the importance of education, and how we can all get more involved in the process this election season. Learn more about Charlie on his...

Punam Kaji talks to Jinny Suh, a democratic candidate for Land Commissioner.  She explains what the Land Commissioner does - including its role in education and the environment. She is a community organizer, parent, attorney and small business owner.  She founded Immunize Texas, a grassroots network dedicated to supporting pro-vaccine legislation. She talks about being an Asian American...

Areeba Amer talks to Salman Bhojani, a democratic candidate running for Texas State House District 92 (Mid-Cities of DFW).  Salman is a former City Councilman of Euless, a South Asian American and a small business owner. In this episode, he shares his passion for local government and more!  Learn more about Salman on his campaign website, here .  Learn more about WiseUp TX, voluntee...

WiseUp TX Podcast Host Punam Kaji recaps everything we covered in 2021!  It was quite a year, kicking off with the inauguration of the first woman, Black, and South Asian person to be Vice President of the United States, Kamala Harris.  Then, we focused on local elections before taking a summer break. The fall podcast season focused on laws that came out of the Texas Legislative Sessions...

Hear from Prerna Bhat, a member of the TX AAPI Redistricting Coalition, who testified six times in front of the Texas Legislature to advocate for voting maps that will keep the growing Asian community together and not dilute the power of the APA constituency.  During a special legislative session, Texas lawmakers created and passed new voting maps for Texas House Districts, Texas Senate Distr...