8 July 2 - 8, 2026 dallasobserver.com DALLAS OBSERVER Classified | MusiC | dish | Culture | unfair Park | Contents antifa — the anti-fascist political movement that is an umbrella term for all sorts of leftist militant groups — a domestic terrorist orga- nization. Prosecutors claimed that the eight defendants tried for the Prairieland protest were linked to the group, and the Justice Department noted that the case was the first ever sentencing of “defendants affiliated with” antifa. In October 2025, Texas Attorney Gen- eral Ken Paxton referenced the two dozen individuals linked to the Prairieland De- tention Center protest as cause for launch- ing “undercover investigations into various groups affiliated with left-wing political violence.” U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor, who oversaw the case, acknowledged on Tues- day that the sentences were lengthy, but said that “the need to deter this type of conduct is high.” He described the July 4 protest as “an assault on democracy.” That language is reminiscent of other po- litical persecutions that have taken place in history, such as during the 1918 sedition prosecutions that were used to quell anar- chist and socialist ideologies, said Jenny Car- roll, a Texas A&M law professor who has written about efforts to police dissent. Those prosecutions faced challenges because they butted up against First Amendment protec- tions for political speech, she added. “What we generally don’t see is judges talking about targeting a particular political persuasion in order to drive home that de- terrence message,” said Carroll. “If we think of criminal law as being a mechanism to de- ter future behavior, we usually talk of that as universal or we don’t talk about it at all. We say we don’t want people to show up and protest and bring guns and fire at law en- forcement officers. It’s an apolitical state- ment. … But to say we’re targeting people of a particular political persuasion, I think that’s where it becomes problematic.” Carroll said that she expects the sen- tences to be appealed, and O’Connor’s ex- plicit targeting of the protesters’ ideologies may be “a big basis” for those appeals. For Gurumoorthy, the Prairieland sen- tencing is indicative of a multi-year crack- down on dissent that the North Texas DSA has monitored closely. The chapter is part of a coalition of left-wing groups that regularly protest issues such as immigration enforce- ment or the war in Gaza, and they rely on a “robust” network of volunteers to ensure protester safety. Gurumoorthy says the Prairieland ar- rests have not deterred DSA organizers from engaging in political assembly. Still, she ac- knowledges that the case was so charged in its early days that the group was “hesitant to make any sort of comment” about the pro- test or arrests. “We were kind of scared to say some- thing because we knew it wasn’t only feder- ally they’re trying to crack down, but also on the state level,” she said. “I mean, it’s not like Ken Paxton is a fan of leftist groups.” Another concern for organizers is the type of evidence introduced at trial. Prosecu- tors pointed to the fact that many of the de- fendants wore black to the protest, that some brought first-aid kits, literature read during some of the individuals’ left-wing book club, and the use of Signal, an encrypted messag- ing app, as evidence that the protesters planned violence for that evening. When similar evidence was used in the wake of the 2020 Black Lives Matter pro- tests, Carroll said a decrease in political ac- tivity was recorded, likely due to fear of persecution. She believes federal prosecu- tors are aiming for the same effect with Tuesday’s rulings. “This is an extreme case. This sentencing is extreme. … [But the prosecution is] not just this guy who brought a gun and shot someone. … It was also have you ever read literature by some of these organizations? Have you ever been on a mailing list? Have you ever commented on social media?” Car- roll said. “A lot of the things that we do in our daily lives that may feel relatively innoc- uous or may not be designed to signal a radi- cal political position, but merely an alignment of belief systems … if that starts to become evidence that I am engaging in a conspiracy for whatever flows from that protest movement, which is what we saw in this case, I think it’s going to undoubtedly have a chilling effect. And I think that’s the purpose.” ▼ HEALTH & SAFETY SHOO, FLY SHOULD YOU BE WORRIED ABOUT NEW WORLD SCREWWORM’S TEXAS COMEBACK? BY EMMA RUBY S crewworm may have a name ripe for profane wordplay, but the destruc- tive parasite is really no laughing matter. Earlier this month, state officials an- nounced that for the first time in decades, the New World screwworm had returned to Texas. Screwworm flies lay their larvae in the open wounds of animals, and those lar- vae get nutrients by feeding on their live- stock host. Once adults, the flies go on to find new animals to invade and continue the vicious life cycle. Their feeding can be so voracious that it’s deadly, and while the plague typically af- fects animals such as cattle, the flies can lay larvae in any warm-blooded animal, includ- ing pets. According to a dashboard updated June 18 by the U.S. Department of Agricul- ture, 12 cases of screwworm have been de- tected in the U.S. since June 3. Of the dozen cases, all but one have been in Texas. The infections have affected mostly sheep, cattle and goats. One dog in New Mexico was also found to be infected with screwworm. However, Guy Loneragan, dean and professor for the Texas Tech Uni- versity School of Veterinary Medicine, told the Texas Tribune that “it’s not a time to panic.” “We have been preparing for this for al- most 18 months or longer in many cases, and there is a plan to address it,” Loneragan said. Texas eradicated the screwworm in the 1960s, but a resurgence in the late ’70s gut- ted the cattle industry, leaving farmers and ranchers down millions of dollars. Since 2023, the fly has been steadily buzzing north through Central America. While the flies can travel more than 100 miles inde- pendently, livestock transport aids their spread. In June 2025, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott launched the Texas New World Screwworm Response Team after the parasitic flies were detected in Oaxaca, Mexico. The team was part of a $750 million investment into a long-standing defense strategy: dedicated facilities breed sterile male screwworms to help combat the spreading of larvae. A breeding plant is under construction at Moore Air Base in Edinburg, Texas, with the goal of releasing 100 million sterile flies per week by the end of 2027. While the facility was not expected to open until November 2027, Abbott is now pushing for a May 2027 opening to help fight against the fly’s Lone Star State come- back. Federal funds are paying for the facili- ty’s construction costs. Abbott expanded a statewide disaster declaration just before the second case of screwworm was announced, and the gover- nor told reporters that he expected con- struction to take place “24 hours a day, seven days a week, to make sure the facility in Texas will be up and run- ning even faster than what is cur- rently scheduled.” “Here is the real- ity of this cycle. This is likely to spread over the course of the summer. During winter months, it may kill off the flies or reduce their number, but we can’t make it through a second summer,” Abbott said. A major outbreak could be potentially le- thal to Texas’ cattle industry, and wouldn’t do anything to help already sky-high beef prices. The U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates that an outbreak similar in size to the one that rocked Texas in 1976 would cost the Texas economy $1.8 billion. As far as pets go, the guidance is a bit more reassuring. Screwworm causes discomfort in pets that is fairly easy to notice, and if identified early, it can be treated. Earlier this month, the FDA granted emergency authorization for an over-the-counter drug that can be used to treat infections in dogs and cats, a defense tool that federal officials say is more than a year in the making as scientists began preparing for the screwworm’s U.S. reentry. Firearms, Fireworks and Felonies from p7 Adobe Stock Protests against President Donald Trump’s mass deportations have become riskier. Adobe Stock The New World screwworm fly is no laughing matterif you enjoy a cheap burger. A MAJOR OUTBREAK COULD BE POTENTIALLY LETHAL TO TEXAS’ CATTLE INDUSTRY.
