The top local stories this morning from KERA News:
What’s being called a “homeland security summit” begins this morning in Austin. State House member Kyle Biedermann says he organized the summit to “thoroughly understand the threat of radical Islamic terrorism in Texas.”
But Texas chapters of the Council on American-Islamic Relations say the summit is Islamophobic, suggesting an intent to limit participation in next week's Texas Muslim Capitol Day.
Biedermann previously sent out a controversial survey to mosque leaders and Muslim student associations across the state asking questions about Sharia Law and the Muslim Brotherhood. In a statement, the lawmaker said the survey was sent to gather responses ahead of his forum.
A group of North Texas advocates, including the Human Rights Committee of Dallas, are urging lawmakers not to participate in the forum.
Other stories this morning:
- Volunteers will stay up late tonight to count the homeless population across North Texas. The annual count helps communities identify trends and understand where the homeless live. Volunteers will follow routes created with mapping software – they’ll canvass under bridges as well as cars, parks, wooded areas and abandoned buildings.
- Some of the movies that received Oscar nominations this week debuted a year ago at the Sundance Film Festival. Our Big Screen team talked about some of the films that played this year’s festival.
You can listen to North Texas stories weekdays at 8:22 a.m. and 6:20 p.m. on KERA 90.1 FM.
