In the early 1990s, Maggie Rivas-Rodriguez went looking for books about Latinos who served in World War II; she couldn't find any, "not a single book," so she decided to write her own.

Two political supporters of U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry secured a potentially lucrative oil and gas exploration deal from the Ukrainian government soon after Perry proposed one of the men as an adviser to the country's new president.

Students gathered in the Tower Friday and chanted phrases such as “Abusive professors deserve to die!” and “Kick out abusive creeps!” during the second Sit-In for Student Safety.  Around 20 students called for the firing of English associate professor Coleman Hutchison and Sahotra Sarkar, integrative biology and philosophy professor, who were both found guilty of sexual misconduct by the University. The protestors also requested a campuswide email explicitly naming the professors and a University apology for employing professors guilty of misconduct. A 2018 University investigation found Hutchison violated UT’s sexual misconduct policy after making sexual comments to students and failing to disclose a relationship with a graduate student.  Sarkar was suspended for one semester in 2017 after a University investigation found he violated UT’s Title IX policies by making inappropriate comments to students, according to the Austin American-Statesman. Hutchison and Sarkar did not respond to requests for comment before publication.  Around 60 students previously held a sit-in in the Tower on Oct. 25, where they requested the University acknowledge allegations of sexual misconduct in a campuswide email and release a report of all professors found guilty of sexual misconduct by UT. During Friday’s protest outside the provost’s office, students posted signs on the walls outside of the provost’s office, the president’s office, the accused professors’ offices and around the Tower. Protest organizer Annie Flores said she was dissatisfied with the University’s response and wanted to see them take action.    #mc_embed_signup{background:#fff; clear:left; font:14px Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif; width:100%;} /* Add your own Mailchimp form style overrides in your site stylesheet or in this style block. We recommend moving this block and the preceding CSS link to the HEAD of your HTML file. */ Want more content like this in your inbox every morning? “Words are just words,” psychology sophomore Flores said. “We would like to see these people fired. We’re the second wealthiest university (in the nation). We can afford to fire a couple of professors who abuse students.” In a campuswide email sent Thursday, UT President Gregory Fenves said the University would be forming a task force and hiring outside experts to review sexual misconduct policies. Fenves said the University also approved three additional investigators for the Office for Inclusion and Equity. The protest was originally planned to be outside of Fenves’ office, but Flores said the door was locked. University spokesperson Shilpa Bakre said the University typically locks the offices during a protest.  “The University respects students’ freedom of speech and right to protest,” Bakre said in a statement. “Consistent with University rules and federal law, interior offices can be locked so that the business of running the University can continue during protests.” Neuroscience senior Jessica Meza said it was important for her to get involved in the protest because of her and her friends’ experiences with “creepy” professors. She said the University has been slow to respond to cases like these due to their “priority of profits” and “research” over the safety of students. “At a systematic level, the University has failed (students) time and time again,” Meza said. “We have to stop looking to them to make the change. People who have been oppressed and exploited have to go out there and fight for that change.” Hazel Kent, theatre and dance sophomore, said she joined today’s sit-in because of how prevalent sexual misconduct is on campus.  “I want the University to apologize to us, and I want them to take responsibility for the choices they’ve made,” Kent said. “It’s not hard to just look at the faces of your students and say ‘I’m sorry for what we’ve done to you.’”

A California-born online clothing company introduced itself to Austin this weekend with a sample sale on The Drag. The company, Chubbies, sells men’s casual clothing, including shorts and swimwear. The sample sale was held at the former Co-op Art Store location, and it was the company’s first in-store event since its headquarters moved from California to Austin in late September, said co-founder Kyle Hency. “(The move) was the best way to make sure all of our employees had the resources to live comfortably while working for us,” Hency said. “Me and the others who started this are younger than a lot of other executives, so we’re thinking about living costs above everything else.” Hency and three other Stanford University graduates founded Chubbies in 2011. Hency said college-aged men are the company’s target audience and played a role in their decision to host a sale event near campus. “It seemed like the best way to get people talking about Chubbies being here,” Hency said. “We may not have any plans to open a store on the ground, but it’s right at the center of the kind of community we want to serve.”   #mc_embed_signup{background:#fff; clear:left; font:14px Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif; width:100%;} /* Add your own Mailchimp form style overrides in your site stylesheet or in this style block. We recommend moving this block and the preceding CSS link to the HEAD of your HTML file. */ Want more content like this in your inbox every morning? Chubbies’ September move into Austin reflects the city’s popularity with young entrepreneurs, said clinical associate professor John Butler. He said decisions to move headquarters come from a company making measured business decisions. “The place a company identifies with is usually a huge part of their identity and isn’t something they make decisions about without thought,” Butler said. “A physical location change is something a lot of people pay attention to.” Butler said the company’s decision to establish their presence in Austin by holding a sale near UT could serve as a test of their marketing practices. Through the sale, he said Chubbies can see what kind of customers they attract and how they react to the brand. “Every company has their own way of going about showing their customers what they want to associate themselves with,” Butler said. “(This) might give them an idea of how much their branding is reflecting what type of customers they attract.” Human development of organizations sophomore Brayan Reyes attended the sale on Saturday, and said he liked the way the clothing company catered to college men through their marketing. “I have a couple pairs of their shorts already, and they’re really comfortable,” Reyes said. “My friends and I love their YouTube videos. It feels like they know their audience really well.” Based on Chubbies’ social media, Reyes said the company’s move to Austin fit their brand. “They seem like a lot of fun, and Austin is a really fun city to live in,” Reyes said. Hency said the company hopes to incorporate its brand identity more closely with the student community in the future. “I love the energy of a student community,” Hency said. “It’s so much more vibrant than I think a lot of clothing companies recognize. Being right where one of the more energetic student communities is will be the best way for us to grow.”