Jhair Romero

Houston

Latino Communities Reporter at Houston Chronicle

Latino Communities Reporter at Pearland Journal

Latino communities reporter @HoustonChron | send tips: [email protected] | bilingüe 🇨🇴

Articles

Why Houston still lacks a major outdoor music festival like ACL or Lollapalooza

1 week ago | houstonchronicle.com | Jhair Romero

Houston and music pair well. This is the city that birthed icons like Beyoncé, Kenny Rogers, Megan Thee Stallion and ZZ Top. But for as much talent as this city produces, it does a bad job of showcasing it. Today, we’re talking about why Houston — the fourth-largest city in the country — doesn’t have a major music festival to rival those of cities like Austin or Chicago.
Why some Houston neighborhoods have more trees

1 week ago | houstonchronicle.com | Jhair Romero

Houston is a city of contrasts: hard freezes and devastating hurricanes can hit within months of each other. It is one of the most diverse places in the country, yet still quite segregated. A clear marker of these disparities in Houston are our trees - and our simultaneous lack thereof. So why do some parts of Houston feature lush green canopies while others feel like massive concrete slabs? Let's talk about it. Article continues below this adWhy are some neighborhoods in Houston full of trees?
Behind downtown Houston's explosion of murals and public art

2 weeks ago | houstonchronicle.com | Jhair Romero

Downtown Houston was once known more for its parking lots than its art, but these days, the city center looks Instagram-ready. That's thanks to a coordinated effort that has brought dozens of vibrant murals from local and international artists to Houston's central business district, beautifying the city and turning it into a massive, open-air art gallery. Let's dive into how they got there.
Texas lawmaker files bills for mobile home tenants as they face mass evictions

2 weeks ago | houstonchronicle.com | Tanya Babbar |Jhair Romero

Down $15,000 of her life's savings, Frankie Schwarzburg watched her husband load a moving trailer with a bittersweet memento - her daughter's quinceañera dress purchased for a day her family spent ages saving up for, even as they learned they were about to lose everything.
Why Houston's city seal has a train, even though modern Houstonians hate them

2 weeks ago | houstonchronicle.com | Jhair Romero

For many Houstonians, trains are the bane of our existence. So why in the world does our official city seal - plastered on government documents, in buildings and on our (hideous) flag - have a train on it? Article continues below this adAll aboard for this history lesson. When was the seal designed, and by whom? Houston leaders saw the need for an official insignia by February 1840, when the city was only four years old and had a population of about 2,000.
How the Houston Chronicle fooled readers with a fake San Jacinto collapse

3 weeks ago | houstonchronicle.com | Jhair Romero

On the front page of that Sunday edition of the Houston Chronicle were stories about a violent tornado that killed 15 people in the Florida Panhandle and of a multi-vehicle crash that left four, including a Texas A&M professor, dead in Alvin.
What's that hand sign Houston fans use during basketball games?

3 weeks ago | houstonchronicle.com | Jhair Romero

When Houstonians tune into the University of Houston men's basketball team's March Madness matchup against Purdue tonight, they'll likely see UH students and Cougars fans alike throwing up the same hand sign. The Cougar Paw - made by bending your thumb and ring finger inward while keeping your index, middle and pinky fingers extended - has been a University of Houston tradition since the 1950s and an enduring symbol of school pride. But why did UH adopt this tradition in the first place?
How to eat Viet-Cajun crawfish and where to find it in Houston

1 month ago | houstonchronicle.com | Jhair Romero

Over my decade of living in Houston, this city has opened my palate to different cuisines from around the world. It's the only town I can think of where you can find Nepali, Honduran, Yemeni and Salvadoran restaurants in the same strip mall. But one popular cuisine I was ashamed not to have tried (until yesterday) was Viet-Cajun, the fusion of Vietnamese and nearby Louisiana Cajun traditions that come together to make some of the boldest flavors in Houston.
Houston-area Muslims gather for historic Ramadan iftar in Sugar Land Town Square

1 month ago | houstonchronicle.com | Jhair Romero

Thousands of Houston-area Muslims gathered over the weekend at Sugar Land Town Square for what organizers said was the largest open-air iftar celebration in the region. Organizers estimated between 4,000 and 6,000 devotees packed into the plaza in front of Sugar Land City Hall on Saturday evening to break their Ramadan fasts and a night of celebration, prayer and community.
Why a Texas family has been Houston rodeo volunteers for 4 generations

1 month ago | houstonchronicle.com | Jhair Romero

We wouldn't have a Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo without the 35,000 volunteers who dedicate their time every spring to making it happen. But few have been as dedicated as the Diezis, a Houston-area family with seven members serving on the rodeo's calf scrambling committee this year. The family has volunteered at the rodeo annually since 1960, and across four generations, they have collectively devoted nearly 240 years of service.