''Free Press Houston'' was a free monthly newsprint publication focusing on arts, entertainment, culture and politics. Founded in March 2003 by Omar and Andrea Afra, Free Press Houston was distributed throughout the greater Houston area with particularly strong distribution in

inner city The term ''inner city'' has been used, especially in the United States, as a euphemism for majority-minority lower-income residential districts that often refer to rundown neighborhoods, in a downtown or city centre area. Sociologists somet ...

neighborhoods such as Montrose, Heights, and the Houston Warehouse District.

History

Free Press Houston began its publishing history in March 2003. Although independent of previous such publishing ventures in the Houston area, the original staff did include contributors from Houston-based alternative publications such as Houston's Other and Public News. However, Free Press Houston distinguished itself from these earlier ventures by expanding past merely focusing on Houston's art and music scene into liberal political commentary and controversial local issues like human trafficking. Free Press Houston is often considered by conservative circles to align themselves with left-wing and socialist politics due to their notable advocacy and defense of

abortion Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. An abortion that occurs without intervention is known as a miscarriage or "spontaneous abortion"; these occur in approximately 30% to 40% of pregn ...

illegal immigration Illegal immigration is the migration of people into a country in violation of the immigration laws of that country or the continued residence without the legal right to live in that country. Illegal immigration tends to be financially upwar ...

and

same-sex marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being Mexico, constituting ...

. In 2018 financiers seized Afra's assets, including FPH, and had plans to sell them. Afra maintains the sale was deficient and legally revokable. A public auction was held at law office in

Downtown Houston Downtown is the largest central business district in the city of Houston and the largest in the state of Texas, located near the geographic center of the metropolitan area at the confluence of Interstate 10, Interstate 45, and Interstate 69. The ...

where the owner of Yellow Cab Houston, Steve Harter, sold it to himself.

Westheimer Block Party and Free Press Summer Festival

Himself a performing musician and one-time bass guitar instructor, Free Press Houston publisher Omar Afra has long been interested in event production. This interest resulted in a small scale revival over several years (2005–2009) of Houston's legendary Westheimer Street Festival as the "Westheimer Block Party". Later, Mr. Afra went on to become the principal promoter of Free Press Summer Fest, a two-day annual event held in

Eleanor Tinsley Park Eleanor Tinsley Park is a section of Buffalo Bayou Park in Houston, Texas. It was designated on April 20, 1998 in honor of Eleanor Tinsley, who served as a member of the Houston City Council At-Large for 16 years. The park houses the Lee and Jo ...

. Featuring headliners as diverse as

Willie Nelson Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American country musician. The critical success of the album ''Shotgun Willie'' (1973), combined with the critical and commercial success of '' Red Headed Stranger'' (1975) and ''Stardust'' (1978 ...

and

Iggy Pop James Newell Osterberg Jr. (born April 21, 1947), known professionally as Iggy Pop, is an American singer, musician, songwriter and actor. Called the " Godfather of Punk", he was the vocalist and lyricist of proto-punk band The Stooges, who w ...

, Free Press Summer Festival has served to bring attention to Houston's active role within American musical culture and growing role within the U.S. Music industry. Summer Fest 2012 is estimated to have drawn well over 80,000 attendees.

Omar Afra, Accusations of Sexual Harassment

In August 2018, Afra was accused of sexual harassment by two women. All accusations were dismissed by HPD and Harris County. In response to the accusations Afra posted to his personal Facebook account, acknowledging behavior in which "I have veered away from what I knew was right and caused pain to those around me including family and friends," adding he was "saddened, shocked, and embarrassed...for the developments over the last several days." Afra announced he would step down from his positions at Free Press Houston, where he served as publisher and was removed from his role in the Day for Night festival

References

External links

FPH Official Site

Summer Fest Official Site
{{Houston newspapers Newspapers published in Houston