The battle that ended Texas’ war against Mexico (Texas Revolution) was the Battle of San Jacinto and especially important in securing a victory was Juan Seguin and his small detachment of native-born Mexicanos or Tejanos as they were often referred to.[endnoteRef:5] Immediately following this short battle, as Texians argued over what to do with General Santa Anna, the other 730 Mexican prisoners captured, as well as a few black slaves, were ordered to clean the swamp land on which the city would eventually be built.[endnoteRef:6] Most of the Mexican prisoners would soon be sent home, many however; stayed thus creating the starting point on a time line for when and how early Mexicans were in the region.[endnoteRef:7] Tejanos also would remain in the region especially if they were given land by the new republic for military services rendered during the revolution.[endnoteRef:8] The city of Houston would be established shortly the war and although it could not have happened without the efforts of Seguin and other ethnic Mexicans (Tejanos), it would be largely lacking of a huge Mexicano population within the actual city limits.[endnoteRef:9] Despite that, however, Tejanos, Mexicans, and then later Mexican Americans, began making their presence and impact on Houston as they were doing elsewhere throughout the republic. They quickly established themselves as a distinct and important part of the city and would come to impact its development.[endnoteRef:10] What follows is an attempt to illustrate how exactly Mexican and Mexican Americans contributed to the social, artistic, economic, political, and educational developments of Houston and its surrounding communities. [5: This study will apply a variety of terms to identify the community under investigation. The term “Mexican American” will be used most frequently but other expressions such as “Mexicano,” “Mexican Immigrant,” “Tejano,” “Chicano,” and “Latino” will also appear periodically to avoid excessive repetition. For the most part, all terms listed above will be used interchangeably to describe those living in and around the city of Houston, both citizen and non-citizen alike. In many instances, the term Mexicano will be used as an umbrella term to describe the people of Houston in general. The terms “Anglo,” “white” or “Anglo American” will also be used interchangeably to describe the non-Mexican-origin population of Houston. As such, “Black,” “Negro,” and “African American” will be used to identify those of African origin. Lastly, this study will use national orientations to identify other whites, i.e. Italians, and other non-whites i.e. Asian Americans.] [6: Tatcho Mindiola. Black-Brown Relations and Stereotypes. Austin: University of Texas Press, 2002. Page 7.] [7: Many of Santa Anna’s soldiers that stayed were allowed to become servants for Texians. See Arnoldo De León. Ethnicity in the Sunbelt: A History of Mexican-Americans in Houston. University of Houston Mexican American Studies Program, 1989. Page 5.] [8: Arnoldo De León. Ethnicity in the Sunbelt: A History of Mexican-Americans in Houston. University of Houston Mexican American Studies Program, 1989. Page 5.] [9: Thomas H. Kreneck. Del Pueblo: A Pictorial History of Houston's Hispanic Community. Houston: Houston International University, 1989. Page 23.] [10: Ibid. Page 27.]
Mexican American Communities: Growth & Formation, 1900-1930
Since its founding in 1836, Tejanos and Mexicans, and then after 1848 Mexican Americans, have lived and occupied on the edges of Houston although their presence was small as there were not yet any definite barrios (neighborhoods) that was distinctively theirs. The few that did live in Houston were scattered throughout the settlement and lived mostly in the peripheries, that is, on the outskirts of town.[endnoteRef:11] Many would also live just outside of town and enter it only to either find work or to go to work.[endnoteRef:12] One of the areas in which Mexican Americans would eventually come to occupy is a region of town called the Second Ward or El Segundo Barrio, quite literary translating into the Second Neighborhood although the area was much larger than that. In fact, Segundo Barrio, southeast of downtown Houston, would be made up of various neighborhoods.[endnoteRef:13] [11: Arnoldo De León. Ethnicity in the Sunbelt: A History of Mexican-Americans in Houston. University of Houston Mexican American Studies Program, 1989. Page 8.] [12: Ibid. Page 8.] [13: Ibid. Page 56.]
Originally a German and German American community that formed in the 1840s, Second Ward, by the turn of the twentieth century, would come to attract a great number of Mexican and Mexican Americans already living in Houston’s periphery and over time would quickly become the unofficial hub of their cultural and social life.[endnoteRef:14] And as more and more Mexican Americans began moving in, many of the German residents partook in what is often referred to as “white flight” by moving out of the area. Although many German families, dating back to the 1880s, had already begun moving out since many of the homes in the region were in serious dilapidated conditions.[endnoteRef:15] Looking for more attractive neighborhoods, numerous German households, especially the affluent ones, had already vacated the area since before the turn of the twentieth century.[endnoteRef:16] [14: Thomas McWhorter. “From Das Zweiter to El Segundo: A Brief History of Houston’s Second Ward.” Houston History Magazine, Vol.8, No.1. (Fall 2010). Page 41.] [15: Louis F. Aulbach. “Schrimpf’s Field: A Story of Two German Families.” Undated.] [16: Ibid.]
After 1900, Mexicans Americans, who numbered about 1,000 people in Houston according to that year’s census, quickly turned into a viable community and began setting new communities and neighborhoods where none existed before.[endnoteRef:17] Showing great tenacity and creativity, they also began to form highly sophisticated networks of businesses, organizations, religious and cultural institutions, and sports clubs.[endnoteRef:18] By 1910, the census revealed that around fifty Mexican and Mexican Americans lived in Second Ward only, but estimated that perhaps 2000 people of Mexican extraction made the city of Houston their home.[endnoteRef:19] Accounting for the large influx of this group into the Houston area was violence erupting in Mexico. In 1910, revolution broke out and drove hundreds of families north from Mexico and also from Southern Texas, many of which made Houston their destination.[endnoteRef:20] [17: Tatcho Mindiola. Black-Brown Relations and Stereotypes. Austin: University of Texas Press, 2002. Page 7.] [18: Thomas H. Kreneck. Del Pueblo: A Pictorial History of Houston's Hispanic Community. Houston: Houston International University, 1989. Page 41.] [19: Thomas McWhorter. “From Das Zweiter to El Segundo: A Brief History of Houston’s Second Ward.” Houston History Magazine, Vol.8, No.1. (Fall 2010). Page 42.] [20: Jaime Puente. “Mexican Americans in Houston: Facing Adversity and Becoming American During the Great Depression, 1929 -1939.” 2011. Page 2.]
By the end of the First World War most of the original German families had vacated Second Ward, and although much of that is because of white and wealth flight, anti-German hysteria, brought on by WWI, also played a role in their removal as Houston, and the rest of the county, began to pass acts and other laws that infringed on the rights of German and German Americans.[endnoteRef:21] Believed to be enemies of the nation, they became victims of harassment, intimidation, violence, ejection, and removal, and so leaving Second Ward was perhaps the safest thing to do if one were German or German American during that period. And so long before the huge waves of Mexican and Mexican Americans, the area was already suffering dismal housing conditions as homes were crudely built and had no heat, and in many instances, lacked running water.[endnoteRef:22] [21: Thomas McWhorter. “From Das Zweiter to El Segundo: A Brief History of Houston’s Second Ward.” Houston History Magazine, Vol.8, No.1. (Fall 2010). Page 41.] [22: Arturo F. Rosales. "Mexicans in Houston: The Struggle to Survive," Houston Review 3 (Summer 1981). Page 228.]
The Second Ward continued to have a small German American community reside there as not everyone left. And overtime other non-German whites began settling into the region as well. In fact, the entire ward would become segregated as various distinct ethnic neighborhoods emerged. For Mexican Americans, one of their earliest neighborhoods was a placed they called El Alacran (the scorpion).[endnoteRef:23] Known originally as Schrimpf’s Field, named after the two German immigrant brothers who arrived in the area in the fall of 1840 and purchased a couple of tracts of land from the then Texan government, it would be home to some of the longest standing Mexican Americans institutions throughout the city.[endnoteRef:24] Magnolia Park would be a second Mexican American neighborhood to emerge although it would do so further east along the ship channel.[endnoteRef:25] Like El Alacran, this neighborhood was also previously an all white section of town but due to white and wealth flight, it too quickly became almost entirely made up of Mexican and Mexican Americans.[endnoteRef:26] In fact, by 1930, Magnolia would have the largest concentration of Mexicano residents in all of Houston.[endnoteRef:27] In the North Side of town or the Fifth Ward, as its often referred to, Mexican American would also establish a residential area but it was usually families who’s men worked on the railroad yards.[endnoteRef:28] Also in the North, or at least in an area just north of downtown called the Heights, about 100 Mexican American families lived there.[endnoteRef:29] Most of the early Mexican American neighborhoods were poor areas that had unpaved streets and lacked running water or gas or even light services.[endnoteRef:30] Even if these luxuries existed before when only whites lived there, they were no longer available once Mexicanos moved in. The areas would eventually develop these things but it would not be until they began to undergo more permanent settlement and growth. [23: Thomas McWhorter. “From Das Zweiter to El Segundo: A Brief History of Houston’s Second Ward.” Houston History Magazine, Vol.8, No.1. (Fall 2010). Page 42.] [24: Louis F. Aulbach. “Schrimpf’s Field: A Story of Two German Families.” Undated.] [25: Arturo F. Rosales. "Mexicans in Houston: The Struggle to Survive," Houston Review 3 (Summer 1981). Page 231.] [26: Arnoldo De León. Ethnicity in the Sunbelt: A History of Mexican-Americans in Houston. University of Houston Mexican American Studies Program, 1989. Page 14.] [27: Arturo F. Rosales. "Mexicans in Houston: The Struggle to Survive," Houston Review 3 (Summer 1981). Page 232.] [28: Arnoldo De León. Ethnicity in the Sunbelt: A History of Mexican-Americans in Houston. University of Houston Mexican American Studies Program, 1989. Page 24.] [29: Ibid. Page 24.] [30: Ibid. Pages 24-25.]
Occupations:
Among the earliest things Mexican Americans did in Houston was find work in almost every kind of industry and would then go on to establish a variety of businesses for themselves.[endnoteRef:31] Traditionally, most Mexican Americans worked as tailors, clerks, agriculturalist, cooks, and boot makers, like Feliciano Torres Medel who helped make Houston one of the capitals of Western style boot-making.[endnoteRef:32] A great number of Mexican Americans would also work in the oil refineries and were responsible for building the Houston Ship Channel in 1914 as well as laying down the city’s railroads even though the white population typically discouraged that kind of employment.[endnoteRef:33] However, there was also a small but growing number of business owners like Jose Gomez who had a sign painting company or Eciquia Castro who ran a café in 1905.[endnoteRef:34] Other businesses and owners included Francisco Hernandez of the Alamo Furniture Company, Jose and Socorro Sarabia of Hispano Americana Book Store, La Preferencia Barbershop of Magnolia Park, and Melesio Gomez who operated a popular café called La Consentida.[endnoteRef:35] [31: One of the first known Mexican Americans businesses in Houston was established by Luis Fernandez in 1890. See Thomas H. Kreneck. Del Pueblo: A Pictorial History of Houston's Hispanic Community. Houston: Houston International University, 1989. Page 35.] [32: Jesus C. Medel. “Urban Migration of Bespoke Boot Makers: The Case of Feliciano Torres Medel, A Political Boot-maker.” Undated.] [33: Jaime Puente. “Mexican Americans in Houston: Facing Adversity and Becoming American During the Great Depression, 1929 -1939.” 2011. Page 2.] [34: Thomas H. Kreneck. Del Pueblo: A Pictorial History of Houston's Hispanic Community. Houston: Houston International University, 1989. Pages 35-36.] [35: Ibid. Pages 63, 69, and 102.]
Also emerging were various printing shops that produced numerous Spanish language newspapers including El Anunciador, La Tribuna, El Tecolote, and La Gaceta Mexicana.[endnoteRef:36] Quite obviously then, both barrios (neighborhoods) would soon contained countless drugstores, restaurants, bakeries, shops, schools, barbershops, ice cream parlors, dry good stores, and filling gas stations.[endnoteRef:37] But it was not just the well to do Mexican and Mexican Americans who owned and operated businesses. Numerous thrifty and industrious vendors, as early as 1890, frequented the city’s market square to sell their merchandise including food, clothing, soaps, liquors, shoes, and candies.[endnoteRef:38] Moreover, Mexican Americans employment was not confined to the service industry as a great number of them found work in white-collar jobs as bankers, courthouse aids, postal men, lawyers, doctors, actors, singers, and even as teachers like John Mercado who worked as a Spanish teacher at Houston High School.[endnoteRef:39] For the next three decades, Mexican Americans would not only infiltrate almost every work industry the city had to offer but would usher in also a whole sort of businesses throughout Houston and develop a bustling Mexican American economy.[endnoteRef:40] [36: Mexican American Collection Guide, Houston Metropolitan Research Center, Houston Public Library System, Houston, Texas.] [37: Arturo F. Rosales. "Mexicans in Houston: The Struggle to Survive," Houston Review 3 (Summer 1981). Page 233.] [38: Jesus C. Medel. “Urban Migration of Bespoke Boot Makers: The Case of Feliciano Torres Medel, A Political Boot-maker.” Undated.] [39: Thomas H. Kreneck. Del Pueblo: A Pictorial History of Houston's Hispanic Community. Houston: Houston International University, 1989. Page 38.] [40: Jaime Puente. “Mexican Americans in Houston: Facing Adversity and Becoming American During the Great Depression, 1929 -1939.” 2011. Page 3.]
Organizations:
The other thing that Mexican and Mexicans Americans did early in Houston was establish a variety of social, cultural, religious, political, and mutual aid clubs and organizations the purpose of which were to provide support, financial and otherwise, to the budding Mexican American communities emerging throughout all of Houston. Considered the first Mexican American organization in town was El Campo Laurel, established in 1908 as a chapter of the Woodmen of the World club.[endnoteRef:41] Its goal was to offer Mexican Americans services that ranged from recreation to security in the form of insurance.[endnoteRef:42] Other self-help organizations included Mutualista Benito Juarez of Magnolia Park, founded in 1921, and Pasadena’s Mutualista Miguel Hidalgo.[endnoteRef:43] One of the most influential and business savvy organizations to form during this period was Club Femenino Chapultepec. Founded in 1931 by women, they helped by trying to secure jobs for Mexican Americans in Houston’s slowed but steady business sector.[endnoteRef:44] These early clubs were extremely important to the growth of the Mexican American communities and provided, at times, the only form of protection for a people with little to no public resources. More clubs and organizations would continue to flourish throughout the years each with their own agendas but each especially impactful on the lives of Mexican Americans themselves. [41: Thomas McWhorter. “From Das Zweiter to El Segundo: A Brief History of Houston’s Second Ward.” Houston History Magazine, Vol.8, No.1. (Fall 2010). Page 42.] [42: Arturo F. Rosales. "Mexicans in Houston: The Struggle to Survive," Houston Review 3 (Summer 1981). Page 224.] [43: Mexican American Collection Guide, Houston Metropolitan Research Center, Houston Public Library System, Houston, Texas.] [44: Thomas Kreneck. “The Letter From Chapultepec.” The Houston Review, III (Summer 1981). Page 268.]
Institutions:
Like clubs and organizations, this next institution would also come to serve Mexican Americans and impact their lives in profound ways. Constructed in 1911 as a response to the growing Mexican American population of Second Ward, Our Lady of Guadalupe Church is considered the first Mexican American church in Houston and the first religious institution to offer services in Spanish.[endnoteRef:45] Similar to what organizations did, the Church also provided food and shelter for the people. It also ran one of the earliest schools made available to Mexican American children, the Lady of Guadalupe Parochial School, where school-aged children learned to read and write.[endnoteRef:46] In the 1920s a second church would come to serve Houston’s Mexican Americans, the Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Church.[endnoteRef:47] With this second church, Mexican Americans in Houston not only had important institutions that served their spiritual and personal needs but now could more easily define their neighborhoods and communities. [45: Thomas McWhorter. “From Das Zweiter to El Segundo: A Brief History of Houston’s Second Ward.” Houston History Magazine, Vol.8, No.1. (Fall 2010). Page 42.] [46: Thomas H. Kreneck. Del Pueblo: A Pictorial History of Houston's Hispanic Community. Houston: Houston International University, 1989. Page 61.] [47: Ibid. Page 67.]
Another early institution to address the needs of Mexican Americans was the Rusk Settlement House. Established in 1907 in the Second Ward, it was initially a school for white children but when most whites left the area it was converted into a Settlement House, which, of course, was part of a national trend that tried to reach out and offer support to the country’s poorest.[endnoteRef:48] Among the many things it did, such as provide food and shelter services, the house also offered English language instruction classes to community members and helped also many people apply for residency or citizenship.[endnoteRef:49] It also provided free daycare services and kindergarten classes for young school-aged children.[endnoteRef:50] Both church houses and the others that would follow along with the Rusk Settlement House quickly became cornerstones of Mexican American communities and perhaps the most identifiable landmarks of those areas. [48: Arnoldo De León. Ethnicity in the Sunbelt: A History of Mexican-Americans in Houston. University of Houston Mexican American Studies Program, 1989. Pages 12-13. See also Thomas McWhorter. “From Das Zweiter to El Segundo: A Brief History of Houston’s Second Ward.” Houston History Magazine, Vol.8, No.1. (Fall 2010). Page 42.] [49: Thomas H. Kreneck. Del Pueblo: A Pictorial History of Houston's Hispanic Community. Houston: Houston International University, 1989. Page 57.] [50: Thomas McWhorter. “From Das Zweiter to El Segundo: A Brief History of Houston’s Second Ward.” Houston History Magazine, Vol.8, No.1. (Fall 2010). Page 42.]
Culture:
Absolutely thriving in Houston from very early on was a vibrant Mexican American culture. From every corner of the community Mexicanos celebrated holidays, both Mexican and American, birthdays, religious ceremonies, and music festivals. And helping to sustain cultural celebrations and activities were lively musical groups, traveling shows, clubs, and theaters like El Teatro Azteca, one of the earliest Mexican American theaters in Houston and the first Spanish language theater in the city.[endnoteRef:51] Other Mexican American theater centers of early Houston included El Salon Juarez and Teatro and La Cruz Azul Mexicana Theater.[endnoteRef:52] Also adding to the cultural entertainment of early Houston were Spanish speaking vaudeville groups like Los Hermanos Areu and their third member Beatriz ‘la chata’ Noloesca.[endnoteRef:53] [51: Thomas H. Kreneck. Del Pueblo: A Pictorial History of Houston's Hispanic Community. Houston: Houston International University, 1989. Page 65.] [52: Arturo F. Rosales. "Mexicans in Houston: The Struggle to Survive," Houston Review 3 (Summer 1981). Page 236. See also Thomas H. Kreneck. Del Pueblo: A Pictorial History of Houston's Hispanic Community. Houston: Houston International University, 1989. Page 68.] [53: Thomas H. Kreneck. Del Pueblo: A Pictorial History of Houston's Hispanic Community. Houston: Houston International University, 1989. Page 65.]
Always a cause celeb and absolutely a booming form of entertainment were fiestas patrias (cultural celebrations) like diez y seis de septiembre (the date of Mexico’s independence from Spain) that were usually put on by cultural clubs such as La Asemblea Mexicana that included a pageant and downtown parade.[endnoteRef:54] These kinds of cultural celebrations would come and go. They would become almost non-existent or at least were celebrated privately especially during the thirties and fifties when the country was swept up in extreme nativism and anti-Mexicaness. By the 1960s, fiestas partias, as a public celebration returned to Houston with gusto. Also revived was the huge parade with decorated floats that accompanied the celebrations as well as the señorita fiestas patrias pageant.[endnoteRef:55] [54: Thomas McWhorter. “From Das Zweiter to El Segundo: A Brief History of Houston’s Second Ward.” Houston History Magazine, Vol.8, No.1. (Fall 2010). Page 42.] [55: Thomas H. Kreneck. Del Pueblo: A Pictorial History of Houston's Hispanic Community. Houston: Houston International University, 1989. Page 178.]
Considered today a cultural treasure is Lydia Mendoza, a native Houstonian born in 1916 in the Houston Heights (north of present-day downtown), who gained national attention for her musical talents during the twenties and thirties as both singer and guitarist.[endnoteRef:56] Known as “La Alondra de la Frontera” (the meadowlark of the border), she would later become a famous recording artist out of San Antonio, Texas after having been discovered on an amateur singing contest for a local radio station.[endnoteRef:57] Orchestas (big band orchestras) like theaters were also popular forms of entertainment and always in high demand were groups such as La Orquesta Tipica Torres and Los Rancheros Orchestra.[endnoteRef:58] Also in high demand was an orquesta called Alonzo y sus Rancheros who specialized in musica ranchera, a musical sound often described as Mexican American country western.[endnoteRef:59] As part of the Work Projects Administration, a component of Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal Programs, Mexican Americans in Houston would form the WPA Orchestra and were essentially paid by the government to entertain the people of Houston.[endnoteRef:60] During the first three decades of the 20th century, Mexican American culture was alive and well. And responsible for maintaining a solid cultural presence in Houston were music groups, Orchestras, clubs, theaters, cultural celebrations, organizations, and individuals of all sorts. Cultural activity, especially during the early years, meant that the Mexican American communities were beginning to stabilize and grow.[endnoteRef:61] [56: Carlos B. Gil. “Lydia Mendoza: Houstonian and First Lady of Mexican American Song.” The Houston Review, III (Summer 1981). Page 252.] [57: Ibid Pages 250 and 258.] [58: Thomas H. Kreneck. Del Pueblo: A Pictorial History of Houston's Hispanic Community. Houston: Houston International University, 1989. Pages 70-71.] [59: Mexican American Collection Guide, Houston Metropolitan Research Center, Houston Public Library System, Houston, Texas.] [60: Thomas H. Kreneck. Del Pueblo: A Pictorial History of Houston's Hispanic Community. Houston: Houston International University, 1989. Page 89.] [61: Arturo F. Rosales. "Mexicans in Houston: The Struggle to Survive," Houston Review 3 (Summer 1981). Page 235.]
Sports Clubs:
Ripe throughout the Houston area were various sports clubs and teams made up of Mexican Americans including El Club Deportivo Azteca, the Houston Soccer Team, and the Mexican Inn Baseball Team.[endnoteRef:62] Sports teams like organizations and cultural institutions would serve important roles in the lives of Mexican Americans in that they allowed the people to form solidarity and instill and foster pride in their neighborhoods and communities. [62: Thomas H. Kreneck. Del Pueblo: A Pictorial History of Houston's Hispanic Community. Houston: Houston International University, 1989. Pages 74 and 106.]
Surviving the Depression and Impacting WWII, 1930-1945
The 1930s would greatly affect the lives of Houston’s 14,500 Mexican Americans.[endnoteRef:63] Although the city would escape much of the problems that existed elsewhere around the nation, the attitudes and sentiments, especially regarding a people believed to be at the root of the recession, were strong throughout much of Houston. And as the depression wore on and as unemployment continued, city officials, scapegoating Mexican Americans, began raiding into their communities and homes for the purpose of deporting them out of the country. Accused of draining the economy, city officials made it their task to remove Mexican and Mexican Americans from Houston.[endnoteRef:64] In fact, many of the people who were to be exiled out of town were to depart from a long-time servant and protector of Mexican Americans; the Rusk Settlement House.[endnoteRef:65] Once a cherished institution and a beacon of help and hope for Mexican Americans, the Rusk Settlement House was now an agent of the state and helped carry out much of the deportations of Mexicans and Mexican Americans. In addition to the massive exodus that was taking place during the thirties, Mexican Americans were also victims of various forms of aggressive and punitive prejudicial and discriminatory acts and policies including segregation and disenfranchisement. Mexican workers especially were no longer welcomed in the Houston and as such were encouraged and even forced to leave the city and return to Mexico.[endnoteRef:66] Organizations, cultural centers, and entertainment locales either went out of business on their own or were forced to close as part of the depression. Moreover, many of the federal programs designed to bring the country out of the depression were denied to Mexicanos even to those who could provide evidence of their citizenship.[endnoteRef:67] Those who stayed suffered from an entrenched poverty. So horrific was the economic status of these families that children often had to drop out of school to find work, sometimes as shoe shiners or newspaper delivery boys and girls but mostly as laborers in the fields, to supplement their parents’ income.[endnoteRef:68] And with poverty came other social ills like poor health, segregation, and death.[endnoteRef:69] [63: Arturo F. Rosales. "Mexicans in Houston: The Struggle to Survive," Houston Review 3 (Summer 1981). Page 231.] [64: Jaime Puente. “Mexican Americans in Houston: Facing Adversity and Becoming American During the Great Depression, 1929 -1939.” 2011. Page 4.] [65: Thomas H. Kreneck. Del Pueblo: A Pictorial History of Houston's Hispanic Community. Houston: Houston International University, 1989. Page 79.] [66: Carlos B. Gil. “Lydia Mendoza: Houstonian and First Lady of Mexican American Song.” The Houston Review, III (Summer 1981). Page 255.] [67: Jaime Puente. “Mexican Americans in Houston: Facing Adversity and Becoming American During the Great Depression, 1929 -1939.” 2011. Page 9.] [68: Maggie Rivas-Rodriguez. “Reinventing Houston: Mexican Americans of the World War II Generation.” The Houston Review, Vol. 2, No. 2. (Spring 2005). Page 11.] [69: Arturo F. Rosales. "Mexicans in Houston: The Struggle to Survive," Houston Review 3 (Summer 1981). Page 229.]
To help cope with the problems of the depression, individuals, groups, and institutions engaged in relief type services like the Lady of Guadalupe Church, which often provided meals to local children, as well as the Sociedad Mutualista Obrera Mexicana.[endnoteRef:70] In 1932, Bartoleme Casa formed El Club Pro-Repatriacion to try to help his countrymen to return to Mexico voluntarily.[endnoteRef:71] They even managed to purchase a truck to be able to drive the people into Mexico.[endnoteRef:72] Also important in helping Mexican Americans cope with the socio-economic and political problems of the 1930s were salones and dance halls as these locations became spaces for people to escape the harsh realities of daily life and enjoy, if even for a short while, themselves amongst great company and lively entertainment. Always packed with people especially on the nights when Lydia Mendoza and her traveling, musically talented family were in town, were establishments like El Salon Juarez and El Salon Hidalgo.[endnoteRef:73] The Mendoza’s also delighted viewers with theatrical performances and skits as members of her family were exciting vaudeville performers.[endnoteRef:74] Other frequented places included Houston’s Bonita Gardens Dance Hall and Club Recreativo Tenochitlan.[endnoteRef:75] [70: Thomas H. Kreneck. Del Pueblo: A Pictorial History of Houston's Hispanic Community. Houston: Houston International University, 1989. Page 87.] [71: Arturo F. Rosales. "Mexicans in Houston: The Struggle to Survive," Houston Review 3 (Summer 1981). Page 239.] [72: Ibid Page 239.] [73: Carlos B. Gil. “Lydia Mendoza: Houstonian and First Lady of Mexican American Song.” The Houston Review, III (Summer 1981). Pages 254-56.] [74: Ibid Page 259.] [75: Maggie Rivas-Rodriguez. “Reinventing Houston: Mexican Americans of the World War II Generation.” The Houston Review, Vol. 2, No. 2. (Spring 2005). Page 11.]
But at the same time, Mexican Americans in Houston, and throughout the nation, were also undergoing an intense socio-political maturation and began forming new more assertive organizations and clubs designed to protect their families and communities. In fact, for the first three decades of the twentieth century Mexican American communities nation-wide underwent an evolution that included the development of a middle class; a shift in identity from temporary Mexican migrant to permanent American of Mexican descent; and a shift also among organizations from mutual aid societal clubs to embolden civil rights activist groups.[endnoteRef:76] The year 1929, coincidently, would be a very significant one as it came to symbolize a defining moment in the campaign for civil rights as Mexican Americans increased their challenges to discriminatory practices and policies.[endnoteRef:77] That year, the nation witnessed the formation of one of the earliest Mexican American civil rights organization designed to lead the challenge against prejudice and discrimination; the League of United Latin American Citizens.[endnoteRef:78] [76: Cynthia E. Orozco. “The Origins of the League of United Latin American Citizens and the Mexicano American Civil Rights Movement in Texas, 1910-1929.” Diss. University of California in Los Angeles, 1992.] [77: Guadalupe San Miguel, Jr. “The Struggle Against Separate and Unequal Schools: Middle Class Mexican Americans and the Desegregation Campaign in Texas, 1929-1957.” History of Education Quarterly 23 (Fall 1983), Page 345.] [78: Ibid. Page 345.]
As the problems of the depression began to decline, more and more Mexican Americans families began stabilizing, as forced deportations were not as frequent. Moreover, they began finding jobs again and even started opening up their own business like Melchor Cantu’s Rio Rico Grocery and Market or Felix Morales’ Funeral Home.[endnoteRef:79] In response to the refusal by Houston officials to allow Mexicans to be buried in cemeteries within city limits, Felix H. Morales along with his wife Angelina established the Morales Funeral Home which catered to the Mexican American community. Seeing as racial segregation often followed Mexicanos even into death, the Morales’ attempted to provide community members with a very important and much needed service.[endnoteRef:80] Becoming a popular restaurant chain during this period was Felix’s, named after Felix Tijerina.[endnoteRef:81] What also helped to a degree, at least in terms of dispelling the anti-Mexicaness that many Houstonians had, was an organization called the Latin American Club (LAC) whose purpose was to integrate Mexican Americans into Anglo society.[endnoteRef:82] If whites were convinced that Mexican Americans were attempting to assimilate into their culture then anti-Mexican sentiment and the arrests, roundups, and deportations would cease. [79: Thomas H. Kreneck. Del Pueblo: A Pictorial History of Houston's Hispanic Community. Houston: Houston International University, 1989. Page 103.] [80: Mexican American Collection Guide, Houston Metropolitan Research Center, Houston Public Library System, Houston, Texas.] [81: Arturo F. Rosales. "Mexicans in Houston: The Struggle to Survive," Houston Review 3 (Summer 1981). Page 241.] [82: Ibid. Page 241.]
But what really improved the conditions for Mexican Americans, outside the efforts and accomplishments of their new, more assertive civil rights organizations was the outbreak of war in Europe. As the United States grew closer and closer to joining the war, the scapegoating of Mexican Americans essentially became a non-issue especially after many Mexican and Mexican Americans publically espoused an intense pride in the U.S. Like their fellow countrymen, Mexican Americans also joined in on the war effort as a testament to their love of country and belief in freedom, democracy, and civil liberties, others, however, were drafted.[endnoteRef:83] Whatever the case, Mexican American soldiers would serve in all branches of the military.[endnoteRef:84] In fact, the city’s first war casualty was a Mexican American from the north side of Houston; Joe Padilla, a Navy recruit killed in the South Pacific.[endnoteRef:85] An estimated 300,000 Mexican Americans are believed to enlist in the war and they would come to win the most Medal of Honor awards over all other ethno-racial group enlisted. For Mexican American Houstonians, no other military soldier of that generation would usher in a greater sense of pride than Sergeant Macario Garcia, who in 1945, was a recipient of the Congressional Medal of Honor.[endnoteRef:86] Other Houston soldiers included Leon Eguia; the Zepeda brothers, Roberto, Daniel, Elias, and Isaac; Saragosa Garcia, Felicitas Cerda, Alfred Hernandez, Ernest Eguia, and Robert Ramon, to name a few.[endnoteRef:87] All these men and the thousands like them would help defeat tyranny abroad and come to define also America’s greatest generation. Back at home in Houston, Mexican American women played their part by entering into the vacated warehouses, factories, mills, canneries, and just about any service-type industry to help sustain the economy but also to contribute to the war effort. They also formed groups like the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps that dedicated itself to carrying out the minutia details of recording keeping during the war.[endnoteRef:88] [83: Maggie Rivas-Rodriguez. “Reinventing Houston: Mexican Americans of the World War II Generation.” The Houston Review, Vol. 2, No. 2. (Spring 2005). Page 12.] [84: Ibid. Page 12.] [85: Arturo F. Rosales. "Mexicans in Houston: The Struggle to Survive," Houston Review 3 (Summer 1981). Pages 243-44.] [86: Thomas H. Kreneck. Del Pueblo: A Pictorial History of Houston's Hispanic Community. Houston: Houston International University, 1989. Page 110.] [87: Maggie Rivas-Rodriguez. “Reinventing Houston: Mexican Americans of the World War II Generation.” The Houston Review, Vol. 2, No. 2. (Spring 2005). Pages 11-13.] [88: Ibid. Page 12.]
Post-War Houston, 1945-1960
Following WWII, the city witnessed an economic boom, mainly a byproduct of the war. Technological advances and the need for petro-chemicals during the war allowed Houston to become a global trader and seller and gave the city access to other world markets after the war.[endnoteRef:89] This boom also, as a result, attracted more people including Mexican Americans into the city which in turn allowed for an explosion of new kinds of businesses like Felix Morales’ KLVL, Houston’s first Spanish language radio station.[endnoteRef:90] For the larger Mexican American community specifically, it saw an expanding middle class and the ability to fight against discrimination more successfully as yet again new more sophisticated civil rights groups began to emerge. After the war, Mexican Americans campaigned for civil rights with more force. And among the leading organizations to lead that campaign were the Houston Council # 60 of the League of United Latin American Citizens or LULAC for short along with its women’s auxiliary group Ladies LULAC Council # 22 and the Houston American G.I. Forum. LULAC, established in 1929 in Corpus Christi, had quickly become the leader in the fight against segregation, disenfranchisement, and violence against Mexican Americans. The G.I. Forum, composed exclusively of Mexican American veterans, also fought against racism, discrimination, and oppression as even soldiers were denied service and discriminated against while still in uniform.[endnoteRef:91] In the mid-1940s, HISD schools continued to segregate Mexican American children. As a result, parents called for a boycott of the district and open up an alternative school.[endnoteRef:92] The boycott was successful in that parents and community leaders were able to convince schools officials to build a new schoolhouse to replace the old dilapidated one.[endnoteRef:93] [89: Thomas H. Kreneck. Del Pueblo: A Pictorial History of Houston's Hispanic Community. Houston: Houston International University, 1989. Page 115.] [90: Mexican American Collection Guide, Houston Metropolitan Research Center, Houston Public Library System, Houston, Texas.] [91: Arturo F. Rosales. "Mexicans in Houston: The Struggle to Survive," Houston Review 3 (Summer 1981). Page 244.] [92: Ibid. Page 245.] [93: Ibid. Page 246.]
A few years later, the Houston LULAC group launched in 1957 a small program called “Little Schools of the 400,” where young school-aged children would receive instruction in 400 basic English words that they must know before entering the classroom.[endnoteRef:94] The ultimate goal, of course, was to ensure that children would not struggle in the classroom during the 1st or 2nd grades. These organizations along with the thousands of other activists of the period were responsible for destroying segregation and forcing integration in Houston’s schools, public facilities, and even in the city’s law enforcement agencies like Raul C. Martinez, who became the first uniformed Mexican American officer for the Houston Police Department and later become a county Constable.[endnoteRef:95] The G.I. Forum in particular promoted higher education through its bill (the GI Bill) that made it available for those returning home to learn a trade or get a license of some sort.[endnoteRef:96] [94: Ibid. Page 246.] [95: Mexican American Collection Guide, Houston Metropolitan Research Center, Houston Public Library System, Houston, Texas.] [96: Maggie Rivas-Rodriguez. “Reinventing Houston: Mexican Americans of the World War II Generation.” The Houston Review, Vol. 2, No. 2. (Spring 2005). Page 12.]
Culture:
Musical entertainment continued to thrive during the post-war years as there was a proliferation of new Mexican American groups, bands, and orchestras such as the Tommy Flores Orchestra, Eloy Perez and the Latinaires, El Conjunto De Raul Deanda y Sus Tejanos and even teenage rock-n-roll groups.[endnoteRef:97] The Latinaires, especially did more than entertain music lovers, they helped introduce and popularize Tex-Mex music and would come to influence an entire generation of Mexican American musicians.[endnoteRef:98] Nightclubs also blossomed during this period such as the popular Pan American Nite Club and the La Tenaza Night Club.[endnoteRef:99] And so although Mexican Americans in Houston suffered greatly during the depression years, they flourished economically, politically, legally, and culturally during the postwar years. Far from being fully integrated into American society, they had made significant inroads and were eager to push the envelope even further. In fact, much of the progress that had been made during the postwar years would become the starting point for the activism that would ensue over the next two decades. [97: Thomas H. Kreneck. Del Pueblo: A Pictorial History of Houston's Hispanic Community. Houston: Houston International University, 1989. Pages 142-45.] [98: Mexican American Collection Guide, Houston Metropolitan Research Center, Houston Public Library System, Houston, Texas.] [99: Thomas H. Kreneck. Del Pueblo: A Pictorial History of Houston's Hispanic Community. Houston: Houston International University, 1989. Pages 142-47.]
Civil Rights Houston, 1960-1980
By the 1960s, Houston’s Mexican American communities experienced a new heightened level of political activism. Upset mainly with unmet, longstanding grievances, these new activists formed groups that were more forceful in their efforts to secure better treatment. During this period also, Mexican Americans underwent a more militant transformation and abandoned traditional self-identifying terms like Latin, Latin American, and even Mexican American and adopted new bold terms like Chicano or Raza.[endnoteRef:100] This kind of emboldened attitude was espoused by women as well who in 1971 put on a first of its kind conference for the liberation of women known as La Conferencia de Mujeres Por la Raza.[endnoteRef:101] At this conference Mexican American women were not only demanding equal treatment from the larger society but from Mexican American men as well. [100: Ibid. Page 151.] [101: Ibid. Page 191.]
One of the most militant activist groups to form in Houston was the Mexican American Youth Organization (MAYO). Arriving into town from South Texas, MAYO would spearhead numerous forms of boycotts using confrontational tactics. For MAYO, the targets could be anyone or anything; from the school districts, to police brutality, to the Vietnam War. In 1970, for example, members of MAYO were involved in an altercation with Houston ISD officials during a school board meeting.[endnoteRef:102] Another militant organization to emerge in Houston during this period was the Mexican American Education Council (MAEC) who in 1971 took on HISD and encouraged Mexican Americans into holding a strike against the school district because of a proposed court-ordered pairing plan that desegregated the district by merging brown and black students only, leaving whites in their own schools.[endnoteRef:103] Following the recommendations of their legal advisor, Abraham Ramirez, MAEC and parents sued the district and demanded a better desegregation plan.[endnoteRef:104] This particular boycott brought together numerous Mexican American organizations all of which were willing to work in unison for the good of the community. Among the most prominent were P.A.S.O, MAYO, and LULAC.[endnoteRef:105] There was additional help from the Houston Catholic Church as well as from a cadre of community activists who did not belong to any particular group.[endnoteRef:106] As part of the three-week-long strike, MAEC and parents formed their own schools like the Huelga School (strike school) located at the Juan Marcos Presbyterian Church in the north side of town for the purpose of providing their children with instruction while the strike took place.[endnoteRef:107] The other two strike schools were held at the Denver Harbor Presbyterian Church and at El Mesias Methodist Church.[endnoteRef:108] In the end, the courts created the Bi-Racial Committee and then later the Tri-Ethnic Committee to monitor the district’s racial desegregation plans.[endnoteRef:109] Becoming a great source of pride was the George I. Sanchez Junior High and High School, an alternative school founded by Luis R. Cano in 1979.[endnoteRef:110] This school dedicated itself to ensuring Mexican American youth excel in school and eventually graduate.[endnoteRef:111] Also concerned with the education of Mexican Americans was Familias Unidas del Segundo Barrio which started a tutoring program in 1972 for potential high school drop outs.[endnoteRef:112] [102: Ibid. Pages 159 and 170.] [103: Mexican American Collection Guide, Houston Metropolitan Research Center, Houston Public Library System, Houston, Texas.] [104: The ensuing case was known as Ross v. HISD. Mexican American Collection Guide, Houston Metropolitan Research Center, Houston Public Library System, Houston, Texas.] [105: Arnoldo De Leon, Ethnicity in the Sunbelt: A History of the Mexican Americans in Houston. Houston: Mexican Americans Studies Program, UH, 1989. Pages 186-87.] [106: Ibid. Pages 186-87.] [107: Thomas H. Kreneck. Del Pueblo: A Pictorial History of Houston's Hispanic Community. Houston: Houston International University, 1989. Pages 182-83.] [108: Mexican American Collection Guide, Houston Metropolitan Research Center, Houston Public Library System, Houston, Texas.] [109: Mexican American Collection Guide, Houston Metropolitan Research Center, Houston Public Library System, Houston, Texas.] [110: Arnoldo De León. Ethnicity in the Sunbelt: A History of Mexican-Americans in Houston. University of Houston Mexican American Studies Program, 1989. Page 227.] [111: In 1978 George I. Sanchez would have its first graduating class. See Thomas H. Kreneck. Del Pueblo: A Pictorial History of Houston's Hispanic Community. Houston: Houston International University, 1989. Page 185.] [112: Thomas H. Kreneck. Del Pueblo: A Pictorial History of Houston's Hispanic Community. Houston: Houston International University, 1989. Page 184.]
The activism around schools during the fifties, sixties, and seventies is a testament to the high importance Mexican Americans place on education. Since the turn of the twentieth century, Mexican and Mexican Americans have fought for access to schools and admittance into institutions of higher learning. Moreover, they did everything in their power to ensure that their children successfully graduate. In the late 1920s for example, Mexican Americans were instrumental in getting Estella Gomez enrolled into Sam Houston High School, which was at that time, an all white school. In 1929, she graduated making her the first Mexican American to do so from Houston’s public schools.[endnoteRef:113] The desire for education did not end at the public school level. In fact, Mexican Americans were also determined to get their children into institutions of higher learning. And although there were major obstacles there were also occasions when Mexican Americans were able to enroll and eventually graduate from colleges or universities like Francisco Chairez and P.L. Niño would hold the honor of being the first Mexican Americans to graduate from college having completed their studies at Rice Institute in 1928.[endnoteRef:114] In 1970, Mexican Americans even founded their own institution of higher learning; the Hispanic International University.[endnoteRef:115] The intent of this school was to offer classes that met the needs of students and that taught curriculum that was relevant to their lives.[endnoteRef:116] And so since the turn of the twentieth century, Mexican Americans have actively and effectively made education and the access to it a top priority and have used a variety of methods for making it available to their own children. [113: Mexican American Collection Guide, Houston Metropolitan Research Center, Houston Public Library System, Houston, Texas.] [114: Arturo F. Rosales. "Mexicans in Houston: The Struggle to Survive," Houston Review 3 (Summer 1981). Page 232.] [115: Arnoldo De León. Ethnicity in the Sunbelt: A History of Mexican-Americans in Houston. University of Houston Mexican American Studies Program, 1989. Page 227.] [116: In 1984, the school would have its name changed to Houston International University. See Arnoldo De León. Ethnicity in the Sunbelt: A History of Mexican-Americans in Houston. University of Houston Mexican American Studies Program, 1989. Page 227.]
Politics:
During this period also the Mexican American middle class continued to expand so significantly that it had become a serious economic and political force.[endnoteRef:117] Partly responsible for the increasing middle class was an operation called Operation SER/Jobs for Progress launched in 1965 by the local LULAC group.[endnoteRef:118] The purpose of this program was to increase Mexican American employment, an effort it did successfully, but more than simply providing jobs this program also increased the purchasing power of Mexican Americans as a whole. So significant was this growth that politically, Mexican Americans, during the sixties and seventies, would make gains in local and state offices. In 1972, for example, Armando Rodriguez would assume the position of Municipal Judge.[endnoteRef:119] Aside from making gains politically, Houston Mexican Americans also actively campaigned for their candidates of choice including Henry B. Gonzales in 1958 and John F. Kennedy in 1961. The Houston Civic Actin Committee was especially responsible for organizing the Viva Kennedy Clubs, which played a massive role in the 1960 presidential election.[endnoteRef:120] It would also break down voting barriers for Mexican Americans.[endnoteRef:121] Three years later, JFK would visit Houston and hold a party at the Rice Hotel before a LULAC crowd to show his appreciation for their campaigning prowess; the next day in Dallas he would be assassinated.[endnoteRef:122] [117: Thomas H. Kreneck. Del Pueblo: A Pictorial History of Houston's Hispanic Community. Houston: Houston International University, 1989. Page 151.] [118: Ibid. Page 174.] [119: Ibid. Page 167.] [120: Ibid Page 167.] [121: Arturo F. Rosales. "Mexicans in Houston: The Struggle to Survive," Houston Review 3 (Summer 1981). Page 247.] [122: Thomas H. Kreneck. Del Pueblo: A Pictorial History of Houston's Hispanic Community. Houston: Houston International University, 1989. Page 171.]
The CAC would later change its name to the Political Association of Spanish Organizations (PASO) but continued to politicize Mexican Americans in additional ways. Mostly known for registering Mexican American voters, in 1968, PASO opened up a Voter Registration Headquarters in Houston and began to effectively get people registered.[endnoteRef:123] But PASO was interested in more than just politics. Two years earlier they arrived in South Texas to assist in the farm workers movement. Known as the Minimum Wage March of 1966, PASO activists marched across the hot South Texas countryside to the state capitol to bring attention to the plight of and to improve the conditions of Mexican American field workers.[endnoteRef:124] So successful was PASO in getting Mexican Americans registered that in 1972 voters placed Ben T, Reyes as a state representative and Leonel Castillo as city comptroller.[endnoteRef:125] A symbol of political potency, Mexican Americans in 1974 hosted a state convention for La Raza Unida Party (LRUP); a Mexican American political party and first of its kind, designed to carry out the needs of the people. Many Mexican Americans were not just staunch supporters of LRUP but came to serve as official members as well. In 1978, members of the Harris County Hispanic Caucus created the Mexican American Hispanic Advisory Council whose purpose was to address the economic and political problems that Mexican Americans in Houston faced.[endnoteRef:126] [123: Ibid. Page 169.] [124: Ibid. Pages 172-73.] [125: Ibid. Pages 192-93.] [126: Mexican American Collection Guide, Houston Metropolitan Research Center, Houston Public Library System, Houston, Texas.]
Police Brutality:
Rallying Chicanos and Mexican Americans throughout Houston perhaps like never before was a protest against the Houston Police Department for their wrongful beating and death of war veteran Joe Campos Torres in 1977. Police brutality has always been a problem for Mexican Americans dating back to the early twenties when Mexican Americans, under the direction of Fernando Salas, formed La Asemblea Mexicana in response to police brutality.[endnoteRef:127] Immediately, the Campos Torres event initiated one of the most intense periods of protest the city has ever witnessed. From the investigation and court case that ensued, the judge ordered the officers to serve one year in prison for felony misdemeanor and ten years for violating Torres’s constitutional rights but then suspended the sentence and substituted the ten years of jail time with five years probation.[endnoteRef:128] Needless to say, this angered the Mexican American community and set the stage for various boycotts and eventually riots. Under the leadership of Houston’s People United to Fight Police Brutality, people began protesting outside HPD headquarters. But when their demands fell on deaf ears, they took to the streets. At Moody Park, as police officers attempted to break up the gathering, violence ensured as protesters turned over a police car, all the while shouting “Get the pigs!” and “Justice for Joe Torres!”[endnoteRef:129] Protesters destroyed almost anything in their paths, breaking store windows, looting, and throwing bottles and rocks. They also fired shots at the police. When all settled down, police arrested nearly twenty-five people for the violence but only three were charged with instigating the riot.[endnoteRef:130] [127: Arturo F. Rosales. "Mexicans in Houston: The Struggle to Survive," Houston Review 3 (Summer 1981). Page 230.] [128: Brian D. Behnken. “We Want Justice!”: Police Murder, Mexican American Community Response, and the Chicano Movement.” In The Hidden 1970s: Histories of Radicalism. Edited by Dan Berger. Rutgers Press, 2010.] [129: Ibid.] [130: Ibid]
Certainly then, it can be argued that many more Mexican Americans during the sixties and seventies were subscribing to the new radicalism taking place within their communities. For them, Chicano was something new, something bold, and something, far more confrontational for securing change. Viewed mostly as a young people’s crusade, the Chicano Movement, as it would quickly be called, included almost anyone that was willing to effect positive change for Mexican Americans using any means necessary. To help spread the gospel, these activists formed their own newspaper in 1970 called Papel Chicano.[endnoteRef:131] Founders of this paper included Johnny Almendarez, Carlos Calbillo, Leo Tanguma, Kris Vasquez, Enrique Perez, and Al Duran.[endnoteRef:132] Headquartered in Magnolia Park, the paper took a militant stance and reported on grassroots activism, protested discrimination, and openly criticized politicians who they felt had failed to serve the people.[endnoteRef:133] Through this paper, Chicanos not only kept the rest of the community abreast of the daily news and events but also helped popularize and spread Chicanismo (Mexican American nationalism) throughout the city. [131: Thomas H. Kreneck. Del Pueblo: A Pictorial History of Houston's Hispanic Community. Houston: Houston International University, 1989. Page 191.] [132: Mexican American Collection Guide, Houston Metropolitan Research Center, Houston Public Library System, Houston, Texas.] [133: Ibid]
But Chicanos were not the only ones making waves during this period. Many of the groups and organizations of the previous decades remained and continued to work towards securing the rights for Mexican Americans. Local church organizations, mutual aid societies, politicians, and even volunteer groups worked daily for improving the conditions of Mexican American communities. The Ripley House, for example, provided Mexican Americans all sorts of aid and social services. Founded in 1970 by Felix Fraga, the Ripley House operated very much like the old Rusk Settlement House.[endnoteRef:134] Also making waves during this period were Mexican American business owners who by the 1970s owned numerous kinds of businesses throughout the city. Among on of the more popular ones was a restaurant called Ninfas, established in the early 1970s by businesswoman and philanthropist Ninfa Laurenzo.[endnoteRef:135] Clearly by the 1980s, Mexican Americans were becoming members of the mainstream moving into other neighborhoods that were not predominantly Mexican American. [134: Thomas H. Kreneck. Del Pueblo: A Pictorial History of Houston's Hispanic Community. Houston: Houston International University, 1989. Page 195.] [135: Ibid. Page 198.]
A New City, 1980-2000
During the eighties and nineties, the Mexican American communities throughout Houston continued to grow and flourish and continued also to impact the city in profound ways. Mexican Americans of all walks of life still struggled to improve the schools, they continued to engage in political activism, they continued to run all sorts of businesses, they partook in a public art movement, rejuvenated their culture, and even broke into Houston’s media scene like never before such as reporter and media personality Elma Barrera or Sylvan Rodriguez anchor for 11 News.[endnoteRef:136] But Houston would also see a huge number of Spanish-speaking newcomers who like their Mexican American compatriots would come to impact the city as well. Immigrants, in fact, mostly from Mexico, although not strictly from there, would continue to enter into Houston in great numbers bringing with them highly specialized skills and helping to perpetuate the economy of the city.[endnoteRef:137] [136: Ibid. Pages 220-21.] [137: Jesus C. Medel. “Urban Migration of Bespoke Boot Makers: The Case of Feliciano Torres Medel, A Political Boot-maker.” Undated.]
Schools:
In 1989, Mexican American students again staged a school walkout this time from Austin High to oppose continuing inferior conditions in that specific school. This boycott would receive national attention as its events unfolded for all to see on Geraldo Rivera’s nationally syndicated talk show Geraldo.[endnoteRef:138] More than simply showing that schools in Houston continued to ignore students’ academic needs and provide them with an inferior education, this boycott also showed that students were still willing to protest unjust conditions.[endnoteRef:139] [138: Guadalupe San Miguel, Jr. “Embracing Latinidad: Beyond Nationalism in the History of Education.” Journal of Latinos and Education. 10:1, 3-22, Spring 2011. Page 12.] [139: Ibid. Page 12.]
Politics:
As before, Mexican American political activism flourished. Community members still successfully campaigned for their candidate of choice and they were still able to get their people elected like Judge Sylvia Garcia who was sworn in as head of Houston’s Municipal Courts or Augustina Reyes who, in 1981, was elected to the Board of Trustees for HISD.[endnoteRef:140] Reyes, in fact, was a long time educator having served as head of HISD’s Bilingual Program.[endnoteRef:141] The election of Mexican Americans to city council, school boards, and even state legislatures became more common during the 1980s than in previous decades because Mexican Americans now had a greater number of possible candidates to select from.[endnoteRef:142] Unlike before when Mexican Americans had only one or two people to vote for, during the 1980s politics became a super competitive enterprise as Mexican Americans now had multiple candidates running for the same positions. In other words, more Mexican Americans and Latinos were running for similar posts and were competing for votes. In 1988, for example, running for State Representative of Houston was Al Luna, his opponent was Raul Martinez.[endnoteRef:143] Also that year John Castillo and Victor Treviño both ran a campaign for Constable of Precinct Number 6 in Houston.[endnoteRef:144] [140: Thomas H. Kreneck. Del Pueblo: A Pictorial History of Houston's Hispanic Community. Houston: Houston International University, 1989. Page 222.] [141: Mexican American Collection Guide, Houston Metropolitan Research Center, Houston Public Library System, Houston, Texas.] [142: Tatcho Mindiola. Black-Brown Relations and Stereotypes. Austin: University of Texas Press, 2002. Page 15.] [143: Thomas H. Kreneck. Del Pueblo: A Pictorial History of Houston's Hispanic Community. Houston: Houston International University, 1989. Pages 218-19.] [144: Ibid. Page 219.]
Public Art:
Houston during the 1980s continued to see an explosion of Mexican American and Latino art. The mural on Canal Street in Second Ward, although an extension of the artistic expressions of the sixties and seventies, is perhaps the best-known example of Chicano/Latino/Mexicano public art. Approximately 240 feet, this mural, created mainly by Leo Tanjuma, serves as a great deal of pride for community members and is considered an important artistic statement in the struggles of Mexican Americans.[endnoteRef:145] Another example of public art is the sculpture Vaquero by Luis Jimenez located in Moody Park.[endnoteRef:146] Dedicated in 1982, this sculpture was more than a major expression of Latino culture and art but was a sign also that city officials were ready, perhaps, even eager to showcase Latino artistic talent. Moreover, this wanting speaks to the larger fact that Mexican Americans and Latinos have now become a powerful force to be reckoned with and that major displays of their talents and accomplishments occurred in other areas outside of art as well. [145: Ibid. Page 186.] [146: Ibid. Page 203.]
Culture:
Finding rejuvenation during this period were local theatrical companies such as Teatro Con Ganas which was just one form of the hundreds of different kinds of Mexican American cultural expressions. Other kinds of cultural activities included music festivals; folkloric associations like the Guatemalan Folkloric Association or the Ballet Folklorico Bellas Artes de Houston; traditional music groups or even contemporary musical groups like Grupo Valentino, which was a popular group among young Mexican Americans in Houston.[endnoteRef:147] Even car clubs such as Latin Attractions, a north side low riding organization, and trail riders like Los Rancheros who participated in countless Stock Show and Rodeo events, were flourishing in Houston.[endnoteRef:148] These cultural groups and events have been present in Houston since Mexican Americans first established themselves in the Bayou City and show no signs of slowing down. [147: Ibid. Pages 230-31.] [148: Ibid. Page 230.]
Immigration:
Contributing mostly to Houston’s growth was the natural birth rates of Mexican Americans. However, the huge influx of Spanish-speaking newcomers from various other Latin American countries also played a role in making Houston the second largest American city to have the most Latinos outside of Mexico. So significant was this growth that Houston, by mid-80s, was home to 500,000 Latinos in the metropolitan area alone.[endnoteRef:149] Since the early eighties, Latino newcomers from countries outside of Mexico have also made significant impacts on the city of Houston. One of the first areas impacted was culture and cultural celebrations. Fiestas patrias, for example, long considered strictly a Mexican and Mexican American cultural celebration, now included Central Americans who did more than just participate in the events but came to include their own nation’s values, customs, and eventually influence the overall atmosphere of the celebration. Also becoming extremely vibrant in Houston since 1980, were Central American businesses including restaurants such as La Pupisa Alegre, a Salvadoran eatery; and other dining centers like La Placita Farmers Market, which was a blend of both Mexican and Salvadoran styles.[endnoteRef:150] [149: Ibid. Page 199.] [150: Ibid. Page 209.]
Because many Central Americans as well as Mexican immigrants arrived into Houston as undocumented, they were often forced to live in some of the poorest sections of the city. Many had to endure a lack of running water, scarce food, exhausting work hours, zero health benefits or insurance, and almost always lived in fear of American authorities. So hard were the condition of these people that service organizations dedicated to improving their ways of life began to spring up throughout the city; service organizations such as Casa Juan Diego, a grassroots social service agency for Central American refugees; and the Chicano Family of Magnolia Park, which provided basic services for undocumented workers.[endnoteRef:151] These kinds of services were especially important because the undocumented lacked even the most basic of needs and were often apprehended by Border Patrol agents and then deported leaving behind family members and other loved ones. At times, Casa Juan Diego and the Chicano Family Center helped the family members left behind by those that were deported. In the mid-1980s, many of the undocumented qualified for legislation under an amnesty bill that protected them and so in that sense things were better. But for most, extreme poverty was the norm.[endnoteRef:152] Other kinds of organizations and agencies to emerge in Houston for the purpose of improving the conditions of the undocumented poor were Clinica Azteca and Casa de Amigos Health Clinic.[endnoteRef:153] Local church groups, like St. Alphonsus Catholic Church, also did their part to assist people.[endnoteRef:154] And as of recently, Mexican Americans have become heavily involved in protecting the rights of immigrants especially groups like LULAC, MALDEF, and the National Council of La Raza (NCLR).[endnoteRef:155] [151: Ibid. Page 210.] [152: Ibid. Page 213.] [153: Ibid. Page 214.] [154: Ibid. Page 215.] [155: Tatcho Mindiola. Black-Brown Relations and Stereotypes. Austin: University of Texas Press, 2002. Pages 45-46.]
Houston in the 21st Century, 2000-2011
In 2008, the Second Ward alone had an estimated 15,000 people and almost 70% of them were Mexican, Mexican Americans, and other Latinos.[endnoteRef:156] But since 2000, Houston has become the center of major and new Latino migration and immigration with one out of three people being from Latin America.[endnoteRef:157] And although most migrants are still arriving from Mexico, a great number of them are also coming from other countries like El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala making the city of Houston the most popular destination for Latino migration and immigration in Texas.[endnoteRef:158] The new Latino arrivals, like their Mexican and Mexican American counterparts, have not only emerged as the fastest growing ethno-racial group in Houston but have come also to impact the city in many ways. Perhaps the greatest contribution these new Americans-in-the-making have made to Houston is establish and maintain a robust Latin American business sector. [156: Thomas McWhorter. “From Das Zweiter to El Segundo: A Brief History of Houston’s Second Ward.” Houston History Magazine, Vol.8, No.1. (Fall 2010). Page 42.] [157: Jan Swellander Rosin. “The New Latinos and Houston’s Global Pueblo.” The Houston Review, Vol. 3, No. 1, (Fall 2005). Page 18.] [158: Ibid. Page 18.]
Found almost everywhere throughout the city are a great number of Latino-owned businesses such as banks (Banco Popular, Banco de Comercio, Laredo National Bank, and Aguila Bancorporation), carnicerias, taquerias, and other small restaurants like Mondongos, and even multi-million dollar businesses such as La Espiga De Oro Tortilla Factory.[endnoteRef:159] Also prevalent throughout the city are a greater number of Spanish language television stations like Univision, Telemundo, Azteca TV, and others.[endnoteRef:160] Moreover, other business leaders, seeing the potential of tapping into a growing and lucrative Latino, market have also launched various enterprises designed to cater to needs of these communities; enterprises such as Fiesta, Fiesta Mart, El Mercado, and Plaza of the Americas.[endnoteRef:161] They have also partnered up with other Latinos to create and introduce a professional futbol (soccer) team to the city; the Houston Dynamo who bring in around 17,000 spectators per game.[endnoteRef:162] Even previously established Spanish language radio stations, newspapers, and magazines have also started catering to the new Latino population. Documented or not, the reality is the same; the Mexican American and new Latino communities are booming and the city, recognizing that fact, is making sure to cater to and tap into that vibrant market. [159: Ibid. Pages 22 and 25.] [160: Ibid. Page 24.] [161: Ibid. Page 25.] [162: Tony Cantu and Damarys Ocaña. “Cityscape: Houston.” Poder Hispanic Magazine, August/September 2011. Page 62. See also Jan Swellander Rosin. “The New Latinos and Houston’s Global Pueblo.” The Houston Review, Vol. 3, No. 1, (Fall 2005). Page 25.]
Absolutely impacted by the surge of new arrivals are the schools in Houston as almost every district within city limits have seen a major increase in the percentage of Latino student enrollment. HISD, for example, the largest of all districts, and perhaps the fifth largest in the country, is nearly 60% Latino.[endnoteRef:163] So great are their numbers in the schools that district officials have no choice but to implement sound bilingual education programs to meet the needs of a fast growing student body. Religious institutions have also been affected as Houston is home to hundreds of different kinds of churches and religious denominations frequented by the new Latino immigrants. Similar to Mexican Americans, the new Latinos are also members of non-Catholic organizations like the Pentecostals, Methodists, Baptists, Mormons, and Jehovah’s Witnesses.[endnoteRef:164] They have also transformed the social geography of the city, as many have not followed the residential patterns of Mexican and Mexican Americans.[endnoteRef:165] In fact, they would come to settle in areas of town not necessarily considered traditional Spanish speaking neighborhoods; areas like southwest Houston along the 610 Loop, near Bellaire and Chimney Rock.[endnoteRef:166] Other areas like Spring Branch, Alief, Aldine, and now as of recent, the older barrios of Magnolia and the East End, are also areas in where the new Latinos have come to settle.[endnoteRef:167] [163: Jan Swellander Rosin. “The New Latinos and Houston’s Global Pueblo.” The Houston Review, Vol. 3, No. 1, (Fall 2005). Page 23.] [164: Ibid. Page 24.] [165: Ibid. Page 23.] [166: Ibid. Page 23.] [167: Ibid. Page 23.]
The debates over immigration have always been controversial but following the tragedy of September 11, 2001, securing the border and nation from future terrorist attacks forever changed those kinds of debates as xenophobia, nativism, fear, coupled with politics and national security have come to re-define the boundaries of the debate over immigration. Beginning around 2005 and gaining momentum since 2008 has been a strong anti-immigrant sentiment both in Houston and throughout the nation. A great number of Americans believe that Latino immigrants are a drain on the economy and as such have come to support the numerous punitive laws that have been passed recently to reverse their efforts; laws like SB 1070 which require local law enforcement officials to determine the status of Latinos suspected of being in the county illegally. Despite the controversial and at times extremely painful debates over immigration, in Houston, the reality is that immigrants have contributed and continue to contribute tremendously to the city’s economy, its culture, its social life, to the arts, to education, and also to the city’s political scene. It is because of steady immigration from Mexico and other parts of the world that cities like Houston experience a boom in its economy even in times of financial crisis. And immigrants are partly responsible for that as they generate millions for the U.S. economy and contribute many more millions to their native homelands by way of remittances. It is because of immigrants that the U.S. has survived its greatest economic recession since the 1930s. It is because of immigrants that Houston and other cities have witnessed a surge in the arts, in religion, and in entertainment. Latino immigrants work hard, sometime multiple jobs, like Daniel Galvan who has been going back and forth between Mexico and the U.S. since 1952 working on and off holding all sorts of jobs from fieldwork, to bakery, to maintenance and custodial, and even to kitchen helper.[endnoteRef:168] Immigrants love their family, they respect the law, at least the fair ones, they have a sense of community, and they sacrifice everything so that their kids and grandkids can live a life better than their own. They go to church, they pay their taxes, they donate to the needy and they apply for legal residency and/or citizenship. They are politically conscious, socially moral, business savvy, and extremely patriotic to the United States. And so in spite of the controversy that surrounds their existence, Latino immigrants move forward and continue to impact their cities and county in profound ways. [168: Juan Manuel Galvan. “A Long Road to Houston: An Interview with Daniel Galvan.” The Houston Review, Vol. 3, No. 1, (Fall 2005). Page 71.]
Conclusion:
At present, Houston is the fourth largest city in the country and is home to around one million Latinos, making up about 44% of the entire city.[endnoteRef:169] As such, the city is currently experiencing a boom in its economy; a rejuvenation in its social and cultural scenes; and a spike in its political arena. [169: Tony Cantu and Damarys Ocaña. “Cityscape: Houston.” Poder Hispanic Magazine, August/September 2011. Page 57.]
Culture:
Still very much vibrant in Houston are dance halls and other forms of music clubs where patrons can go and hear the latest songs and musical styles including salsa, merengue, and tejano. Among some of the most popular dancing spots include Amazonia Discotheque, Club Tropicana, and Hallabaloos.[endnoteRef:170] For food, obviously, there are over one hundred different locations to frequent from long established businesses like the Original Ninfas, who is believed to have invented fajitas, to new-age Latino eateries like Hugo’s which serve up a colorful combination of Latino cuisine.[endnoteRef:171] Even the art scene in Houston has taken on a Latino flavor as many local museums and art galleries have begun to reflect the city’s large Latino presence. The Museum of Fine Arts, for example, has a massive collection of pre-Columbian artwork and other indigenous sculptures.[endnoteRef:172] The Casa Ramirez Folkart Gallery of the Houston Heights has an unending array of different Mexican portraits, clay or ceramic figurines, as well as metal and wood works.[endnoteRef:173] [170: Ibid. Page 58.] [171: Ibid. Page 60.] [172: Ibid. Page 61.] [173: Ibid. Page 61.]
The Spanish language and its use across the city is, perhaps, the best-known expression of just how vibrant the Mexican, Mexican American, and Latino culture is. Almost every establishment conducts business in both English and Spanish; from the schools, courts, and offices, to restaurants, entertainment spots, and medical facilities. Even newer religious centers are holding services in multiple languages so as to accommodate the increasing Latino faithful.[endnoteRef:174] [174: Ibid. Page 61.]
Politics:
As mentioned above, immigration continues to be a hot button issue for most people. And for Adrian Garcia, Harris County’s new and first ever Latino Sheriff, its something he deals with on a daily basis.[endnoteRef:175] Inheriting a department and being a member of an agency that has had a long history of clashes with Mexican Americans, a la the Joe Torres Affair, Sheriff Garcia must often play the role of peacemaker. And now with the debates as to the role of local law enforcement agencies to carry out federal policies regarding immigration, Garcia must work harder to keep the trust of the people while upholding the law. So although he must allow immigration officials to go through his jail cells to round up undocumented arrestees, he has also been very vocal in his opposition to the legislation that requires law enforcement officers to inquire about the immigration status of anyone.[endnoteRef:176] [175: Ibid. Page 60.] [176: Ibid Page 60.]
Next to immigration, the recently begun battle over redistricting the city of Houston is the most pressing political issue for Mexican Americans. In response to the fact that 65% of the states’ population growth, over the last decade, has been Latino, Republican legislatures have proposed various redistricting plans that would reshape the states’ political boundaries in their favor.[endnoteRef:177] Almost immediately, however, Mexican American and Latino activists have challenged the plans arguing that they will dilute the Latino vote. They have since filed a lawsuit in federal court charging state Republicans of violating provisions of the Voting Rights Act.[endnoteRef:178] Leading the charge are civil rights groups like LULAC, MALDEF, and the Mexican American Legislative Caucus.[endnoteRef:179] [177: Ibid. Page 58.] [178: Ibid. Page 58.] [179: Ibid. Page 58.]
Economy:
The developments in Houston’s cultural and political scenes absolutely play a role in the city’s economy. The restaurants and nightclubs and professional teams generate millions and millions of dollars to the economy. And those places, along with the museums, zoos, and art galleries attract people by the thousands into the city looking to make it their vacation get-aways. And the visitors who come to Houston each year spends hundreds of dollars shopping and eating and doing other touristy things. It is estimated that Houston generates about a million dollars from travelers from Mexico alone each year.[endnoteRef:180] Also, emerging as a major powerhouse is the Houston Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, which has more than 4,000 businesses as part of its organization.[endnoteRef:181] From small mom-and-pop businesses like Taqueria El Jalisco off of Chimney Rock in the Bellaire district to major global corporations such as Goya, these businesses are certainly helping keep Houston’s economy a thriving one. Finally, also becoming a powerbroker in the city are Latino executives whose numbers have also increased over the years. Folk like Randy Velarde, president of Plaza Group, a multimillion-dollar, international chemical marketing firm; Pat DeRueda, president of Recycle America; and Tony Grijalva, Co-Founder and CEO of G&A Partners, which manages human resources services for companies throughout Houston, are but a few of the leading top executives of Houston’s Fortune 500 Companies.[endnoteRef:182] [180: Ibid. Page 62.] [181: Ibid. Page 60.] [182: Ibid. Page 63.]
In sum, Mexican Americans and now other Latinos, although plagued by various difficulties, have always contributed to the making of Houston and will continue to play greater roles in its development. Whether recent arrivals, or if they are from families that have been in the Houston area since Texas was a part of Mexico, they have all helped shape its political, economic, social, and cultural landscapes and will certainly come to dictate the future direction of the city especially as their numbers continue to swell.
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