Lone Star Pasts: Memory and History in Texas

Chapter 7: Constructing Tejano Memory

Chapter 7 Constructing Tejano Memory Andrés Tijerina The first years of the twenty-first century witnessed a number of statues erected across Texas under the leadership of Mexican Americans who were intent on honoring their heritage. This construction boom marks the first time that monuments have been raised to their memory in the state. In years prior Mexican Americans did not have exclusive authority over the institutions or funds that raised historical monuments or markers; therefore, their heritage with few exceptions has been almost systematically excluded in the public transcript of Texas history. Members of the Ballí family were among the first to use private funds for such a monument by erecting in South Texas a statue of their ancestor, missionary Padre José Nicolás Ballí, in 1983. Padre Ballí was the eighteenthcentury priest for whom Padre Island was named because he personally held title to the island. In 1986, the state of Texas officially sanctioned a monument to General Ignacio Zaragoza, the commanding general who won the famous Battle of the Cinco de Mayo against a French army in Mexico in 1862. The monument was placed in Goliad, Texas, the general’s birthplace. In 2000, amid ceremonies and a parade, a statue of José de Escandón was erected in Alice, Texas, by a private Mexican American committee. Escandón was the Spanish colonizer who sponsored hundreds of ranching families and settled them in present-day South Texas, where they established the great cattle kingdom of Texas longhorns and vast ranches. That fundraising committee was composed of descendants of the Escandón founding families who still live in South Texas. On October 28, 2000, members of the Seguín Family Historical Society, constructing tejano memory 177 with privately raised funds, erected a bronze statue in Seguín, Texas, honoring their ancestor, Col. Juan N. Seguín. Seguín was a cavalry commander who served at the Alamo and at the famous Battle of San Jacinto in the Texas Revolution in 1836. Since the 1990s numerous other plaques and markers honoring Tejanos have been erected across the state. Perhaps the most grandiose of these monuments is the proposed Tejano Monument to be erected on the state capitol grounds. It was initially proposed by theTejano Monument Committee, a private fundraising committee of Mexican American leaders. On May 17, 2001, the 77th Texas Legislature adopted House Concurrent Resolution (HCR) 38, authorizing the commitFig . 7.1. Father José Nicolás Ballí, owner of the original land grant for what is now known as Padre Island, which was named in his honor. Courtesy Ballí family. 178 andrés tijerina tee to erect the monument on the Texas capitol grounds to pay tribute to the contributions of Tejanos to the state of Texas. The Tejano Monument is proposed to be more than just a statue, however. The plan features a twenty-foot stone base with several statues and bronze relief plaques, making it one of the largest monuments on the capitol grounds. To date, it is the most ambitious project attempted by Mexican Americans in public monument raising. It is significant not only for its scale but also for its very name. The significance is in the name “Tejano.” It is not called the Mexican American monument, although Mexican Americans conceived it. It is not called the Latino monument, although “Latino” is the politically current label Fig. 7.2. The statue of José de Escandón was erected in Alice, Texas, by Mexican American descendants of the ranching families who settled the South Texas cattle kingdom. Courtesy Travel Division, TxDOT. constructing tejano memory 179 for the fastest growing Hispanic segment of the Texas population, mostly Mexican and Central American immigrants. It is called the Tejano Monument because the term “Tejano” includes any Spanish-surnamed Texans whose historical or cultural roots are in Texas. Tejanos have a history that can be found in the land grants, the church records, and the archival documents of Texas. Latinos have a well-documented history in the census records and demographic growth of modern Texas cities. But in their search for a link to the founders of Texas, Latinos and Mexican Americans have found a common memory in the Tejano—the native Mexican of Texas—the Texan who was here before the first Anglo American immigrated to Texas. By using the Fig. 7.3. Col. Juan N. Seguín, Texas Revolution hero, honored by...