Wide ranging interview with TC Calvert. He talks about growing up in San Antonio; his membership in SNCC;

Oscar del Toro was born in Coahuila, México in 1964. At age 4, he and his family moved to Monterrey, where he came of age and lived until he moved to the United States in 2000. He fully described 12 year waiting period to immigrate to Pasadena. A businessman, he joined the Chamber of Commerce, which propelled him to become interested in politics. In 2015, he unsuccessfully ran for one of the at-large districts following the redistricting of Pasadena in 2013. He described the redistricting and how it took power away from the Latino community in Pasadena, and the current lawsuit.

Irene Favila was raised in Lockney, Texas. As a child and teenager, Favila’s family would migrate to Kansas and Colorado during the summers to work in agricultural fields. After graduating from high school, Favila did not attend college—being discouraged by school officials—and entered the workforce. She then entered court reporting school in Plainview, Texas and worked as a court reporter in Amarillo, Texas—perhaps becoming the first Mexican American court reporter in the Texas Panhandle. Favila then moved back to the Plainview area and began working for Motivation, Education, and Training (a migrant farmworker services organization) from 1975 to 2015. Favila was elected as the first person of color in the Plainview City Council. She has been a lifelong member of LULAC and has been instrumental in promoting voting rights and educational rights in Plainview—helping launch Department of Justice investigations in the town and Hail County along with marches.

Mr. Hilton discussed his personal history in Corpus Christi, the justice system's breakdown in black communities, and his lifetime of political activism, especially on environmental matters.

James Payne discussed his trajectory from living in a segregated town to becoming a lawyer and returning to a changed Beaumont. He spoke about his experiences with racism, discrimination, and the ways in which he overcame those obstacles.

Arturo Eureste was born in Waelder, TX in 1954. He comes from a family that has been politically active as his father was involved in groups like PASSO and LULAC while his brother was a member of more radical movements such as MAYO. He discusses how his family involvement encouraged him to become active in efforts like the UFW Boycott, and through MAYO and LRUP in Houston. Mr. Eureste also shares his work with the Association for the Advancement of Mexican Americans (AMMA) and his current involvement in the community.

Jean Wilkins-Dember, referred to as Mother Dember, was born in 1930 in Brooklyn, New York. After becoming involved in police brutality work and racial equality efforts in New York, she would move to the historic African American neighborhood of Third Ward in Houston, TX. She talks about her involvement in multicultural organizing and the psychological affects of racial oppression. Dember has participated for many years in the National Black United Front and SHAPE Community Center's Elder Institute of Wisdom. She talks about how she uses confrontational therapy to address police brutality and mass incarceration.

Ruben Bonilla is an attorney in Corpus Christi. He is a graduate of The University of Texas (B.A.) and The University of Texas School of Law (J.D.) Admitted to the State Bar in 1971, he advocated for the Mexican American community with such groups as LULAC, the American G.I. Forum and the Texas Mexican-American Democrats. In his interview, he recounted his role as LULAC national president and civic leader.

Discussed growing up in Port Arthur, his family's emphasis on assimilation, and his return to the region to work in business and government.

Uriegas talks about growing up in Uvalde, being run out of Uvalde as a young man, and finishing high school in Del Rio. He talks about how Anglos in Uvalde used to turn the gas off the "Mexican" side of town to preserve pressure for the Anglo side when the weather was cold. He talks about the constant pressure that discriminatory treatment has on an individual's psyche. He talks about MAYO in Uvalde and serving on Uvalde city council. The most interesting part of the interview is him talking about him running VISTA MMP.

Mr. Polk discussed growing up in segregated Corpus Christi and career as a longshoreman/union man.

Ms. Lange was born in Raywood, Texas. Her father took a job with Exxon in Crosby, so the family split their time between the two places. She then went to Xavier University, where she became involved in the Civil Rights Movement. After moving to Houston to go to Texas Southern, she became part of the sit-in movement, participating in sit-ins at multiple places, including the Shamrock Hotel in Houston. She continued her activism in her career as a social worker and a member of many organizations. She currently owns a farm and bed and breakfast. In her interview, Mrs. Lange described the role of the Catholic Church and Creole heritage in her life, segregation, the sit-in movement in Houston, her extensive activism, how the area has changed over time, and her hopes for the community.

Ray Hill was born in Galena Park in 1940. He grew up in a blue collar household, and became involved with the NAACP at an early age. After travelling around the country, he returned to Houston and is prosecuted for burglary. Upon leaving jail, he becomes involved in the LGBT scene and movements in Houston including the founding of Pride, the Montrose Center, and through HIV/AIDS advocacy. Mr. Hill also led the prosecution of the Paul Broussard case in 1991. In 1980, he began the Prison Show and has continued to be involved in radio shows and media ventures since.

Mr. Wilkerson was born in Montgomery, Texas. He attended segregated schools in Montgomery and remained active in the area. In his interview, Mr. Wilkerson described how segregation operated in Montgomery, the state of education for African-American children, his family's history in the area, and his work in volunteering, community outreach, and as a member of the city council.

Mr. Vinson was born in Montgomery, Texas and raised in Conroe. He attended Booker T. Washington school and Conroe High, participating in football at both schools. After graduation, he went to work in Houston for a utility company. He returned to Conroe and became very active in political campaigns and community organizations. In his interview, Mr. Vinson described segregation in Conroe, a march in 1968, integration of schools, experiences playing football, discrimination at work, political activism in the African-American community, African-American community organizations, and how Conroe has changed over time.

David Noyola is a former city council man from Corpus Christi. In his interview, Noyola discussed growing up in the area and his career as a city politician and radio host.

Ms. Perez-Wiseley was raised in the west side of Corpus Christi. She witnessed some acts of racial and class discrimination, but was not directly subjected to it during her youth. While she was very involved in community and student affairs, she did not become involved in the Chicano movement until she attended UT in the early 70s. After being excluded from leadership position in the Young Democrats, she joined the Raza Unida Party and was a member of MAYO at UT. After college, she worked for the city of Austin and became heavily involved in American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (ASCFME), eventually becoming a full-time organizer. During the interview, Ms. Perez-Wiseley discusses race relations in Corpus Christi, her career in labor organizing (including her own struggles against inequities in pay within ASCFME) and her current involvement in politics.

Perri "P.K." McCary was born in 1953 in Texarkana. She grew-up in a ethnically diverse community in Alamo Garden, New Mexico and later lived near Prairie View A&M University when her father obtained a teaching position in the Industrial Education Department. McCary's parents gave her the tools to resist discrimination by exhibiting a strong sense of self and for confronting racist acts in front of her. She would opt to attend Jack Yates High School when her family moved to Houston because of the poor treatment of African-American students at the predominately white Madison High School. By 1970, McCary was attending the University of Houston and becoming involved in student activism. She would later engage in peace work and adapting religious texts with Black urban language to appeal to youth. She talks about instances of racism growing up, how her early experiences with diversity shaped the ways in which she engaged in cross-racial collaborations in her adult life, how Deloyed Parker and Ester King mentored her at UH, police brutality, and her family's association with the political movements of the 1960s and 1970s. She also discusses SHAPE Community Center and the Elders Institute of Wisdom, when she wrote a newspaper …

Hilda C. Martinez was born in 1948 in San Luis, San Luis Potosi. Her family migrated to the United States in 1952 and eventually settled in Baytown. In 1961, when Martinez was twelve years old, her mother passed away from breast cancer and she and her siblings subsequenly lived with several foster families. She attended Lorenzo De Zavala Elementary, the Mexican School of Baytown, and had a culture shock when she attended the integrated Baytown Junior High due to her inability to cultivate friendships as well as her lack of familiarity with the English language. She witnessed segregated public facilities, including department stores and water fountains, and the beating of a man by police when she was in high school. She talks about how teacher beatings in elementary school taught her and other Mexican American children to be obedient and to stay in their place in Baytown. Martinez also discusses how Mexican Americans were reluctant to address employment discrimination at Exxon for fear of losing good paying jobs. She addresses the police brutality case of Luis Alfonso Torres and how she worked with others in a cross-racial coalition to hold the police chief accountable, even though many members of Mexican …

Eva Benavides was born in 1952 in Baytown. She attended Lorenzo De Zavala Elementary, the Baytown Mexican School, and witnessed segregation in her youth. She experienced a culture shock when she attended the integrated Baytown Junior High. Inspired by her mother's and father's dedication to helping others, Benavides served as a Baytown City Councilwoman and became involved in the West Baytown Civic Association. The Luis Alfonso Torres police brutality case galvanized her and others to forge a cross-racial coalition (United Concerned Citizens of Baytown) to hold the police department accountable. Benavides talks about how Mexican Americans were situated in a segregated Baytown, the importance of Fiesta Patrias, her involvement in the PTO, her determination to become a city councilwoman and her experiences as an Mexican American female representative for a single member district, how she bodly held the Baytown Police Department accountable for the Luis Alfonso Torres case when other Mexican American representative refused to speak out, and cross-racial efforts to address police brutality. She also discusses gentrification and how her community lacks businesses and grocery stores, how she taught citizenship classes for many years, the role of Exxon in Baytown, and how city council representatives have to address race …

Guadalupe "Lupe" Mendez was born in 1976 in Jalisco, Mexico and came of age in Galveston. On the island, he spent his early years in the Mexican American Magnolia Homes and the African American Palm Terrace, two public housing projects that were destroyed during Hurricane Ike. Mendez attended Catholic schools and had to overcome the lack of bilingual education programs. He eventually relocated to Houston to attend the University of St. Thomas, where he as participated in several ethnic and cross-racial literary endeavors including Nuestra Palabra, the Word Around Town, and Tintero Projects. Mendez talks about how the Latina/o community is the silent minority in Galveston, the political machine on the island, and how hurricanes have shaped the social, political, and economic landscape of Galveston. He also discusses the goal and purpose of Nuestra Palabra and Tinero Projects in providing a space for Latina/o poets and writers, how the World Around Town brings together ethnically diverse poets to present in several communities throughout Houston, his dedication to bilingual education, and the struggle for Mexican American Studies in K-12.

Cresencia Reyes Mendeke ("Chris") was born in the late 20s and raised in Uvalde during the Great Depression. In her interview, she talked about the strict segregation in the town during those years. She attended a "Mexican school" for her early education, and recalled the neglect and disinterest in educating the Mexican American children. She also talked about her father's role as a benefactor in their neighborhood, and of his relationship with a prominent family of Anglo business owners. After finishing school and working in a local Penney's store for some time, Mendeke married and moved around, as she and her husband looked for opportunities in and out of Uvalde. Eventually, they settled in the Los Angeles area, and found professional work. Later, they became licensed realtors and opened their own office in Buena Park. After several decades, the Mendekes retired and moved back to Uvalde in the eighties, and Chris was determined to get involved in local affairs. She joined the local Democratic party and helped run local campaigns; she was also a ranking member of the Mexican American Democrats (later the Tejano Democrats). In recent years, Mendeke spearheaded the restoration and marking of the Nicolas Street School, the …

Jenny Espino is the founder and director of the Corpus Christi Dance Collective, a community based dance project. She is also involved in community activism, and discussed her local projects as a community organizer in Corpus Christi.

Mrs. Wade attended an all-Black school in Houston and during freedom of choice the Black students collectively decided not to integrate because white school officials had sought to only allow the top Black students to integrate. Wade benefited from the land ownership of her family. By owning land, Wade's mother was able to take care of her two children following the early death of her husband. Wade attributed her father's early death to an injury that occurred during his military service. Wade also attributed her brother contracting polio and her mother's subsequent difficulty obtaining care for her brother to discrimination. Wade's mother initially worked in menial jobs despite having a degree because she could not be hired as an secretary. Wade's mother ultimately started in the 1960s and sustained her own in-home business for decades. Wade described her schooling experiences at Texas Woman's University and Texas Christian University. Wade received some negative feedback from her teacher's for deciding to not attend a historically Black college or university. Wade decided to attend a predominantly white university because she was curious about the level of education white people were receiving. Wade began a career in corporate America shortly after graduating from TCU …