Interview with Dalila Dolenz, a nurse and civil rights activist from Fort Worth, Texas. In the interview, she discusses her work, activism and interaction with Cesar Chavez

Interview with Sydney Eloyce Green, teacher from Tyler, Texas. In her interview, Green discusses her early life, education, family genealogy, and experiences with racial discrimination, and school integration in Tyler. Green's father was Sydney Earl (S.E.) Palmer, a community activist who worked to achieve integrated schools in Tyler.

T.J. Paterson was born in Waxahachie, Texas and grew up in Wichita Falls, Texas. He went to Bishop College in Marshall, Texas and majored in physical education. He then moved to Lubbock to work for a private school. Upon meeting and marrying his wife, he stayed in Lubbock. Patterson was the first African American elected to the Lubbock City Council and served in that role for two decades.

Berta Perez Linton was born in 1942 or 1943 in Brady, Texas. She attended schools in Melvin, Texas until 7th grade while her family lived in a ranch. Linton’s family then moved to San Angelo, Texas where she graduated from Central High School in 1961. Linton attended Angelo College for one year and a half before transferring to the University of Texas at Austin. Linton graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a major in elementary education in 1967. She taught bilingual education in Austin Schools before attending Texas Southern University’s Welcome to Thurgood Marshall School of Law, graduating in 1977. Linton then moved to San Angelo where she was the counsel for the local LULAC council. She still practices law in San Angelo.

Alphonso Vaughn was born and raised in Amarillo, Texas. He lived through the integration of local schools as a high school student. From Amarillo, he entered the military and then attending the University of Oklahoma and the University of Texas. Upon his return to Amarillo, Vaughn helped start the city’s Juneteenth Celebration along with various civil rights and cultural organizations. He served five, two year terms as president of Amarillo’s NAACP. Since then, he has served as a Potter County Commissioner.

Pearlene Martin was raised around Texas and obtained her Masters degree at West Texas State College. She began teaching in Plainview Texas in the 1950s and then moved to Amarillo with her husband. She taught in segregated and integrated schools. In 1980 she became the first women president of the Amarillo NAACP. Since retiring, he has continued her involvement in the community. Some of Martin’s accolades include receiving the 1977 Edward Henderson Award, one of YMCA’s highest awards; the 1992 Service Provider Merit Award given by the Women’s Coalition for Change; the 1993 Merit Mother award from the Texas Mothers Association; and the 1999 Woman of Distinction Award presented by the Texas Plains Girl Scout Council.

David K. Baker was born in 1951 In Mckamy, Texas. He graduated from high school in 1969 and then worked for a few months in the oil fields of West Texas. Baker then worked for Southwestern Bell, beginning in October of 1969, and soon joined the Communication Workers of America union. He worked for Southwestern Bell until 2002 and then returned (now to AT&T until 2010). Baker was drafted in 1971 into the Vietnam War. Baker moved to Odessa, Texas in 1980 and then became part of the union’s executive board at the local level, and was president of the local from 1987 to 1990. He is now president of the Permian Basin Central Labor Union.

Richard Perkins studied music as a student at Prairie View A&M. In 1968, he and fellow choir members were invited to perform for Rev. Martin Luther King in Memphis, Tennessee, two weeks before his assassination. In his interview, Perkins discussed segregation, the role of music, and a comparison of the black experience in the U.S. and Europe.

Mr. Herbert Cross was born and raised near Fort Worth. He was drafted into the Marines during the Korean War, where he served for two years. He then went to college and was hired by Dunbar High School in Fort Worth. He then became principal at an elementary. He was tapped to be assistant principal of Lufkin High School the first year of integration and continued as a principal in the Lufkin School District until his retirement in the 1980s. In the interview, Mr. Cross describes the discrimination he and his family faced as a child, particularly after the family joined a lawsuit for better facilities in their school, his time in the military, his fight for equal treatment as a teacher and administrator in the Lufkin school system, how integration went during his time as principal, and the discrimination he faced from his colleagues.