Oral History Interview with Robert Person, July 17, 2015 captions transcript

Oral History Interview with Robert Person, July 17, 2015

Interview with Robert Person, an educator from Bryan, Texas. In the interview, Person discusses higher education at Texas Southern University, activism at TSU, including the 1967 riot, segregation in Bryan, community activism, school integration, and race relations.
Date: July 17, 2015
Creator: Person, Robert & Acuña-Gurrola, Moisés
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Alphonso Saenz, July 22, 2015 captions transcript

Oral History Interview with Alphonso Saenz, July 22, 2015

Interview with Al Saenz, a city councilman from Bryan, Texas. In the interview, Saenz discusses his family background, civil rights organizations and the Mexican-American community in Bryan. Saenz also discusses time living in Houston during his childhood.
Date: July 22, 2015
Creator: Saenz, Alphonso & Acuña-Gurrola, Moisés
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Gloria Rubac on June 6, 2016. captions transcript

Oral History Interview with Gloria Rubac on June 6, 2016.

Gloria Rubac was born in Oklahoma, TX. in 1946. After witnessing racial discrimination in Oklahoma throughout her youth, Rubac traveled to Houston in 1968 to teach in the Northforest School District. She became involved in the John Brown Revolutionary League, a radical white youth organization that was a part of a Rainbow Coalition with the People's Party II. Wanting to become more active in supporting Brown and Black organizations, Rubac joined the Huelga School movement as a teacher and protestor. She talks about her succeeding involvement in supporting the Chicana/o Moratorium, the Mexican American Youth Organization, the People's Party II, the Worker's World, and the Texas Death Penalty Abolition Movement, which she has dedicated her life to. Rubac also discusses inter-racial solidarity as well as discrimination in Houston, particularly police brutality as it relates to the assassination of Carl Hampton, the Jose Campos Torres incident, and the Moody Park Rebellion.
Date: June 6, 2016
Creator: Enriquez, Sandra; Rodriguez, Samantha & Rubac, Gloria
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with John "Bunchy" Crear, June 6, 2016 captions transcript

Oral History Interview with John "Bunchy" Crear, June 6, 2016

John "Bunchy" Crear was born in 1952. He grew up in Pleasantville, a predominately African American neighborhood in Houston, TX. After spending a few years in Los Angeles, California, he returned to Houston and joined the People's Party II. He discusses People's Party II's community programing and the Dowling Shootout, the Rainbow Coalition, and his later involvement in the Black Panther Party in Oakland, California. Crear also talks about the differences in racial discrimination in California versus Texas and his efforts to honor the life of Carl Hampton as well as the legacy of the Black Panther Party.
Date: June 6, 2016
Creator: Enriquez, Sandra; Rodriguez, Samantha & Crear, John
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Arturo Eureste, June 8, 2016 captions transcript

Oral History Interview with Arturo Eureste, June 8, 2016

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.
Date: June 8, 2016
Creator: Enriquez, Sandra; Rodriguez, Samantha & Eureste, Arturo
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with James Aaron, June 8, 2016 captions transcript

Oral History Interview with James Aaron, June 8, 2016

James Aaron was born and raised in Pleasantville, a predominately African American neighborhood in Houston, TX. After highschool, he would join the People's Party II. He discusses growing up with Carl Hampton, segregation in Houston, the community activities of the People's Party II, and how he would become the leader of the party after the Dowling Shootout. He also talks in depth about the goal and purpose of the Rainbow Coalition, which comprised of the People's Party II, the John Brown Revolutionary League and the Mexican American Youth Organization.
Date: June 8, 2016
Creator: Aaron, James; Enriquez, Sandra & Rodriguez, Samantha
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Edward Castillo, June 9, 2016 captions transcript

Oral History Interview with Edward Castillo, June 9, 2016

Edward Castillo was born in Houston in 1948. He grew up in the Fifth Ward and the Northside neighborhoods. Castillo talks about his activism in the University of Houston Mexican American Youth Organization and the organization's efforts to recruit and retain Chicana/o students, to establish the Center for Mexican American Studies, and to create the UH Marcha por La Humanidad mural. He also talks about co-founding Centro Aztlán, a cooperative that is dedicated to providing educational and social services to the Latina/o community in Houston.
Date: June 9, 2016
Creator: Enriquez, Sandra; Rodriguez, Samantha & Castillo, Edward
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Peggy Fontenette-Yates, June 10, 2016 captions transcript

Oral History Interview with Peggy Fontenette-Yates, June 10, 2016

Peggy Fontenette Yates was born in Houston in 1946 and grew up in Pleasantville, a historic African American neighborhood of Houston. She discusses her mom's involvement in the community through civic organizations and her brother's experience at the University of Houston as one of the school's first Black students. Ms. Yates also shared her business ventures as she owned and ran Fontenette's Restaurant in the 1970s, and her experience in nursing school and becoming a nurse subsequently. Currently, she is a member of SHAPE's Elders Institute of Wisdom, and is involved in the community through her project Woman's Roots prison aftercare program.
Date: June 10, 2016
Creator: Rodriguez, Samantha & Fontenette-Yates, Peggy
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Torey Doucette, June 10, 2016 captions transcript

Oral History Interview with Torey Doucette, June 10, 2016

Discussed the "transition" generation (segregation).
Date: June 10, 2016
Creator: Doucette, Torey; Grevious, Danielle & Bobadilla, Eladio
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Claude Frost, June 11, 2016 captions transcript

Oral History Interview with Claude Frost, June 11, 2016

Claude Frost was born in Houston and lived in Clinton Park, a neighborhood near Houston's Ship Channel. He recall's his experiences growing up in the area, and how an instance of police brutality (the killing of his neighbor) sparked his activism. Furthermore, he discusses the role of the Peoples Party II in the community, the Dowling Street Shootout in detail, and the aftermath of Carl Hampton's death. Mr. Frost also discusses how the Black Panther Party was established in Houston and how his work through the BPP influenced his adult life.
Date: June 11, 2016
Creator: Enriquez, Sandra; Rodriguez, Samantha & Frost, Claude
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Maria Jimenez, June 13, 2016 captions transcript

Oral History Interview with Maria Jimenez, June 13, 2016

Maria Jiménez was born in Coahuila, Mexico in 1957. Having grown-up in a political household, she would migrate to Houston at the age of six. Jiménez discusses Mexican American segregation in Magnolia Park and how that experience shaped her youth activism. She also discusses her involvement in the Young Democrats, the University of Houston Mexican American Youth Organization, her bid for state representative against Ben Reyes under the Raza Unida ticket, and the Dixiecrats. Jiménez also addresses fights for gender equality in the Texas Chicana/o Movement, Black and Brown collaboration, and her participation in labor movements in Mexico. Lastly, she talks about her life-long dedication to immigrant and human rights.
Date: June 13, 2016
Creator: Enriquez, Sandra; Rodriguez, Samantha & Jimenez, Maria
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Reynaldo Rodriguez, June 13, 2016 captions transcript

Oral History Interview with Reynaldo Rodriguez, June 13, 2016

Reynaldo Rodriguez was born in 1947 in Corpus Christi. He discusses growing up in Corpus and briefly shared his Vietnam War experience and how it took him to Alaska. Upon being discharged from the military, he attends Del Mar College and decides to attend the University of Houston. Mr. Rodriguez discusses his activism during college in MAYO, the struggle to create the Center for Mexican American Studies (CMAS), and the painting of the UH Chicano Mural. He also discusses his involvement in LRUP and the founding of Centro Aztlan in the East End.
Date: June 13, 2016
Creator: Enriquez, Sandra; Rodriguez, Samantha & Rodriguez, Reynaldo
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Alice Valdez, June 14, 2016 captions transcript

Oral History Interview with Alice Valdez, June 14, 2016

Alice E. Valdez was born in El Paso, and grew up in a middle class, Anglo and Mexican American community. She discusses her father's WWII experience to detail. Ms. Valdez was involved in the arts from an early age through church groups and in school activities. She attended the University of Texas at El Paso where she was part of the band and graduated with a degree in music. She recalled the 1966 Texas Western College (name prior to UTEP) NCAA Basketball Championship during her college experience. Upon graduation, Ms. Valdez moved with her husband to Atlanta for his military service. She moved to Houston in 1971. Due to her arts background, she became involved in creating arts programs for children and subsequently founded the Multicultural Education Counseling through the Arts Center, (MECA).
Date: June 14, 2016
Creator: Enriquez, Sandra; Rodriguez, Samantha & Valdez, Alice
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Harvey Johnson, June 14, 2016 captions transcript

Oral History Interview with Harvey Johnson, June 14, 2016

Johnson discussed his "visual poetry," its' connection to civil rights, and the need for a "new vocabulary" in our study of the past and in tackling contemporary social problems.
Date: June 14, 2016
Creator: Grevious, Danielle; Bobadilla, Eladio & Johnson, Harvey
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Mike Espinoza, June 14, 2016 captions transcript

Oral History Interview with Mike Espinoza, June 14, 2016

Michael "Mike" Espinoza was born in 1979 in the East End, a Mexican American enclave in Houston, TX. He grew up experiencing homelessness and having to join a gang in order to survive in his neighborhood. Having gained the assistance of the Ripley House on Navigation and the intervention of his parents, Espinosa would go on to attend Franklin Marshall College where he would develop a racial and political consciousness. He talked about how he would become involved in the Unviersity of Houston Movimiento Estudiantil Chicana/o de Aztlan and participate in efforts to address discrimination. His political involvement would reach a zenith when he became active in the fight for immigrant rights in the early 2000s. Espinoza spoke about how his community involvement lead him on a path to become an organizer for the SEIU Justice for Jaintors Campaign, a movement he is still involved in as a organizing consultant.
Date: June 14, 2016
Creator: Enriquez, Sandra; Rodriguez, Samantha & Espinoza, Mike
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Ann Robison, June 15, 2016 captions transcript

Oral History Interview with Ann Robison, June 15, 2016

Discussed the history of LGBT activism in the Golden Triangle, her memories of Klan activity in Port Arthur, and the continuing struggles of the gay community.
Date: June 15, 2016
Creator: Grevious, Danielle; Bobadilla, Eladio & Robison, Ann
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Louise Villejo on June 15, 2016. captions transcript

Oral History Interview with Louise Villejo on June 15, 2016.

Louise Villejo was born in 1953 in San Antonio, TX. She migrated to Houston when she was three years old and grew up witnessing white flight in the Sunnyside neighborhood in Houston. After attending Catholic schools, she become involved in the University of Houston Mexican American Youth Organization. Villejo talks about how she was a leader in Mujeres Unidas, an organization where Chicana feminists addressed women's issues and developed Teatro Mujeres Unidas. At this time, she was involved in cross-racial efforts as a ethnic student council representative. Villejo also discusses her participation in and experiences with some of the major Chicana and mainstream feminist conferences, including the 1975 Chicana Identity Conference, the 1975 International Women's Year Conference in Mexico City, and the 1977 International Women's Year Conference. She describes the Jose Campos Torres incident and the Moody Park Rebellion. She ends the interview by talking about her involvement in Latina/o patient advocacy, something she has dedicated her adult life to.
Date: June 15, 2016
Creator: Enriquez, Sandra; Rodriguez, Samantha & Villejo, Louise
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Frank Partida on June 16, 2016. captions transcript

Oral History Interview with Frank Partida on June 16, 2016.

Frank Partida was born in 1928 in Magnolia Park, an Mexican-American enclave in Houston, Texas. He talks about his experiences with stark segregation in Magnolia Park and the greater Houston area and how his grandfather, Elias Ramirez, was a founder of Sociedad Mutualista Benito Juarez and LULAC Council #60. Partida was involved in the Political Association of Spanish-Speaking Organizations, LULAC Council #60, and Viva Kennedy clubs. He talks about his political experiences and later work in local War on Poverty programs and union organizing. He also speaks about the first Spanish language radio station in Houston, KLVL, and how Mickey Leland and Barbara Jordan facilitated bridges between the Mexican-American and African- American communities.
Date: June 16, 2016
Creator: Enriquez, Sandra; Rodriguez, Samantha & Partida, Frank
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Michelle Barnes, June 17, 2016 captions transcript

Oral History Interview with Michelle Barnes, June 17, 2016

Michelle Barnes grew up in Third Ward, a historic African American neighborhood in Houston, TX. She talks about the social, cultural, and economic vibrancy of Third Ward and how the drowing of a child in Sunnyside sparked her involvement in the Committee for Better Race Relations and the fight for African American Studies. While at the University of Houston, she played an active role in creating social organizations for Black students, particularly the creation of a Delta Sigma Theta chapter. Once she graduated from UH, Barnes participated in youth art programs at the SHAPE Community Center and eventually co-founded the Community Artists' Collective, which originally focused on providing a cooperative space for female African American artists and continues to be a major hub for African American art. She ends the interview by talking about how gentrification has affected the Third Ward community.
Date: June 17, 2016
Creator: Barnes, Michelle; Enriquez, Sandra & Rodriguez, Samantha
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Omowale Luthuli-Allen, June 17, 2016 captions transcript

Oral History Interview with Omowale Luthuli-Allen, June 17, 2016

Omowale Lithuli-Allen was born in Amarillo in 1948, and grew up in Louisiana. He discusses growing up in the Jim Crow South and some of his early activism in high school. In 1966, he enrolled at the University of Houston, where he became involved in organizations such as COBER and Afro-Americans for Black Liberation (AABL). Following his activism at UH and Texas Southern University, he became involved in cross-racial coalitions, where he came together with Mexican American activists to address social, political, and economic inequalities in Houston. Mr. Lithuli-Allen also discusses the history of the role of SHAPE Center in the Third Ward, and his involvement with My Brother's Keeper, a youth outreach initiative by the Obama administration.
Date: June 17, 2016
Creator: Enriquez, Sandra; Rodriguez, Samantha & Luthuli-Allen, Omowale
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Luis Cano, June 20, 2016 captions transcript

Oral History Interview with Luis Cano, June 20, 2016

Luis Cano was born in Corpus Christi, TX. After attending University of North Texas, he came to Houston and would become involved in the Mexican American Youth Organization and La Raza Unida Party. As a teacher at Austin High School, he would develop one of the first Mexican American courses. This experience along with his awareness of his family's political history would lead him to dedicate his life to education efforts. Cano talks the Huelga School Movement, a false pairing plan that placed Mexican American and African American youth together and called it integration. He also speaks about co-founding the Association for the Advancement of Mexican Americans and developing some of its cultural and youth-oriented initiatives, including teatro, a library, a school for at-risk students, and gang prevention. Cano describes his experiences as one of the first lecturers for the UH Center for Mexcian American Studies.
Date: June 20, 2016
Creator: Cano, Luis; Enriquez, Sandra & Rodriguez, Samantha
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with William Lawson, June 20, 2016 captions transcript

Oral History Interview with William Lawson, June 20, 2016

William Lawson was born in St. Louis, Missouri in 1928. He arrived in Houston and worked at Texas Southern University where he became involved in the Civil Rights Movement. Reverend Lawson discussed the Weingarten Sit In, desegregation of public spaces in Houston, and Martin Luther King's visit to Houston. He also discuses the establishment of the Wheeler Avenue Baptist Church in the community and how it has become a hub for social movements. He also discusses the founding of the William A. Lawson Institute for Peace and Prosperity in 1996 and how it has helped the community.
Date: June 20, 2016
Creator: Enriquez, Sandra; Rodriguez, Samantha & Lawson, William
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Ray Hill, June 21, 2016 captions transcript

Oral History Interview with Ray Hill, June 21, 2016

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.
Date: June 21, 2016
Creator: Enriquez, Sandra; Rodriguez, Samantha & Hill, Ray
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Elwyn Lee, June 22, 2016 captions transcript

Oral History Interview with Elwyn Lee, June 22, 2016

Elwin Lee was born in Virgina and was raised in Third Ward, a historic African American neighborhood in Houston, TX. He talks about segregation in Houston, the vibrancy of Third Ward, and the Texas Southern University "riot." Lee also discusses how he went to Yale Law School and returned to Houston to become the first African American tenured at the University of Houston Law School. After serving as the director of African American Studies for a couple of years and reviving the program, Lee built upon the student and community relationships he developed at the time to serve as the Vice President of Student Affairs. He discusses how he is currently involved in efforts to bridge the university and Third Ward by figuring out how the school can assist education, health, and economic empowerment.
Date: June 22, 2016
Creator: Enriquez, Sandra; Rodriguez, Samantha & Lee, Elwyn
System: The Portal to Texas History