Adela Vasquez was born (1949) and raised in Odessa, Texas. Her family was able to move to the Anglo area of West Odessa when she was a child. Vasquez attended the predominantly Anglo School, Zavala Elementary. She later went to Ector High School, where she graduated in 1967. Vasquez attended Odessa College, where she met her husband Gilbert Vasquez, and then attended Texas Tech University. Vasquez also obtained an MA degree in psychology at Texas Tech University. Vasquez held various leadership positions in Ector County ISD and Region 18.

Art Leal was born and raised in Odessa, Texas. Leal graduated from Odessa High School, after which he joined the U.S. Army and served in the first Gulf War. He graduated from Odessa College and the University of Texas at the Permian Basin. Leal ran for mayor of Odessa in 2008. Leal has been Ector County Democrat Precinct 406 Chair, is a member Mexican American Democrats Texas, has organized first Cesar Chavez Day March in Odessa, the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Declamations in Odessa, Civic Participation Workshops in Odessa, of Election Debates/Forums in Ector County, multiple 1st Amendment Demonstrations in Odessa, is past Chairman Una Voz Unida of Odessa, is past Board Member Black Chamber of Commerce, is past Ambassador Odessa Chamber of Commerce, is past Board Member City of Odessa Planning Board of Adjustments, is past Chairman Odessa Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, and is past Co Chair March of Dimes. Finally Leal help start the Brown Berets Odessa (the city’s second Brown Beret group).

Richard C. Abalos grew up in Rankin, Texas. After graduating early from high school, Abalos moved to Odessa, Texas where he attended Odessa College and worked for a law form as an investigator and aide. Before obtaining an undergraduate degree, Abalos entered law school at St. Mary’s University in San Antono, Texas. After law school, he was drafted into the military. Upon returning to Odessa, he became the city’s first Mexican American attorney and handled several civil rights cases, including the nationally recognized Larry Lozano police beating that galvanized the region’s Chicano Movement.

Gilbert Herrera was born in Lubbock, Texas. His father, a police officer, died on duty. Herrera was raised by a single mother. Having few economic opportunities, as a child he would break into homes to find food. As a teenager, Herrera joined a gang and eventually was jailed or imprisoned three times. He left prison a final time days before his mother died of cancer. During the early 1970s, Herrera began to lead and grow the West Texas Brown Berets. He organized several marches against police brutality and other social causes, including marches alongside African Americans, in and outside of Lubbock. Herrera is now a Baptist minister and leads a political action group in Lubbock named La Fuerza.

Nick Hernandez was born and raised in Odessa, Texas. He attended Milam Elementary, Dunbar Junior High, and Ector High School before obtaining his GED at Southwest State University in San Marcos, Texas while working within Job Core; Hernandez was only fourteen when he obtained his GED. As a teenager, he took an interest in cars, which eventually led him to study car body work, which he took and taught others. Influenced by Raul Guerrero, originally from Pecos and educated at the University of Texas at El Paso, Hernandez helped start the Brown Berets chapter of Odessa, Texas. Hernandez helped lead the community protests against police brutality regarding the Larry Lozano beating and killing by the Odessa Police Department. Hernandez is now in the Hall of Fame of Lowrider Magazine and is part of Taste of Latin Car Club.

Jay Gibson was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania while his father attending medical school. The family moved to Kermit, Texas, where Gibson’s father began his practice. Gibson later moved to Austin, Texas when his parents divorced, but attended high school in Kermit during his final years of high school. Gibson attending the University of Texas at Austin, where he graduated in 1972, and then attending law school at Southern Methodist University, graduating in 1975. Gibson moved to Odessa, Texas to practice law and was elected into the Texas House of Representatives in 1978 out of Odessa. He served three term ending in 1984 in which he helped secure additional funding for Texas A&M Prairie View and Texas Southern University. As a State Representative, Gibson was also instrumental in having Martin Luther King being made into a state holiday. Governor Ann Richards later appointed Gibson as a District Judge.

Rose Wilson was born outside of Waco and moved to Lubbock as a young married adult. She raised her children in the city. Wilson became the first African American women to become president of Lubbock’s NAACP—when she was working as a maid. Because of her work sector, she faced pushback by some community economic elites. Sheila Patterson-Harris was born and raised in Lubbock, Texas. Her father is T.J. Patterson-Harris, the first African American City Representative of Lubbock, Texas. She attended school at the University of North Texas Denton, Texas. After graduating from university, Patterson-Harris moved back to Lubbock and worked in the radio industry but transferred over to working as a probation officer for twenty-nine years. She won the city representative seat her father once had in 2016.

Arnoldo De Leon was born in 1945 in Corpus Christi, Texas. His family lived in Chapman Ranch, an unincorporated community in Nueces County, south of Corpus Christi. In 1956, the De Leons and their family of ten children moved to Robstown. De Leon graduated from high school in 1962 after which he worked in the cotton fields of the area to save up for college, a job he had during summers as a child and teenager. He attended Del Mar College in Corpus Christi, but he could not afford to attend longer than a year. He joined the military in order to attend college, joining the U.S. Air Force from 1963-1967. While stationed in San Angelo, Texas, he attended Angelo State University where he obtained his B.A. in history in 1970. TCU recruited De Leon, where he obtained his M.A. and PhD in history (1974). He taught Mexican American history at Angelo State and authored or co-authored 21 books.

Joann Davenport Littleton was born and raised in Crane, Texas. In Crane’s high school, Davenport Littleton became the first African American class president. Indeed, her mother was the first African American to graduate from the same high school. As a talented volleyball player, she received an academic scholarship to Angelo State University in San Angelo, Texas. Davenport Littleton did not like the athletic structure she had to adhere to and left Angelo State University after a semester. She moved to Odessa and worked for the city as well as a privet company while joining the Ector County Democrats. In 1990, deeming south Odessa being underserved, Davenport Littleton ran for city council. She won with a majority ethnic Mexican electorate. In the city council she worked to bring development and city services to south Odessa as well as to clean the environmental problems of that city section.

Alford Littleton was born in Corvell County, Texas. His family briefly moved to California then returned to Texas when moving to Odessa during the 1950s. Littleton attended segregated schools while in Odessa and graduated valedictorian from Blackshear High School. Littleton attended the University of Texas at Austin for two years, but he returned to Odessa to work and raise a family. In Odessa, Littleton became the first African American to work within Shell’s refinery lab. He later started his own engineering testing company in Dallas, Texas—the first such company in Dallas owned by an African American.

Mrs. Wiltz grew up in the community of Tamina which was founded as a Freedmen's Settlement in the late 1800s. She described some history, race relations, gentrification, infrastructure inequality and changes over time in Tamina. Wiltz currently runs multiple community organizations that provide services to residents in Tamina and the surrounding areas. Wiltz runs a community center in Tamina and the non-profit organization Children's Books on Wheels.

Mr. Morales started the first newspaper for Latinas/os in Fort Bend County in 1975. He spent a lot of his life in Corpus Christie, but moved to Houston and then Rosenberg. He mentioned labor unions, experiencing discrimination, and the transitioning of neighborhoods from predominantly White with some Latinas/os to more people of color.

Torres provides background information on himself and his family in Richmond/Fort Bend county, he talked about generational changes and continuities in terms of education, speaking Spanish/biligual education in schools, and his runs for elected offices In Fort Bend County.

Joe Vera discusses his family's Tejano background, his time in the Navy, and his work with the Hispanic community in the region.

Randle described growing up in rural Texas, segregation, integration, and the challenges of growing up working class and black, as well as the ways in which he overcame the odds to become a prominent and educated official in the region.

Grady Prestage is the Democratic Precinct 2 representative on the Fort Bend County Commissioners Court in Texas. He was elected in 1990, and his current term extends through 2022. In his interview, he described his early childhood in Louisiana, moving to Texas to work in the oil industry, and his decision to run for office, as well as the challenges of that office.

Ms. Gonzales described her early childhood, learning about her culture from her grandmother, her journey to college, and her work as a social worker helping disadvantaged communities.

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.

Lupe Uresti discussed her experiences in a segregated Rosenberg and racially tense schooling, working for her father's business, her public service as a council member and then the first Mexican-American female mayor of Rosenberg, and finally her work for public housing services.

Described his early childhood in a segregated Liberty, TX, his early involvement with environmental issues, his trajectory to becoming an environmental lawyer, and finally, his work as a Democratic elected official.

Described her family's acquisition of land from former slaveowners, discrimination and segregation, political activism, and community work.

Huff York described her rural upbringing, her experience in the civil rights struggle locally, and the changes that have happened in the region since her childhood.

Dora Olivo is a Democratic former member of the Texas House of Representatives. In her interview, she described her education, early work, and her career as a teacher, lawyer, elected representative, and full time activist.

Mr. Moore was the first Black elected official in Jefferson county (County Commissioner, 1986) and was involved in various aspects of pressuring the city for Black civil rights. He shared what he remembered about the 1943 race riot in Beaumont, mentioned class divisions within the segregated Black communities in Beaumont, discussed the significance of unions for workplace advancement, was critical to Black representation on schools boards/in PTAs, and helped form the South Park Voters League to initially influence school board elections and, later, Black voter enfranchisement.