Oral history interview with Jimmy Martínez, 1997 [videorecording].

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Oral history interview with Jimmy Martínez, 1997 [videorecording].

http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/317633400

Judge Jimmy Martínez begins the interview with details about his early life in Bee County, his business enterprises, and his encounters with racial discrimination. He discusses his growing interest in Bee County politics and his membership in the local Jaycees. He reveals the political turmoil that ensued in Beeville after his election to the city council, including threats from former county sheriff Robert Vail Ennis, and tells about the appointment of Humberto Saenz as Beeville's first Hispanic mayor. He assails the local newspaper for its heavy bias aimed at discrediting Hispanic candidates for election. He notes the assistance of the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF) in equalizing voter representation in Bee County. He attributes his success on the Bee County Commissioners Court to Carlos Truán, discusses campaign strategies and funding, and details his accomplishments in office. He talks at length about his work with Jake Kinbolough on the Bee County Commissioners Court and his subsequent appointment as County Judge by Kinbolough. Judge Martínez refers to his involvement in his daughter's election to the city council of Mathis, Texas and talks about that city's first Hispanic mayor, Melchor Chavez. He explains Joe Moron's battle with the tax authorities in Bee County, details Bernie Sandoval's financial struggles and boycotts, and compares his own governing philosophy with that of his Mexican American contemporaries, Adán V. Gonzales and Mike Muñoz.

2 videocassettes (VHS) (3 hr., 11 min.) : col. ; 1/2 in.Transcript : 86 p. ; 28 cm.

eng,

spa,

University of Texas at Arlington, Central Library

Information

SNAC Resource ID: 7325495

University of Texas at Arlington, Central Library

Related Entities

There are 19 Entities related to this resource.

University of Texas at Arlington. Center for Mexican American Studies

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w63c6s61 (corporateBody)

Bee County Commissioners Court.

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6x41gd4 (corporateBody)

Morón, Joe.

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6f808pw (person)

Kinbolough, Jake.

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w68h2h0f (person)

Gutiérrez, José Angel,

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w62r404b (person)

José Angel Gutierrez was born Oct. 25, 1944, in Crystal City, Texas. An activist, educator, organizer, and lawyer, Gutierrez co-founded the La Raza Unida Party and played many leadership roles in the early Chicano civil rights movement. He served as President of the Crystal City Independent School District Board in the early 1970s and as a County Judge for Zavala County, Tex. (1975-1980). In the 1980s, Gutierrez pursued a teaching career and moved to Oregon where he taught at Colegio Cesar Chav...

Martinez, Jimmy

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w64n31r1 (person)

Judge Jimmy Martínez was born in 1942 and raised in Bee County. He was the first in his family to attend school and graduated from high school in 1962. He attended Del Mar Junior College and obtained his real estate license. He was elected to the Beeville City Council in 1970 and served in that role for 9 years. He also served as director of the local Head Start Program and was elected to the Bee County Commissioners Court in 1984. At the time of the interview, he had recently been appointed Co...

Sandoval, Bernie.

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6bc7vhf (person)

Truán, Carlos.

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6fz00t8 (person)

Senator Carlos Truan was born June 9, 1935, in Kingsville, Texas. He received a B.B.A. from Texas A & I University in 1959. Truan was elected state representative for Nueces and Kleberg counties in 1968; after serving four terms he was elected state senator from District 20 in 1976. In addition to serving for more than 30 years in the Texas Legislature, Senator Truan has been a successful life insurance agent since 1960 and has been active in many organizations. He held local, state and nati...

Ennis, Robert Vail.

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6vq6zxs (person)

Beeville (Tex.). City Council.

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6hf4f0v (corporateBody)

Gonzales, Adán V.,

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6dc1xpv (person)

Adán V. Gonzales was born in Sugarland, Texas in 1928. His family lived in Dinero, Texas and worked for rancher Holman Cartwright for a time before moving to Beeville, Texas. Mr. Gonzales quit school in tenth grade. He developed an interest in politics and furthering opportunities for Mexican Americans prior to his being drafted into military service. When he returned to Beeville, he worked at Chase Field (later the U.S. Naval Air Station-Beeville). He was the first Mexican American to open a c...

Martínez family.

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w652369q (family)

Del Mar College

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6gv12hq (corporateBody)

Head Start Program (U.S.)

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6k39mcx (corporateBody)

Saenz, Humberto.

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w66h8dkg (person)

Chávez, Melchor.

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6m081tm (person)

Muñoz, Mike.

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6nw3f23 (person)

Jaycees of Beeville, Texas.

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6s8216k (corporateBody)

Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w62k18m2 (corporateBody)

In 1978 the Accounting and Administration Department was formed by combining many of the administrative tasks of the President's office with the work done by the accounting office. From the description of Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF) records. Record Group 3, Finance and Administration Department, 1967-1991. (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 754866027 The Leadership Development and Activation Project (LDAP) began as a subsection of the Community E...