Oral history interview with José Chito Vela, Jr., 1997 [videorecording].

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Oral history interview with José Chito Vela, Jr., 1997 [videorecording].

http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/427548358

José 'Chito' Vela, Jr., begins with his political career, discussing his successful elections as justice of the peace and as county commissioner in Webb County, Texas, and his failed bid for district judge. He describes the procedural problems in investigating local deaths as a justice of the peace and the changes he instituted to eliminate local corruption between police and local businesses. He recalls his first law partner, Alberto Huerta, and their law office in Corpus Christi, where they were joined by Albert Peña and Raza Unida Party gubernatorial candidate Ramsey Muñiz, and reveals their office phone lines were wiretapped by the Texas Department of Public Safety. He explains his brief time in Austin followed by his decision to return to Laredo to work with Oscar Peña. He refers to the arrest of Ramsey Muñiz on drug charges connected to poppy growing in the Mexican state of Sinaloa, who was brought back to the United States by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. He describes activities of the Raza Unida Party in Texas, reviews his family's history, and tells about to the coal mines in Laredo. He talks about his college years, an election selecting the first Mexican American homecoming queen at Texas A&I-Kingsville (now Texas A&M University-Kingsville), and his friendship with Kingsville Mayor James McCrocklin. He elaborates on the race discrimination he felt at Texas A&I and details the time he spent in the U.S. Air Force. He comments on fellow student William Leon Richey, an 'Anglo' American who changed from bigot to supporter of the Chicano Movement, and expresses his opinion on the isolated culture of Laredo. He contrasts the differing border policies of the United States and Mexico and their impact on the Laredo area and touches on the water pollution of the Rio Grande. He addresses the local banking interests of Tony Sanchez and Alberto Santos and the role of the local banks in providing political campaign funds, and refers to Sanchez's own newspaper which competed with the 'Laredo Times.' He deplores the Repubican Party stronghold in the court system in South Texas and notes an influx of African American minorities through the sports program at Laredo Junior College. He mentions such prominent individuals as African American Mickey Leland, Mexican American artist Armando Hinojosa, and Texas State Senator Judy Zaffirini.

2 videocassettes (VHS) : col. ; 1/2 in.Transcript, 102 p. ; 28 cm.

spa,

eng,

University of Texas at Arlington, Central Library

Information

SNAC Resource ID: 7476318

University of Texas at Arlington, Central Library

Related Entities

There are 23 Entities related to this resource.

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Richey, William, 1956-

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Attorney; former steward at Rillito Race Track, 1950-1953. From the description of Oral history interview, 1983 Jul. 11 [sound recording]. (Arizona Historical Society, Southern Arizona Division). WorldCat record id: 35520124 ...

McCrocklin, James H.

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Zaffirini, Judith Lee

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Muniz, Ramsey.

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Huerta, Albert

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Sanchez, Tony 1965-....

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Gutiérrez, José Angel,

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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...

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Born in 1944 in Laredo, Texas, attorney José 'Chito' Vela, Jr., was raised in Laredo and graduated from Martin High School in December 1960. He attended Laredo Junior College before continuing at Texas A&I-Kingsville, where he was president of the Laredo Club, receiving his Bachelor of Arts Degree in Government in 1965. He enlisted in the U.S. Air Force upon graduating and worked as a Neighborhood Youth Community Field Coordinator for Southwest Texas State University. In 1968, he became the...

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United States. Drug Enforcement Administration

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Pena Rodríguez, Alberto, 1970-....

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County commissioner, attorney, activist for Mexican American issues. Peña was born December 15, 1917, and graduated from the South Texas School of Law in 1950. He began his legal career by filing school desegregation suits in Hondo, Texas, and Lytle, Texas, on behalf of the American G.I. Forum and the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), respectively. He was a Bexar County commissioner from 1960 to 1974. He organized Viva Kennedy Clubs in Texas in 1960 and had founding roles in the...

Texas A & M University--Kingsville.

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