Monuments as Memory: Coda

The final episode & conclusion to the History & Memory: Tejanos in American Wars podcast. Thank you for listening. Conclusion: Tejanos, the Concept of Patriotism, and MemoryBackgroundCivil War background & UT Monuments of all sorts are interpretive tools (Lost Cause)1. In the simplest of terms, monuments serve primary purpose of remembrance/community cohesion2. They are public statements of shared values—both ideal and real3. Monuments demonstrate a form of cultural and political place for a community.I. The MemorialsA. 2004: Laredo and the Hispanic Congressional Medal of Honor1. On July 4, 2004, officials from Laredo, veterans, & other dignitaries unveiled a statueto honor the 41 Hispanic veterans who had received the Congressional Medal of Honor2. The Laredo Hispanic Veterans MemorialB. 2008: El Paso Company E Memorial Plaza was dedicated in South El Paso1. Beto O’Rourke (city Rep) urged the city to recognize the men in Company E, a unitmade up of all Mexican Americans from the areaC. 2013: Veterans War Memorial Plaza in McAllen1. Started in 1990 by Frank Plummer, a WW II veteran and retired real estate developer.2. Project finally completed on Veterans Day in 2013a) site has 160 granite panels with stories containing historical information on eachwar, citizenships & events of that time as well as a statue known as "The Warrior"D. Murals in SA1. Chicano heritageE. Tejano Monument in Austin1. No military dedicated statue/monument but a monument to Tejanos noted on capitolgroundsF. Raul Chavarria—Tejano military service remains a rich and varied topic1. omplexity of how Tejanos viewed their service is exemplified by how Korean Warveteran Raúl M. Chavarría thought nothing of flying two flags, for the United Statesand Mexico, outside his Laredo home when I visited for an oral history interviewG. My thesis is that Tejano military service of the past is a deeply complex and rich topic thatcan make you smile, make you sad, make you angry, or even make you wonder. In sum, it isthe perfect vehicle for exploring the idea of the human element of historyII. MemoryTejano military service was not a hegemonic experience forged through the prisms of assimilation andpatriotism. Rather, Mexican Texans altered their motivations in the various wars of the twentiethcentury, shifting based on a complex set of intrinsic and extrinsic values.But, on the Texas-Mexico border, the narrative of nationalism remains strong. In 2024, local politicalleaders pushed a bill to rename one of the local post offices for two war veterans, Lance Cpl. DavidLee Espinoza, Sgt. Roberto Arizola Jr., and Lance Cpl. Juan RodriguezA. The Memorials for the Tejano Veterans take an added measure in the 21 st century1. Alfredo “Freddy” Gonzalez—Edinburg bravery MoH posthumouslya) Congressional Medal of Honor in Vietnamb) Beyond statues: The USS Freddy Gonzalez (schools/parks/streets)2. Collective Memory: enough people sitting together discussing the memories of thesame event will find common grounda) The more people in the Discussion, the more collective the memory becomesb) The result is society with common ideas about the pastc) Most memories of the past endure through frameworks created by socialgroups always at hand3. How does collective memory and debates look like?Enola Gay: How to remember the atomic bombConfederate statues: how Americans remember a war fought over slaveryMuseums and Memorials as well as commemorative activities are culturalrepresentations of history4. Reasons for War Memorialsa) Recognition of Sacrificeb) Cultural Valuesc) Community IdentityEmphasis on Nationalism can likely be traced back to the problems of post WW II US [discrimination]*Beating of Private Ben Aguirre in 1947*Felix Longoria burial in 1948*Arrest of Macario Garcia [Medal of Honor] in 1945 after fighting restaurant ownerLoyalty cannot be questioned with public memory