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Tejano Monument dedication set for Thursday
Austin American Statesman 3/26/12
Tejano Monument dedication set for Thursday
At Thursday's long-awaited dedication of the Tejano Monument at the Capitol, hundreds of schoolchildren will lead the Pledge of Allegiance, and the descendants of pioneer Tejano settlers will unveil some of the 10 pieces of the massive granite and bronze statuary. Children will lift the veils off statues depicting a young boy and girl.
Like the monument, a vision conceived in 2000 and meticulously crafted over the past decade, incorporating children and families in the ceremony is by design.
"The message is that it's not about the bronze and the stone and the past. The monument is a statement about modern Texas and living Texans," said Andrés Tijerina, an Austin Community College history professor and one of the leaders behind the nearly $2 million project.
A tribute to Texas' early Spanish and Mexican explorers, settlers and their descendants, the Tejano Monument is the first of its kind at the Capitol. Supporters say it recovers hundreds of years of Texas history, a story usually not told in the conventional narrative that begins with the arrival of Anglos from other states in the 1800s.
Sculpted by Armando Hinojosa of Laredo, the monument tells the sweeping story of pioneer Tejano families, the advent of cattle ranching, farming and the Tejano cultural influences that pervade Texas life centuries later. The life-size statues depict a Spanish explorer, a vaquero (cowboy) on his mustang, two longhorns and a family of settlers. Installed on the south lawn last week, the monument has been eagerly awaited by supporters and the organizers who waged a grass-roots campaign to see it accomplished. The Legislature approved the project in 2001. Supporters raised about $1 million to combine with another $1 million in state money.
Tejano Monument dedication set for Thursday
At Thursday's long-awaited dedication of the Tejano Monument at the Capitol, hundreds of schoolchildren will lead the Pledge of Allegiance, and the descendants of pioneer Tejano settlers will unveil some of the 10 pieces of the massive granite and bronze statuary. Children will lift the veils off statues depicting a young boy and girl.
Like the monument, a vision conceived in 2000 and meticulously crafted over the past decade, incorporating children and families in the ceremony is by design.
"The message is that it's not about the bronze and the stone and the past. The monument is a statement about modern Texas and living Texans," said Andrés Tijerina, an Austin Community College history professor and one of the leaders behind the nearly $2 million project.
A tribute to Texas' early Spanish and Mexican explorers, settlers and their descendants, the Tejano Monument is the first of its kind at the Capitol. Supporters say it recovers hundreds of years of Texas history, a story usually not told in the conventional narrative that begins with the arrival of Anglos from other states in the 1800s.
Sculpted by Armando Hinojosa of Laredo, the monument tells the sweeping story of pioneer Tejano families, the advent of cattle ranching, farming and the Tejano cultural influences that pervade Texas life centuries later. The life-size statues depict a Spanish explorer, a vaquero (cowboy) on his mustang, two longhorns and a family of settlers. Installed on the south lawn last week, the monument has been eagerly awaited by supporters and the organizers who waged a grass-roots campaign to see it accomplished. The Legislature approved the project in 2001. Supporters raised about $1 million to combine with another $1 million in state money.
Just watch the wingers start complaining about how this is praising illegal immigration. Never mind that Tejanos were here before the Alamo. The wingers can't wrap their heads around that one.
More info about the monument here
http://nosotroslostejanos.com/
7 replies
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who happened to be my dad's best friend. His daughter was my first best friend as well. 
http://www.tejanomonument.com/committees/cayetano-barrera/
dg
Work
In September 1966, he was sent to Viet Nam where he served with the 12th Evacuation Hospital, 7th M.A.S.H. Hospital and the 1st Infantry Division. After service in Viet Nam he served as the Post Surgeon at the Umatilla Army Depot, Hermiston, Oregon. On discharge from the army in 1968, he started a family practice partnership – Family Physicians Clinic in McAllen, Texas where he retired after 43 years of practice. In 2005, Dr. Barrera was awarded Doctor of the Year by the Texas Academy of Family Physicians
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In September 1966, he was sent to Viet Nam where he served with the 12th Evacuation Hospital, 7th M.A.S.H. Hospital and the 1st Infantry Division. After service in Viet Nam he served as the Post Surgeon at the Umatilla Army Depot, Hermiston, Oregon. On discharge from the army in 1968, he started a family practice partnership – Family Physicians Clinic in McAllen, Texas where he retired after 43 years of practice. In 2005, Dr. Barrera was awarded Doctor of the Year by the Texas Academy of Family Physicians
Congratulation and best. Sounds like a well deserved honor for the Doctor and the native culture and people of Texas.
Thanks for adding more history. I'm going to try to go to the unveiling and maybe get some pictures!
Nice. I didn't get today like I had planned. I'll have to go see it later.
I did find another story on the monument though
Rio Grande Guardian 3/29/12
Idea for a Tejano Monument at the state Capitol started at UTPA
EDINBURG, March 29 - It is a little known fact but the idea to build a monument honoring the heritage and contributions of Tejanos at the Texas state Capitol in Austin was born at the University of Texas-Pan American.
The historic Tejano Monument will be officially unveiled by Gov. Rick Perry on the south lawn of the state Capitol at 10 a.m. today. It is the first monument to recognize the contributions of Tejanos at the Capitol.
“The idea for the Monument was born here at the University of Texas-Pan American in 1998, when we had our first Spanish Colonial Texas Symposium,” said Dr. Lino Garcia, professor emeritus of Spanish Literature at UTPA.
“Our symposium had just finished and Dr. Cayetano Barrera, Professor Andres Tijerina, Enrique Guerra and I went to eat. Someone, I think it was Cayetano Barrera, said, ‘we do not have a monument. We have got to have a symbol, something people can see. We can hear speakers and we can have this symposium, but we do not have anything that is concrete, where people can say, what is that and the story can then start to unfold’.”
Professor Tijerina, a professor of history at Austin Community College, remembers the occasion also.
Idea for a Tejano Monument at the state Capitol started at UTPA
EDINBURG, March 29 - It is a little known fact but the idea to build a monument honoring the heritage and contributions of Tejanos at the Texas state Capitol in Austin was born at the University of Texas-Pan American.
The historic Tejano Monument will be officially unveiled by Gov. Rick Perry on the south lawn of the state Capitol at 10 a.m. today. It is the first monument to recognize the contributions of Tejanos at the Capitol.
“The idea for the Monument was born here at the University of Texas-Pan American in 1998, when we had our first Spanish Colonial Texas Symposium,” said Dr. Lino Garcia, professor emeritus of Spanish Literature at UTPA.
“Our symposium had just finished and Dr. Cayetano Barrera, Professor Andres Tijerina, Enrique Guerra and I went to eat. Someone, I think it was Cayetano Barrera, said, ‘we do not have a monument. We have got to have a symbol, something people can see. We can hear speakers and we can have this symposium, but we do not have anything that is concrete, where people can say, what is that and the story can then start to unfold’.”
Professor Tijerina, a professor of history at Austin Community College, remembers the occasion also.
