Tension grows over ‘Eyes of Texas’ after UT student guides refuse to work, man with a gun crashes virtual event

by: Kate McGee, Texas Tribune

Posted: May 4, 2021 / 04:02 PM CDT / Updated: May 5, 2021 / 08:39 AM CDT—

AUSTIN (Texas Tribune) — Dozens of students at the University of Texas at Austin who give campus tours to prospective Longhorns are refusing to work this week over a dispute about a plaque with “The Eyes of Texas” lyrics hanging in the Admissions Welcome Center.

The dustup over the plaque is the latest example of UT-Austin officials standing by “The Eyes” over pleas that the university distance itself from the alma mater song because it originated at a minstrel show where students likely wore Blackface.

It’s also the latest in a series of clashes over the song in a nearly yearlong controversy that has frequently pit administrators and alumni against students and divided members of the Longhorn community. Continue reading here.