Honoring La Raza Unida: A Third Party That Changed Texas Politics and Our Sense of What Is Possible by Angela Valenzuela, Ph.D.

Honoring La Raza Unida: A Third Party That Changed Texas Politics and Our Sense of What Is Possible

by

Angela Valenzuela, Ph.D.

Sometimes you strike gold. It helps being married to a historian, who asked me to scan this document for a friend and send it along—reminding me how easily treasures like these can slip through the cracks of history, particularly for the casual reader.

In any case, here is a link to the Raza Unida Party platform (1974) that all can read. For the record, raza is an endearing insider term that means “the people.” Hence, the party platform of a “people united”—a bold declaration of dignity and self-determination at a time when Mexican Americans were still struggling to be seen and heard in the halls of power. While the fight for representation continues today, the barriers facing our community were even more formidable in those years.

This morning is the first time I have ever seen or read it. I was in middle school at a time when history itself seemed to march in the streets—the Chicana/o Movement in full stride, the women’s movement gaining strength, and the anti–Vietnam War movement shaking the nation’s conscience. It was then that I first exclaimed that I was “Brown and proud”—a declaration resonant with the spirit of the Black, Red, and Yellow Power movements. All of this action clearly shook the establishment and resulted in Civil Rights legislation that remains among the most significant victories for equity and democracy in U.S. history.

Because network television and newspapers were our major sources of information, it was almost impossible not to hear about what was happening in Texas and other places throughout the Southwest where it took root. In fact, the Raza Unida Party was very much present in my hometown of San Angelo, West Texas, during the early 1970s. These stories seeped into my consciousness, shaping the way I understood politics, justice, and my place in the world.

As this contributed to my political formation, I dedicate this blog to honoring the hard work of those who dared to form a third party—many of them still with us today—because both major parties were largely indifferent to Chicanas/os and Mexican Americans in Texas and throughout the Southwest. Sadly, this reality still resonates with sectors of our communities who continue to feel left behind. Yet most positively, it reminds us of our long history of resistance to exclusion and subordination, particularly in the realm of education—education that is culturally relevant, adequately resourced, and a genuine pathway to higher learning.

Our community has never received these things as gifts from above. They have always been won through struggle, sacrifice, and organizing. Despite the current Epoch of Institutional Unraveling, as I term it, the silver lining is that the vision of Raza Unida lives on today. It lives on in grassroots efforts—whether through Ethnic Studies programs, culturally sustaining schools, bilingual and dual language programs, community-based initiatives like Academia Cuauhtli, or movements for political representation—that continue to build on this legacy of courage.

The party’s story is a reminder that when communities come together to demand representation, justice, and dignity, they can build power against the odds. Its legacy calls on us not only to remember but also to continue imagining and creating the structures of democracy we deserve.

La lucha de La Raza Unida nos recuerda que la justicia nunca se concede, sino que se conquista. Su legado vive en cada esfuerzo comunitario por representación, educación y dignidad—y nos llama a seguir construyendo la democracia que merecemos.

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Historical Note

La Raza Unida Party (RUP), founded in 1970 in Crystal City, Texas, emerged from the frustrations of Mexican American activists with the Democratic Party’s neglect of Chicano communities. Its roots lay in the Mexican American Youth Organization (MAYO), created in 1967 by José Ángel Gutiérrez, Mario Compean, Willie Velasquez, Ignacio Perez, and Juan Patlan. Inspired by the Civil Rights Movement, they sought to create a new political force that advanced Chicano nationalism and self-determination.

From its earliest years, women shaped the party’s trajectory—activists like Luz Gutiérrez, Martha P. Cotera, Rosie Castro, Evey Chapa, and others demanded and secured space for Chicana leadership. RUP’s first major successes came in South Texas towns such as Crystal City, Cotulla, and Carrizo Springs, where candidates swept local elections. Alma Canales made history in 1972 as the first Chicana to run for lieutenant governor of Texas.

Dr. Emilio Zamora, now a distinguished historian, served as Travis County chair of the party in the 1970s, helping organize Mexican American political participation during a pivotal moment in Texas history. Today, his scholarship and mentorship continue to amplify Chicana/o voices.

The RUP’s statewide visibility peaked with the gubernatorial campaigns of Ramsey Muñiz in 1972 and 1974, which drew more than 200,000 votes and challenged the dominance of the two major parties. While RUP never succeeded at the state or national level, its campaigns demonstrated the potential of a united Chicana/o electorate and left a lasting imprint on Texas politics.

Keynote Address by Dr. José Angel Gutiérrez—"Chicano Rights Movements: Then and Now" (2014)

Friends,

I just came across this powerful video of Dr. José Angel Gutiérrez speaking at the 2014 LEAD Conference in San Bernardino—and I had to share it. If you’ve ever wanted a window into the heart of the Chicano Movement, this is a good place to start. Dr. Gutiérrez isn’t just a civil rights icon—he’s an iconoclast, a fearless truth-teller who has spent his life fighting for the dignity, voice, and power of our communities. If you read the statement attached to the film that you can view below—and you listen to his presenation—I'm sure you will see how he is a force of nature.

I find his discussion of second- and third-generation Mexican Americans—or better said, "Chicanos," and how holding this specific standpoint endowed entire cadres—whose parents and grandparents were also part of the one million people that migrated to Texas in 1910 when the Mexican Revolution began. This resulted in a critical mass, of his generation with a kind of perspective and wisdom that did not take "no" for an answer. The research literature refers to this as the dual frame of reference.

However, even "crossing over" itself, in historical perspective, was actually a coming home for those who were displaced and dispossessed by Anglo settler colonials who happened to be the first "illegal aliens" or "undocumented migrants" to these parts. This is the history that the powers that be do not want you to know.

In any case, I think it a good and appropriate conversation to consider how generational status coincides temporally with the revolution and the kind of consciousness among youth that later came of age in the 1950s and 1960s where the seeds of resistance took root among youth like Gutierrez who later became the vanguard of the Mexican American Civil Rights movement—which along with Blacks, Asians, and Native Americans—resulted in the civil rights policies and legislation that are presently under serious attack by the republican administration at the state and national level.

Dr. Gutierrez' parents were born in Mexico and Dr. Gutierrez was born in Texas. They were able to judge matters similarly as a generation because they became skilled border crossers, symbolic and real. Other, especially later, generations can also have a dual frame of reference, but more by learning about it and what it means for those that experience it—if they, too, want to embark on traversing symbolic borders of language, culture, class, and so on, as the case may be.

I also appreciate his enunciations that we, as Chicanas and Chicanos, are on our homeland and that we are "hosts," and that the dominant group in power are our guests. So, a little respect here, okay?

I do respectfully disagree with Dr. Gutierrez on one important detail. Paraphrasing, he said that

I also don't like how he derided Pres. Obama while agreeing that I am disturbed by he deported 3 million people during his administration (

From founding MAYO and La Raza Unida Party to organizing school walkouts in Crystal City, his life’s work has been about challenging systems that were never built for Mexicans, in the first place. Watching this talk, I was reminded not only of how far we've come, but all that we still carry forward from eras gone by—the same fire, the same questions, and the same call to act.

-Angela Valenzuela

Reference

Garsd, J., & Inskeep, S. (2024, December 5). Lessons learned from the Obama administration's deportation of millions. NPR. https://www.npr.org/2024/12/05/1229415821/lessons-learned-from-the-obama-administrations-deportation-of-millions

Dr. José Angel Gutiérrez is a pivotal figure and one of the iconic founding fathers of the Chicano rights movements. He is an attorney (Dallas TX) and Professor of Political Science at the University of Texas at Arlington; Founder of the Center for Mexican American Studies. Dr. Gutierrez, along with Cesar Chavez, Reies López Tijerina, and Corky Gonzales, stands out as among the most important and influential leaders of the Chicano movement of the late 1960s and early 1970s. 

He was a founding member of the Mexican American Youth Organization (MAYO) in 1967, one of the first student activist groups of the Chicano movement; and founding member and past president of the political third-party La Raza Unida Party, which left its mark on the political scene, challenging Democratic and Republican parties alike to court the ignored Mexican American and Latino voter. 

Dr. Gutiérrez was one of many activists working to change public education on a local level in the 1960s and 70s. Born in Crystal City, Texas, and educated in local schools, Gutiérrez mobilized the community to demand equal treatment for Chicano students. He was lead organizer of the Winter Garden Project, the project that which led to the now famous walkout of 1969. 

Dr. Gutiérrez has been organizer, founder and co-founder of several other organizations such as the Mexican American Unity Council (MAUC), Ciudadanos Unidos, Obreros Unidos Independientes, Becas Para Aztlán, Oregon Council for Hispanic Advancement, Northwest Voter Registration and Education Project, and Grupo de Apoyo para Immigrantes Latin Americanos (GAILA). He has been the subject of many articles and film documentaries, including the PBS video series, CHICANO! The Mexican American Struggle for Civil Rights, and is mentioned in many Chicano history and political science books. 

He was also featured as an "Innovator" in the PBS documentary series - School: the Story of American Public Education. Most recently Dr. Gutiérrez was featured in a segment of: “Prejudice and Pride: the Chicano Movement”, which was part of the PBS series - "Latino Americans." Introduction / Moderator: Mary Valdemar, Vice President, Latino Faculty, Staff & Administrators Association,

San Bernardino Community College District, and Co-Founder, Core Team & Volunteer Support Staff, Chicano Indigenous Community for Culturally Conscious Advocacy and Action (ChiCCCAA) Speaker: José Angel Gutiérrez, Attorney, Professor of Political Science at the University of Texas at Arlington, founding member of the Mexican American Youth Organization (MAYO), and founding member and past president of La Raza Unida Party.

This address is date/time stamped: March 27, 2014; 4:20 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. Share our links and show your online community that Latino education is the economic imperative of our time, and the civil rights issue of our generation. / leadprojects / leadprojects / leadprojects / leadcsusb http://www.linkedin.com/groups?home=&... / leadprojects

Knowing Mexican American Civil Rights Movement history that, unfortunately, our textbooks do not include, remains vastly important if we are to fully understand the plight of Mexican Americans advocating for an equitable and just education and the broader implications of this struggle for us today.

Texas history—and the history of the Southwest, in general, where large numbers of students protested in the form of school walkouts, rallies, and community organizing led to much-needed policy changes the provide a model—among others like coalitional, judicial, and electoral politics together with legislative actions—for collective struggles today.

It's worth noting that Mexican American progress is inextricably linked to Latina and Latino progress, as a whole, as well as with that of all other groups of color. As a society, we ALL benefit from appeals to civil rights and are NEVER hurt by it. We only benefit when we live up to our highest ideals as a country.

Looking forward to seeing this play that features, in particular, the legendary Dr. Jose Angel Gutierrez' leadership, at the Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center in San Antonio soon. Go to this page for more information. Hurry up though since tickets are going fast.

-Angela Valenzuela

Fronteras: ‘Crystal City 1969’ play honors the real-life story of student 'heroes and sheroes' who fought for Latino civil rights

By Norma Martinez, 

Marian Navarro

In 1969, a Mexican American high school student in Crystal City wanted 

to join her school’s cheerleading squad.

She was automatically disqualified from applying. Only one Mexican 

American cheerleader was allowed and the squad had already met its 

yearly quota.

The incident became the catalyst that led to a historic school walkout. 

But it was more than about a cheerleader who didn’t get a spot on the 

team.

It was also about physical punishment students endured for speaking 

Spanish, and about how Mexican Americans were often discouraged 

from pursuing a college education.

The walkout was about discrimination and racism.

Dallas-based Cara Mía Theatre adapted the events of the walkout and 

turned it into the play, “Crystal City 1969.”

Playwrights David Lozano and Raul Treviño conducted interviews with former 

students, teachers, and law enforcement officials who lived through the 

walkout.

Lozano, executive artistic director of Cara Mía Theatre, said the movement 

was eye-opening for students.

“They were just discovering this reality and putting the pieces together 

because the world (and) what is essentially a quasi-Jim Crow culture (that) 

had become normalized,” he said. “But as young people, they were 

beginning to wake up to these differences and how they were treated.”

The Crystal City walkout was inspired by similar walkouts in Los Angeles, 

San Antonio, and the Rio Grande Valley.

Treviño, whose own uncle was a student leader of the walkout, said 

the play aims to ensure this event does not become a forgotten piece 

of history.

“It is a universal story. It's a timeless story. It’s David and Goliath,” he said. 

“You go back thousands of years and it's when young people are able to 

make a difference for their communities.”

The play is set to make its San Antonio debut at the Guadalupe Cultural 

Arts Center Jan. 19-22.

See showtimes and information here. Some shows may already 

be sold out.

Jose Angel Gutierrez recipient, 2019 United States Hispanic Hero Award

View this and get inspired.  

This is a wonderful video about Dr. José Ángel Gutierrez,

recipient of the 2019 United States Hispanic Hero Award by the United States Hispanic Leadership Institute that also
provides good historical context for the Mexican American
Civil Rights movement.

Congratulations, José Ángel!  We are deeply indebted to all
that you and the activistas of your generation have done to provide us with the self-awareness, critical knowledge and tools, and cultural pride that are needed to carry forward a movement for social justice.

And this was back in the day when there were "only" 2.3 million million Mexican Americans identified as "persons of Spanish surname" in the 1970 U.S. Census, accounting for 4.5 percent of the total population (U.S. Census, 1970-2050).  Compare this to today where the approximately 58.9 million Hispanic people in the United States comprise 18.1 percent of the total U.S. population.

If they had the audacity to hope for a better world despite their relatively small numbers, what's impeding us right now?

If there is anything I have learned, it is that our work is never done even as we benefit from the continuing struggles and sacrifices of our political antepasados, our elders in the movement. 

In a July 14, 2012 post to this blog titled, "A Reflection on Age and Generation: Last Weekend’s Raza Unida Party Reunion in Austin," I lend support to the notion advanced in this video that the Raza Unida Party generation was indeed a singular one, changing the course of history.  My message to that generation was, and continues to be:

We needed you then.  We need you now.

Sí se puede!  Yes we can!

-Angela Valenzuela

Documentary: The History of Bilingual Education in Texas

Thanks to Dr. Rudy Rodriguez who reminds us that 2019 is the 50th anniversary of the original Federal ESEA Title VII legislation.  Texas A & M University Professor Carlos Blanton cites the importance of bilingual education to European-origin groups in Texas, dispelling the myth that bilingual education was or is only for Latinas/os in Texas.  

Dr. Rodriguez' email correspondence explains the importance of the original Federal ESEA Title VII legislation:

Why is this legislation important???  This federal act provided the impetus for the implementation of the original federally funded 76 bilingual programs in the U.S.  Fort Worth, Houston, San Antonio, El Paso were among the 17 original programs in Texas. It also led states such as Texas to repeal the English-only laws approved as early as 1918. 

In the 1976, the legislation was amended to include federal funds for teacher training, including the fellowships for master’s & doc study in bil ed- related specialty areas.  For more on the history of the legislation & Texas bilingual ed, click video link below: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AWbN_Y8aa5k Please distribute further to interested colleagues.  RudyR Rodriguez

Glad to see the late Senator Carlos Truán, the late Dr, George I. Sanchez,  the late Senator Ralph Yarborough, Maria Seidner, Dr. Guadalupe San Miguel, José Ángel Gutierrez,  Dr. Ángel Noé Gonzalez, Dr. Cuca Robledo Montecel, Dr. María Gonzalez Baker, among others, in the video, too. Crystal City also gets featured as a pivotal point in the bilingual education movement.  The Intercultural Development Research Association (IDRA) is another important institutions that has been instrumental in leading the struggle for bilingual education.

You will also hear expressed support for culturally relevant curriculum, too—which is what we term, Ethnic Studies today.  Pride in one's heritage, as well as Spanish language maintenance is what the Mexican American community has desired forever and a day.

Great video!  Thanks to Rudy Rodriguez for this important reminder to our embattled history for bilingual education.

-Angela Valenzuela