Forum: Should we continue to celebrate Texas Independence Day?
Jerry Patterson
By joint resolution, in 1871 the 14th Texas Legislature established March 2 as an official Texas holiday to commemorate the adoption at Washington-on-the-Brazos of the Texas Declaration of Independence. Since then, many millions of Texas schoolchildren have been taught that March 2, 1836 is no less significant than July 4, 1776. The day is often celebrated with parades, ceremonies, and children’s choirs singing “Texas, Our Texas, All Hail the Mighty State”.
Remembering the words of Bob Wills and Tommy Duncan’s western swing classic song, “Time Changes Everything,” it now appears there’s an ever-growing list of “woke” Texans who claim it is time to change how Texans view the events of 1836. In their mind, it was all about slavery and oppression.
Seguin, TX, USA / Seguin Today
Jan 20, 2021 5:27 AM
(Seguin) â A PBS television show host has pinned Seguin on the Lone Star map as âone of theâ places you will want to visit. Actually, Chet Garner, host of The Daytripper, says Seguinâs significance and uniqueness are more of a reminder for its current residents. He says because we live here, the cityâs many contributions and historical impressions are often overlooked.
Garner shared his comments about Seguin during his guest appearance on the Seguin Area Chamber of Commerceâs virtual Centennial Celebration.
Garner, known for his show which introduces us to all parts of Texas, shared his comments â comments that were warranted following his own visit to Seguin more than a year and a half ago. In fact, the Texas travel show segment that featured Seguin landed the TV show host with yet another Emmy.
AP Feed
This past week, Texas State Historical Association chief historian Walter Buenger made two controversial assertions regarding the Alamo in a story published by
Although the battle has become a symbol of patriotism and freedom for many Texans and Americans, like the Confederate monuments erected after the Civil War, the myth of the Alamo has been used to “commemorate whiteness,” according to Walter L Buenger, Texas State Historical Association chair.
The battle itself was relatively insignificant tactically speaking, but it gained recognition decades later in the 1890s as backlash to African Americans gaining more political power and Mexican immigration increasing, Buenger said. In 1915, “Birth of a Nation” director D.W. Griffith produced “Martyrs of the Alamo,” which solidified the myth further by pitting white virtuous Texans against racist caricatures of Mexicans on screen.
Texas founding father Stephen F. Austin insisted Texas could not survive without slavery
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A photo of Charlie and Isabella Brown. He was an ex-slave who became the largest taxpayer in Brazoria County and died a millionaire. Brown built a business domain in Brazoria County and eventually purchased the plantation where his wife, Isabella, had once worked as a slave. Isabella died Jan. 30, 1906. Charlie died Aug. 30, 1920.Gary Coronado, Staff / Houston ChronicleShow MoreShow Less
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African American male picking potatoes, possibly prisoners from the Imperial State Prison Farm; three men on horseback oversee the work in 1909.Library of Congress / Library of CongressShow MoreShow Less
Texas founding father Stephen F. Austin insisted Texas could not survive without slavery
FacebookTwitterEmail
1of5
A photo of Charlie and Isabella Brown. He was an ex-slave who became the largest taxpayer in Brazoria County and died a millionaire. Brown built a business domain in Brazoria County and eventually purchased the plantation where his wife, Isabella, had once worked as a slave. Isabella died Jan. 30, 1906. Charlie died Aug. 30, 1920.Gary Coronado, Staff / Houston ChronicleShow MoreShow Less
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African American male picking potatoes, possibly prisoners from the Imperial State Prison Farm; three men on horseback oversee the work in 1909.Library of Congress / Library of CongressShow MoreShow Less