User:Vivmg/Refusing to Forget

Refusing to Forget is a non-profit that brings awareness to state-sanctioned and extralegal violence against ethnic Mexicans on the Texas-Mexico border from 1910 to 1920. The Refusing to Forget non-profit advocates by creating historical markers, exhibits, and providing resources to raise public awareness about topics in history that are not well circulated. They also cultivate lesson plans for K-12 classrooms. Refusing to forget is also known for their notable work on the Texas Rangers. The non-profit was founded in February 2014 by history scholars John Morán González, Monica Muñoz Martinez, Benjamin Johnson, and Sonia Hernández.

Extralegal violence in the Borderlands
The extra-legal violence in the border lands dates back to the 1830s, with the Texas Revolution and the Mexican American War contributing to the tensions the state had with ethnic Mexicans. This led to an increase in violence from law enforcement, Anglo citizens, and, more infamously, the Texas Rangers. There was state-sanctioned violence occurring during the early 1900s in Texas, much of which was swept under the rug. These crimes consisted of mob violence, for example, mob lynching. These crimes were allowed because they were covered up by legal authority.


 * The Texas Rangers are a special force created on November 24, 1835, but can date back to 1823, when it was created by Stephen F. Austin to fight away Native Americans. The Mexican Revolution sparked a lot of conflict between the Texas Rangers and Mexican nationalists. The Texas Rangers killed around 5,000 Mexicans between 1914 and 1919. There were complaints by Representative José T. Canales that the rangers were being unjust and brutal, which led to a reduction in the number of Texas Rangers. During the early 20th century, citizens went on to volunteer as Texas Rangers with the racist intention of terrorizing ethnic minorities. The Texas Rangers then went on to become police officers and ICE agents, all rooted in a long history of discrimination and violence to this day. An example of violence from the Texas Rangers is Ranger Captain Henry Ransom, who was responsible for the murder of Jesus Bazán and Antonio Longoria. He would frequently scare and run Mexicans out of their homes.

Violence towards ethnic Mexicans

 * As the Anglo-Texans started taking over the land in South Texas, they began implementing segregation against Mexicans in order to gain the upper hand. The feeling that contributed to the violence towards ethnic Mexicans was the Anglo-American idea that they had a God-given right to the land. The Texas Rangers allowed violence to rise as they told Americans to "treat Mexicans with impunity." Anglos took on the idea of becoming "vigilantes" at the expense of terrifying Mexicans by lynching or creating mobs against Mexicans. The Texas Rangers were never held accountable for the brutal behavior and murder that they imposed on ethnic Mexicans.

Organization
Refusing to Forget works on introducing the history of the violence on the border of Texas by placing historical markers to commemorate the historical stories. They lecture at schools, cultivate exhibits in museums and online, and create lesson plans for teachers in public schools. Refusing to Forget wants the Texas education system to go more in depth into the events that have happened at the Texas-Mexico border during the years 1910-1920. The team at Refusing to Forget participates in podcasts, essays, and documentaries. They hold lectures at college campuses, sharing the purpose of their mission.

Co-Founders
John Morán González, Co-founder


 * Born in Brownsville, Texas. John Morán González got his A.B. in English literature from Princeton University in 1988. He later went on to get his M.A. and Ph.D. at Stanford. He is a professor of American and English at the University of Texas at Austin. He is a founding member of Refusing to Forget.

Sonia Hernández, Co-Founder


 * Sonia Hernández is from the Rio Grande Valley. She has her Ph.D. in Latin American history from the University of Houston. She is currently a history professor at Texas A&M University. She is a founding member of Refusing to Forget.
 * She is a board member of the Texas State Historical Association (TSHA) (2022-2015).
 * Publications include:
 * For a Just and Better World: Engendering Anarchism in the Mexican Borderlands, 1900-1938 (University of Illinois Press, 2021)
 * Reverberations of Racial Violence: Critical Reflections on the History of the Border; Sonia Hernández and John Morán González, eds. (University of Texas Press, 2021)
 * Working Women into the Borderlands (Texas A&M University Press, 2014)

Monica Muñoz Martinez, Co-Founder


 * Monica Muñoz Martinez is a Texas native with a Ph.D. in American Studies from Yale and an AB from Brown University. She is currently a history professor at the University of Texas at Austin. She is a founding member of Refusing to Forget.
 * The publication includes the award-winning book:
 * The Injustice Never Leaves You: Anti-Mexican Violence in Texas, (Harvard University Press Sept 2018)

Benjamin H. Johnson, Co-Founder


 * Benjamin H. Johnson is a history professor at Loyola University Chicago. He has his B.A. from Carleton College, his M.A. and his Ph.D. from Yale. Is also a founder of Refusing to Forget.
 * Publications include:
 * Revolution in Texas:  How a Forgotten Rebellion and Its Bloody Suppression Turned Mexicans into Americans (Yale University Press, 2003)
 * Bordertown: The Odyssey of an American Place (Yale University Press, 2008)
 * Escaping the Dark, Gray City: Fear and Hope in Progressive-Era Conservation (Yale University Press, 2017)
 * Bridging National Borders in North America (Duke University Press, 2010) with Andrew Graybill
 * Major Problems in the History of North American Borderlands (Cengage Learning, 2011) with Pekka Hämäläinen
 * Journal of the Gilded Age and Progressive Era

Awards
LEADERSHIP IN HISTORY AWARD OF MERIT

AUTRY PUBLIC HISTORY PRIZE

HERBERT FEIS AWARD

2021 FRIEND OF HISTORY AWARD

National Endowment For The Humanities

Historical Markers

 * Jovita Idar Historical Marker:
 * Jovita Idar was born on September 7, 1885, in Laredo, Texas. She was an activist, teacher, political figure, and a journalist. She and her family ran a news paper, which is how she shared her political opinions. La Crónica was well known for advocating for Mexican-American rights. Idar helped during the Mexican Revolution and became a nurse. Idar later went on to start the Democratic Club in San Antonio. Her contributions to both Texas politics and Mexican-American communities are what led to her getting a historical markers as a positive reminder of her service.
 * La Matanza of 1915 Historical Marker: Unveiled in Cameron County on October 14, 2017
 * La Mantanza (massacre) of 1915 was a series of violent racial attacks on ethnic Mexicans caused by state laws and officials. Violent attacks were made primarily by the Texas Rangers . There were thousands of Mexicans killed during 1910-1919 due to the revolutionaries of WWI and the Mexican Revolution.
 * Direct Link to Historical Marker Inscription https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=167028
 * Jesus Bazán and Antonio Longoria Historical Marker: Unveiled in Hidalgo Country on November 3, 2018
 * Jesus Bazán and Antonio Longoria were two Mexican American residents who were lynched by a Texas Ranger officer. The two men were attacked and robbed of their horses and belongings. When they reported the incident on September 27 to Capt. Henry Lee Ransom, he killed them, and they weren't allowed to have a proper burial with their families.
 * Porvenir Massacre Historical Marker: Unveiled at the Magoffin House in El Paso, Texas, on September 1, 2018
 * The Porvenir Massacre on January 28, 1918 the Texas Rangers killed 15 innocent men and boys. The names of the victims are  Antonio Castañeda, Longino Flores, Pedro Herrera, Vivian Herrera, Severiano Herrera, Manuel Moralez, Eutimio Gonzalez, Ambrosio Hernandez, Alberto Garcia, Tiburcio Jáques, Roman Nieves, Serapio Jimenez, Pedro Jimenez, Juan Jimenez, and Macedonio Huertas. Link to the names of the 15 men and boys that were murdered and to survivors. https://www.porvenirmassacre.org/the-victims.html

Life and Death on the Border at the Bullock

 * Live and Death on the Border 1910-1920: Is an exhibit that goes over the events of the violence from the Texas Rangers to the ethnic Mexicans. Located at the Bullock Texas State History Museum in Austin, Tx. Direct link to the museum's display. https://www.thestoryoftexas.com/press/media-kits/life-and-death-on-the-border

Educational Materials

 * Refusing to Forget is doing work to create lesson plans focused on events in Mexican-American history in K-12 curriculums.
 * They currently have a lesson plan over Jovita Idar, "The Life of Jovita Idar". This specific lesson plan is directed at Texas seventh grade classrooms. The lesson is to touch on the life of a local hero in Texas history and to share her advocacy. The lesson plan includes a PowerPoint, teacher script, worksheets, and background information for the teacher.