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Ernest Rodriguez' "Impressions," 1960s-1980s
""The Sleeping Giant Awakens"" Page 1
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E. Rodriguez THE SLEEPING GIANT AWAKENS Aroused from an apathetic siesta, Mexican-American voters of the small border town of Crystal City, Texas last April 2 swarmed to the American ticket a stunning defeat much to the surprise and chagrin of fellow Anglos, and ushered into office five new councilmen of Mexican descent, much to the delight of fiesta loving Mexicans all over the country. News of this political revolution with racial implications appeared in papers all over the country and won national prominence for the hitherto unheard of Political Association of Spanish-speaking Organizations (PASSO). PASSO had teamed up with the Teamsters Union in directing the activity that brought the "Sleeping Giant" (PASSO'S pet name for Mexican-American voters) to the polls to exercise its voting might. Mexican-Americans cast ---- ballots to Anglos ---, a grand total six times as heavy as the last election. The whirlwind election was followed by a torment of emotions of emotions among the dissappointed [sic] Anglos who voiced their disapproval of hte outcome with charges of illegal balloting, decrying PASSO'S and the Teamsters involvement as the work of "outside agitators." Albert Pena, Texas State Chairman of PASSO, who's also a forceful political columnist for San Antonio's nationally circulated Spanish language weekly, La Prensa, wrote off the torrent of allegations as merely outbursts of prejudice against the Mexican. Pena and other PASSO leaders, which include Albert Fuentes, who directed the Crystal City campaign, Congressman Henry B. Gonzalez, Dr. Hector Garcia, founder of the GI Forum, a Mexican-American veterans organication [sic], went about their business of making plans for PASSO participation in political contests in other parts of Texas. To them the Crystal City affair was only a preliminary to political gains for Spanish-speaking Americans all over the country and it was up to PASSO to waken its political conscious [sic] of Latin-Americans to bring this about. PASSO in making politics their business aim their progress as rescueing [sic] the Latin-American from electoral apathy and political impotence through political education, alerting him to his importance as a first-class voting citizen in order to abolish second-class treatment, and affording him all the means for demonstrating his political virility as a competent office-seeker. PASSO'S evolvement [sic] can be interpreted as the Mexican-Americans' emergence into political maturity resulting from their efforts to make advances in all areas of social activity. In tracing PASSO's development, the GI Forum is the logical place to start, since a roll call of PASSO reads like a who's who of the GI Forum. The American GI Forum, a Mexican-American veterans' family organization, was founded in 1948 by Dr. Hector Garcia of Corpus Christi, Texas. A man of dynamic personality, Dr. Garcia had an overwhelming desire to help his people solve their social problems and overcome their shortcomings. The confidence and idealism of Dr. Garcia was contagious and he successfully rallyed [sic] to his cause other vererans [sic] of a progressive mind and like concern for their people's welfare.
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E. Rodriguez THE SLEEPING GIANT AWAKENS Aroused from an apathetic siesta, Mexican-American voters of the small border town of Crystal City, Texas last April 2 swarmed to the American ticket a stunning defeat much to the surprise and chagrin of fellow Anglos, and ushered into office five new councilmen of Mexican descent, much to the delight of fiesta loving Mexicans all over the country. News of this political revolution with racial implications appeared in papers all over the country and won national prominence for the hitherto unheard of Political Association of Spanish-speaking Organizations (PASSO). PASSO had teamed up with the Teamsters Union in directing the activity that brought the "Sleeping Giant" (PASSO'S pet name for Mexican-American voters) to the polls to exercise its voting might. Mexican-Americans cast ---- ballots to Anglos ---, a grand total six times as heavy as the last election. The whirlwind election was followed by a torment of emotions of emotions among the dissappointed [sic] Anglos who voiced their disapproval of hte outcome with charges of illegal balloting, decrying PASSO'S and the Teamsters involvement as the work of "outside agitators." Albert Pena, Texas State Chairman of PASSO, who's also a forceful political columnist for San Antonio's nationally circulated Spanish language weekly, La Prensa, wrote off the torrent of allegations as merely outbursts of prejudice against the Mexican. Pena and other PASSO leaders, which include Albert Fuentes, who directed the Crystal City campaign, Congressman Henry B. Gonzalez, Dr. Hector Garcia, founder of the GI Forum, a Mexican-American veterans organication [sic], went about their business of making plans for PASSO participation in political contests in other parts of Texas. To them the Crystal City affair was only a preliminary to political gains for Spanish-speaking Americans all over the country and it was up to PASSO to waken its political conscious [sic] of Latin-Americans to bring this about. PASSO in making politics their business aim their progress as rescueing [sic] the Latin-American from electoral apathy and political impotence through political education, alerting him to his importance as a first-class voting citizen in order to abolish second-class treatment, and affording him all the means for demonstrating his political virility as a competent office-seeker. PASSO'S evolvement [sic] can be interpreted as the Mexican-Americans' emergence into political maturity resulting from their efforts to make advances in all areas of social activity. In tracing PASSO's development, the GI Forum is the logical place to start, since a roll call of PASSO reads like a who's who of the GI Forum. The American GI Forum, a Mexican-American veterans' family organization, was founded in 1948 by Dr. Hector Garcia of Corpus Christi, Texas. A man of dynamic personality, Dr. Garcia had an overwhelming desire to help his people solve their social problems and overcome their shortcomings. The confidence and idealism of Dr. Garcia was contagious and he successfully rallyed [sic] to his cause other vererans [sic] of a progressive mind and like concern for their people's welfare.
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