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Lidia Serrata
(181 KB, 106 pg)
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Biography:
Born 1947 in Victoria, Texas, Ms. Serrata was the first Mexican American female attorney and assistant district attorney in Victoria. She earned her B.A. in social work (1977) and her law degree at the University of Texas.
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Interview Summary:
Serrata talks about her family history and genealogy, and she discusses Mexican Americans in positions of leadership in the Victoria region. She talks about her relationship with former governor Ann Richards, lawsuits to get single member districting, and race discrimination practices in the hiring and firing of Mexican American teachers and personnel in the schools. She also describes programs in which she was involved to help keep kids in school. Serrata tells about her activities with the Raza Unida Party, the Brown Berets, and the Mexican American Youth Organization (MAYO). She gives her impressions of Raza Unida Party activities in Colorado and compares the Colorado and Texas groups. She describes her scholastic difficulties and the negative environment while in law school. She discusses issues such as pay inequity between Mexican American males and females, prison reform in Texas, the anti-death penalty movement, the feminist movement, and the need for alternative punishment methods for drug offenders. Serrata talks about her activities as an assistant district attorney in Victoria, Texas, and she elaborates upon how she established her own private law practice. She concludes the interview by reviewing her personal problems in child rearing, commenting upon Dan Morales' problems with the public's perception of his political performance as Texas Attorney General, and by lauding José Angel Gutiérrez for his lifetime efforts on civil rights reforms for Mexican Americans in Texas.
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Locations of residence or activity: Victoria
Interview date: 2/2/1998
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