Tejano Voices Interviewees - By Region

Barrientos, Gonzalo - Austin (Interview date: 1/6/1998)

Texas state senator. Born July 20, 1941, in Galveston, Texas. Barrientos was the first Mexican American elected state representative in Texas. He held that office from 1975 to 1985. In 1984 he was elected to the Texas State Senate, where he represents Senatorial District 14 (Travis and part of Hays Counties). He is chair of the statewide Tejano Democrats organization. Prior to his election to public office, Barrientos worked as a community organizer for the National Urban League and as program officer for VISTA.

Berriozabal, María - San Antonio (Interview date: 7/16/1996)

Born in 1941 in Laredo Texas. Ms. Berriozabal was the first Mexican American woman to serve as city council member in San Antonio, Texas. Ms. Berriozabal founded the Hispana Unidas Conference and was a past president and board member for the National League of Cities. She was a presidential appointee to the OAS Inter-American Commission on Women and participated in the United Nations Fourth International Women's Conference held in Bejing. She earned her B.A. in Political Science from the University of Texas at San Antonio in 1979.

Cárdenas, José - San Antonio (Interview date: 6/20/1998)

Mr. Cárdenas was the first Mexican American school superintendent in the Edgewood Independent School District, San Antonio, Texas. He was founder and executive director of the Inter-cultural Development Research Association in San Antonio, Texas. Mr. Cárdenas earned his doctorate degree from the University of Texas in 1966.

Calderón, Ernesto - Waco/Austin (Interview date: 2/8/1998)

Ernesto Calderón and wife, Ruby, were community activists in the Waco area and participants in the Juárez-Lincoln University project in Austin where they earned their undergraduate degrees.

Calderón, Ruby - Waco/Austin (Interview date: 10/25/1997)

Ernesto Calderón and wife, Ruby, were community activists in the Waco area and participants in the Juárez-Lincoln University project in Austin where they earned their undergraduate degrees.

Cotrell, Charles - San Antonio (Interview date: 7/2/1996)

Dr. Cotrell was born in San Antonio, Texas, in 1940, and is the President of St. Mary's University in San Antonio. He was professor to many Chicano activists of the late 1960s at Texas A & I and St. Mary's universities. Dr. Cotrell was an active participant in many civil rights causes, such as La Casita Farms strike, and mentor to youth in the Mexican American Youth Organization (MAYO). He was a founder of the Mexican American Unity Council in San Antonio and became an expert witness in many single-member redistricting cases.

DeLeón, Gloria - Austin/McAllen (Interview date: 2/2/1998)

Ms. De León was born December 16, 1952, in McAllen, Texas. She is Executive Vice-President for Programs at the National Hispanic Institute (NHI). She holds an undergraduate degree in social work from the University of Texas-Pan American and an honorary Ph.D. in human letters from Texas Wesleyan University in Fort Worth, Texas. Ms. De León also holds numerous awards including the Human Relations Award from the National Association of College Admissions Counselors and the Distinguished Alumnus Award from UT Pan American.

Gómez, Margaret - Travis County/Austin (Interview date: 6/13/1998)

Born June 8, 1944, in Kingsbury, Texas. Since 1995, Ms. Gómez has been Travis County Commissioner, Precinct 4. She is the first Mexican American woman to serve in that capacity in Travis County. She previously served as Constable for fourteen years and has been active in her community in promoting education and social service programs for thirty-two years.

García, Gustavo - Austin (Interview date: 6/20/1998)

Mr. García was born in 1934. He received his B.B.A. from the University of Texas at Austin in 1959 and earned his CPA in 1961. García served on the Austin city council from 1991 to 2000 and was its mayor pro-tem from 1996 to 1998. In 1972, he was elected to a six-year term on the Austin Independent School District/Austin Community College Board; he served as its president 1977-1978. Among other offices and honors, García was president of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors (1982-1983) and was named Businessman of the Year by the Texas Association of Mexican American Chambers of Commerce in 1984. He was elected mayor of Austin, Texas, in 2001.

González, Angel - Dallas/Austin/Houston/Crystal City (Interview date: 7/1/1996)

Born November 18, 1929, in Edinburg, Texas. One of the first Chicano school superintendents in Texas, Mr. González has held top administrative positions in the public schools in Crystal City, Houston and Dallas, and has worked for the Texas Education Agency. He also worked as the Branch Chief in the Office of Education for Bilingual Education in Washington, D.C. In 1976, he ran for Congress in the Rio Grande Valley. He retired from active employment and resides in Dallas.

Guadarrama, Cesareo - Seguin/Guadalupe County (Interview date: 11/27/1997)

Born March 10, 1954, in Seguin, Texas. Mr. Guadarrama was first elected to the school board of Seguin in 1984. He was the second Mexican American elected to that school board in its entire history. In 1986, he was re-elected to the school board after which he retired from public office and tended to family and business concerns. In 1994 he was elected the first Mexican American county commissioner for Guadalupe County and was re-elected in 1998.

Luna, Gregory - San Antonio (Interview date: 7/1/1996)

Attorney, politician, former state representative from San Antonio. Born 1932 in New Braunfels, Texas.

Martínez, George - Austin/Tarrant County (Interview date: 8/24/1997)

Born September 11, 1944, Mr. Martínez was the first Mexican American state district judge in Texas. He was appointed to the 254th District Court by former Governor Dolph Briscoe in 1977. Martínez is a graduate of The University of Texas, having earned his B.A. degree in history in 1966 and his law degree in 1970. He has taught as an adjunct instructor at the University of Texas at Arlington in the area of business law.

Martínez, María - Del Rio/Austin (Interview date: 12/3/1998)

Born in November 1941, Ms. Martínez was the first Mexican American woman to head a political party in Texas. She received her Bachelor's degree in Spanish and History from North Texas State University and her Master's in Education from the University of Texas.

Martínez, Walter - San Antonio (Interview date: 6/23/1996)

Born in 1951, Mr. Martínez was a former state representative and a city councilman for the city of San Antonio, Texas. He was also chair of the Democratic Party in Bexar County. Mr. Martínez began his career in public life as an assistant to state representative Joe Hernandez in 1973.

Molina, Henry - Karnes City (Interview date: 4/12/1996)

Justice Businessman, entrepreneur, politician. Born in Hobson, Texas, on July 15, 1948. Educated at Karnes City High School and San Antonio College. In addition to his business career, Molina served as President of the San Antonio Mexican American Chamber of Commerce, Vice-President of the Texas Association of Mexican-American Chambers of Commerce, and Deputy Executive Director of the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulations.

Nieto, Ernesto - Austin/Houston (Interview date: 2/2/1998)

Born in 1940 in Houston, Texas, Ernesto Nieto is the president and founder of the National Hispanic Institute. A graduate of Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas, he holds a B.S. in special education. He completed his Master's work at the University of Houston and is a recipient of an Honorary Ph.D. in Humane Letters from Texas Wesleyan University in Fort Worth, Texas. Mr. Nieto holds numerous awards and honors including a Citation of Merit Award, a Distinguished Alumnus Award, and the Human Relations Award from the National Association of College Admissions Counselors.

Ozuña, Jr., George - San Antonio (Interview date: 11/10/1997)

Born in 1930. Mr. Ozuña was the first Mexican American city manager in Texas (Crystal City) and the first Mexican American Chair of the San Antonio Community College System. A civil engineer by training, he received his engineering degree from The University of Texas at Austin.

Peña, Emil - Houston/SanAntonio/Austin (Interview date: 6/19/1998)

Born in 1954 in San Benito, Texas, Mr. Peña is the first Chicano lobbyist with major national clients.

Peña, Jr., Albert - San Antonio (Interview date: 7/2/1996)

County commissioner, attorney, activist for Mexican American issues. Peña was born December 15, 1917, and graduated from the South Texas School of Law in 1950. He began his legal career by filing school desegregation suits in Hondo, Texas, and Lytle, Texas, on behalf of the American G.I. Forum and the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), respectively. He was a Bexar County commissioner from 1960 to 1974. He organized Viva Kennedy Clubs in Texas in 1960 and had founding roles in the Political Association of Spanish-Speaking Organizations (PASO) and Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF).

Ríos, Rolando - San Antonio (Interview date: 7/3/1996)

Born in 1945. After graduation from Georgetown Law School, in 1980, Mr. Ríos became Legal Director of the Southwest Voter Registration and Education Project in San Antonio under the direction of the late Willie Velásquez. From that date to the present time, Mr. Ríos has litigated scores of redistricting suits to create single member districts in Texas, the Southwest, and the country.

Rodríguez-Mendoza, Amalia - Travis County (Interview date: 2/8/1998)

Ms. Rodríguez-Mendoza was born February 17, 1946, in Del Rio, Texas. She graduated from The University of Texas at Austin in 1972 and received a master's degree from Juarez-Lincoln University in 1974. Rodríguez-Mendoza was the first Mexican American woman elected District Clerk in Travis County, Texas. She was elected to a second term in 1998.

Rosales, Rosa - San Antonio (Interview date: 2/8/1998)

Born April 7, 1944, in San Antonio, Texas, Ms. Rosales was among the first Mexican American women to become labor organizers in recent times. Active in LULAC, she was the first woman to hold the position of State Director of that organization. She received her B.A. in Liberal Arts from the University of Michigan.