[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 12 (Tuesday, January 30, 2001)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E61]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     IN MEMORY OF HENRY B. GONZALEZ

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. MARK UDALL

                              of colorado

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, January 30, 2001

  Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Mr. Speaker, last November I heard with great 
regret of the death of the father of our colleague from Texas, 
Representative Gonzalez. And I listened with great interest to the 
remarks of the many Members who spoke about their memories of the days 
when our colleague's father had served here in the House of 
Representatives.
  The accomplishments, the character, the leadership of Henry B. 
Gonzalez are also well known to many Coloradans--as is shown by a 
column, entitled, ``America Lost a Visionary Leader in Henry B.'' in a 
recent edition of the Colorado Daily, a newspaper published in Boulder, 
Colorado.
  For the benefit of our colleagues, I am submitting a copy of that 
column, for inclusion in the Record.

                [From the Colorado Daily, Jan. 19, 2001]

              America Lost a Visionary Leader in Henry B.

                       (By Yolanda Chavez Leyva)

       Henry B. Gonzalez, 84 died on Nov. 28 in a San Antonio 
     hospital.
       Henry B., as he was affectionately known, was a fierce 
     fighter for the poor. Throughout almost half a century of 
     public service, he dedicated himself to civil rights and 
     social justice.
       Gonzalez, who served 37 years in the House of 
     Representatives before retiring in 1998, was the first 
     Mexican American from Texas elected to that position. 
     Although he stated that his politics were not shaped by his 
     ethnicity, his championing of issues such as voting rights 
     and economic opportunity made him a hero to many Mexican 
     Americans.
       His career helped open the door to other Mexican-American 
     politicians. According to political scientist Rodolfo 
     Rosales, Gonzalez' election was ``a cornerstone'' in the 
     creation of a middle-class Mexican-American leadership.
       Gonzalez was known for his controversial stands. He was 
     willing to take on Republicans and members of his own 
     Democratic Party to defend his principles. He advocated the 
     impeachment of Presidents Reagan and Bush for the 1983 
     invasion of Grenada and the Iran-Contra scandal, 
     respectively. He also investigated their friendly dealings 
     with Iraq and Saddam Hussien prior to the 1990 invasion of 
     Kuwait.
       During his tenure on the powerful House Banking Committee, 
     he led the investigation into the savings and loan scandals 
     of the 1980s, which implicated five Democratic senators. In 
     1993, he was one of two Mexican-American representatives who 
     voted against NAFTA. The other one was Rep. Matthew Martinez, 
     D-Calif.
       Over the years, Henry B. survived many challenges to his 
     political leadership. His political astuteness was 
     unquestioned, his charisma obvious.
       As significant as his individual achievements were, 
     however, it is important to understand the community from 
     which Henry B. emerged. Gonzalez was a much a product of the 
     Mexican-American community's dream of justice as a champion 
     of its cause.
       Henry B. was born in 1916 to immigrant Mexican parents. He 
     graduated from St. Mary's Law School in 1943. After working 
     as a probation officer and deputy director of the Bexar 
     County Housing Authority, he was elected to the San Antonio 
     City Council in 1953 as a result of a grassroots campaign.
       Henry B. came of age in a Texas that regarded Mexican 
     Americans as second-class citizens. Texas Rangers and other 
     law-enforcement agencies kept Mexican Americans ``in line'' 
     through intimidation and violence. The Southern legacy of 
     segregation was still thriving, although both African 
     Americans and Mexican Americans continually challenged the 
     status quo. The poll tax worked to keep the poor from 
     participating in the political process. Education was but a 
     dream to many. In 1950, only one in 10 Mexican Americans 
     graduated from high school in Texas. Less than one in 100 
     finished colleage, according to historian Rodolfo Acuna. 
     Poverty and racism had closed the school door to the majority 
     of Mexican-American children.
       In San Antonio, where Henry B. grew up, the streets of the 
     barrios remained unpaved. Health care for the poor was 
     negligible. Tuberculosis and other diseases were rampant.
       Despite the poverty and second-class citizenship, a dream 
     of justice lived. In the 1930s, thousands of Mexican-American 
     workers took to the San Antonio streets demanding better 
     working conditions.
       In the 1940s and '50s, Mexican Americans used the Texas 
     courts to demand equality. In the 1948 Delgado vs. Bastrop 
     Independent School District case, the court ruled that the 
     segregation of Mexican-American children in schools violated 
     the 14th Amendment. In the 1954 case of Hernandez vs. The 
     State of Texas, the court ruled that qualified Mexican 
     Americans could not be excluded from juries.
       Gonzalez built on these victories. Following election of 
     the state Senate in 1956, he opposed efforts by other Texas 
     legislators to maintain segregated schools. When legislators 
     introduced bills to withhold funds from integrated schools 
     following the 1954 Brown vs. Board of Education decision, 
     Gonzalez responded with a now-famous filibuster.
       Henry B. was often called ``a man of the people,``' and his 
     defense of the common folk is well-known. He was, however, 
     also a man who emerged from the people with a dream: a dream 
     of social justice and equality.

     

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