WEBVTT
1
00:00:08.599 --> 00:00:12.039
Hi everyone. This is Carmen and Christina and this is
2
00:00:12.080 --> 00:00:13.800
the study I said no in a podcast where we
3
00:00:13.839 --> 00:00:17.320
talk about Latin American history. Sometimes it's horrible and deals
4
00:00:17.359 --> 00:00:20.199
with heavy topics like racism, corruption, in genotine. It's also
5
00:00:20.239 --> 00:00:24.120
by resistance, power and community. Well, we are continuing my
6
00:00:24.280 --> 00:00:29.480
Inferiating Depressing series here. I have added another episode twit
7
00:00:29.800 --> 00:00:32.280
at this point, so it's a five parter now it
8
00:00:32.320 --> 00:00:35.439
is it is this is four right, yeah. So in
9
00:00:35.479 --> 00:00:39.039
the last episode I shared the context, some context leading
10
00:00:39.119 --> 00:00:41.280
up to the time period from nineteen ten to nineteen
11
00:00:41.320 --> 00:00:44.000
twenty in Texas known as an Hour of Blood or
12
00:00:44.000 --> 00:00:46.840
in Spanish Lauda the Sandre or the massacre Lamat Tantain.
13
00:00:47.240 --> 00:00:49.759
Like I said in that episode, estimates of the number
14
00:00:49.759 --> 00:00:53.960
of dead Mexicans from these years range from three hundred
15
00:00:54.000 --> 00:00:58.039
to five thousand, and it's not exactly exact because so
16
00:00:58.119 --> 00:01:01.320
many murders went unreported. The Texas Rangers were in the
17
00:01:01.320 --> 00:01:05.159
habit of just disappearing people, which is something very specific
18
00:01:05.200 --> 00:01:09.560
to colonalism, right wing state violence. Right. Yeah, that's how
19
00:01:09.599 --> 00:01:12.239
you lessen the numbers and make something sound less severe
20
00:01:12.280 --> 00:01:15.280
than it was. On top of that, some of these
21
00:01:15.359 --> 00:01:18.959
numbers don't always include legal lynchings. So I shared the
22
00:01:19.000 --> 00:01:21.959
lynching of Antonio Rodriguez, who's considered the first victim of
23
00:01:22.040 --> 00:01:24.439
Lo Madanza, and I said, I was going to be
24
00:01:24.519 --> 00:01:26.959
sharing one of the worst occurrences of violence at the
25
00:01:26.959 --> 00:01:29.680
hands of the Texas Rangers. Yeah, but that's not happening
26
00:01:29.760 --> 00:01:33.599
in this episode because what I kept reading, there's another
27
00:01:33.680 --> 00:01:36.400
case that I want to share before that, because this
28
00:01:36.519 --> 00:01:40.040
also marks an important turn into Namatanza. Like if you
29
00:01:40.040 --> 00:01:43.560
had to put a marker on significant lynchings during Amatanza,
30
00:01:43.640 --> 00:01:45.719
not that they were all unimportant, but some that just
31
00:01:45.799 --> 00:01:49.159
showed how vicious the whole time period was. This is
32
00:01:49.159 --> 00:01:50.680
one of them, and that's why I wanted to talk
33
00:01:50.680 --> 00:01:52.879
about it. Wow, And really I should have paired it
34
00:01:52.879 --> 00:01:55.040
with the last episode, but man, that would have been
35
00:01:55.079 --> 00:01:58.599
too rough. That would have been emotionally dreaming. Oh my gosh,
36
00:01:58.879 --> 00:02:00.680
I can't believe you do your notes this. You know
37
00:02:00.719 --> 00:02:02.480
why it takes me so long. It's because I read
38
00:02:02.560 --> 00:02:04.840
everything and then I do my notes. Oh no, I
39
00:02:04.879 --> 00:02:06.799
had This is how I've always done them. You read
40
00:02:06.879 --> 00:02:13.960
as you go. Wow. Yeah, this is the lynching of
41
00:02:14.120 --> 00:02:18.639
Antonio Gomez, which is very similar to last episode. Which
42
00:02:18.680 --> 00:02:23.599
was Antonio Rodriguez in nineteen ten. Okay, wow, and this
43
00:02:23.919 --> 00:02:27.759
is the case of Antonio Gomez. And again just like
44
00:02:27.960 --> 00:02:32.360
they'll last several episodes. This is for sure triggering yet
45
00:02:32.439 --> 00:02:34.719
to me, it is important to know our history. But
46
00:02:34.800 --> 00:02:37.479
of course, you know, listen with caution or skip this
47
00:02:37.560 --> 00:02:39.439
episode if you just are not in the space to
48
00:02:39.680 --> 00:02:42.439
hear this, because yes, this has all been very heavy.
49
00:02:42.840 --> 00:02:45.560
The lynching of Antonio Gomes took place in nineteen eleven
50
00:02:45.680 --> 00:02:49.439
in Thorndale, Texas. At the time, eight hundred and eleven
51
00:02:49.479 --> 00:02:53.439
people lived there and ninety percent of those eight hundred
52
00:02:53.520 --> 00:02:57.960
eleven were white, mostly German American. It sounds dangerous, very
53
00:02:58.039 --> 00:03:01.680
for the eighteen Mexicans living in side of Thorndale, Texas.
54
00:03:01.919 --> 00:03:07.000
Oh my god, I can't imagine being outnumbered like that. Yeah, scary,
55
00:03:07.159 --> 00:03:11.439
And it's actually scary for us because we're actually discriminated against. Okay, right,
56
00:03:11.840 --> 00:03:14.319
And the Mexicans who were in the area were all
57
00:03:14.439 --> 00:03:18.439
either miners, sharecroppers, or railroad workers. Most of them lived
58
00:03:18.439 --> 00:03:21.400
in camps outside of the town or in the neighboring
59
00:03:21.479 --> 00:03:24.080
town of Rockdale, which was a little more Mexican. And
60
00:03:24.080 --> 00:03:26.680
this is where the coal mines were located, and I'm
61
00:03:26.800 --> 00:03:29.840
sure you might have guessed it, but the situation for
62
00:03:29.919 --> 00:03:33.319
the few Mexicans living inside of Thorndale was not good.
63
00:03:33.599 --> 00:03:36.360
They were segregated and they were not allowed to vote.
64
00:03:36.680 --> 00:03:38.719
They went to different schools if they were allowed to
65
00:03:38.759 --> 00:03:42.319
go at all. So yeah, the German American population viewed
66
00:03:42.319 --> 00:03:45.360
themselves as superior to Mexicans. And I will add that
67
00:03:45.520 --> 00:03:49.439
these German Americans they were like very new to the area,
68
00:03:49.520 --> 00:03:52.360
like they were like German German. I get confused, So
69
00:03:52.639 --> 00:03:55.120
like me and you, are we first generation or secretaration?
70
00:03:55.520 --> 00:03:57.039
I thought we were a first gym because you're the
71
00:03:57.120 --> 00:04:01.039
first generation born here. Okay, that's what I thought. Okay,
72
00:04:01.080 --> 00:04:03.039
so if that's the way it works, correct us. They
73
00:04:03.039 --> 00:04:06.639
were wrong, right, gently? Please? Yes, gently? So if that's
74
00:04:06.680 --> 00:04:13.319
the definition, then these were first generation German Americans. Oh okay, wow,
75
00:04:13.400 --> 00:04:17.160
that's so crazy too. The generation before them founded the
76
00:04:17.199 --> 00:04:21.480
town of Thorndale. Oh, and they assimilated so fast to
77
00:04:21.560 --> 00:04:24.480
American culture. I was listening to a fascinating podcast. I
78
00:04:24.600 --> 00:04:28.879
want to say it was from what's his name, Adam
79
00:04:28.959 --> 00:04:31.519
Ruined Everything, but his podcast is called something Else. I
80
00:04:31.519 --> 00:04:35.519
think Oh, okay, I think his show is Adam Ruins Everything. Yeah, anyway,
81
00:04:35.519 --> 00:04:37.920
he has a podcast I listened to, oh factually with
82
00:04:37.959 --> 00:04:39.480
that or some shit like that. I don't know. I
83
00:04:39.480 --> 00:04:41.720
don't know. Anyway, there was one episode where they talked
84
00:04:41.759 --> 00:04:46.839
about assimilation and immigration and they were like the person
85
00:04:46.879 --> 00:04:49.160
who was the guest, I don't remember they did it,
86
00:04:49.199 --> 00:04:51.600
wrote a book or if they were researcher in this area,
87
00:04:51.800 --> 00:04:55.399
but they looked back at it like going back hundreds
88
00:04:55.399 --> 00:04:59.720
of years, and especially with like white immigrants, they assimilated quickly,
89
00:05:00.040 --> 00:05:02.759
so it's not only like a German thing. I don't know. Wow,
90
00:05:02.959 --> 00:05:05.680
this makes sense then, but yeah, they assimilated so fast,
91
00:05:05.839 --> 00:05:08.480
and so of course they were already like this because
92
00:05:08.519 --> 00:05:11.199
again it's a European country. But the German American population
93
00:05:11.240 --> 00:05:13.600
feared themselves as superior to the Mexicans who were there,
94
00:05:13.759 --> 00:05:17.360
and they often negatively portrayed Mexicans in their local newspapers
95
00:05:17.439 --> 00:05:22.879
as savages bandits, both in the Thorndale thorn Is their newspaper.
96
00:05:23.160 --> 00:05:25.519
I'm sorry, really they couldn't come up with a better
97
00:05:25.600 --> 00:05:29.439
name than that. No, very unoriginal. Yeah, and then the
98
00:05:29.560 --> 00:05:33.040
Rockdale Reporter and Messenger. I guess that's better. I don't
99
00:05:33.079 --> 00:05:36.160
know what's up with this alliteration, is my questions. They
100
00:05:36.160 --> 00:05:39.360
were fans of it. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't.
101
00:05:39.759 --> 00:05:43.199
In this case, it didn't know. They constantly labeled all Theiicanos,
102
00:05:43.279 --> 00:05:46.759
Mexican refugees, and Mexican Americans as bandits, even for the
103
00:05:46.800 --> 00:05:51.040
smallest crimes. They were like these Mexican bandits and their banditry, bandits, bandits,
104
00:05:51.079 --> 00:05:54.040
bandits mandatory. That's like all they said. Obviously they were
105
00:05:54.040 --> 00:05:57.160
going to have these terrible views of Mexicans, like yeah,
106
00:05:57.240 --> 00:06:00.519
because again they're very easily influenced. They assimilated in less
107
00:06:00.519 --> 00:06:05.079
than one generation. And again this is all taking place
108
00:06:05.160 --> 00:06:08.560
during the Mexican Revolution, which scares people even more so.
109
00:06:08.879 --> 00:06:12.240
They painted a perfect us versus them scenario. In this
110
00:06:12.399 --> 00:06:15.279
area and in this climate is where the Gomez family
111
00:06:15.360 --> 00:06:18.639
was raising their children, so Antonio Gomez. His father was
112
00:06:18.720 --> 00:06:22.800
Gabrielle Gomez, who arrived in Texas in eighteen sixty seven
113
00:06:22.959 --> 00:06:25.839
as a seasonal laborer. For years, he went back and forth,
114
00:06:25.959 --> 00:06:28.480
working through the seasons until winter, and then in winter
115
00:06:28.560 --> 00:06:31.680
he would return to Mexico. He married Amelia at some
116
00:06:31.759 --> 00:06:34.240
point his wife, he continued to go back and forth
117
00:06:34.360 --> 00:06:38.000
until nineteen hundred. Then she moved down there, and in
118
00:06:38.079 --> 00:06:42.240
nineteen oh eight their youngest child, Hossephia, was recorded as
119
00:06:42.319 --> 00:06:47.000
born in Texas. The older five children were probably born
120
00:06:47.040 --> 00:06:49.720
in Mexico, as again the arrival of the family is
121
00:06:49.800 --> 00:06:52.639
recorded as nineteen hundred. It is a little unclear, though,
122
00:06:52.680 --> 00:06:55.959
because in the nineteen ten census Antonio Gomez is recorded
123
00:06:56.000 --> 00:07:01.759
as Texas Spanish. The Gomez family rented a house near Thorndale,
124
00:07:01.800 --> 00:07:03.759
so they weren't even in Thorndale. They just rented a
125
00:07:03.759 --> 00:07:07.519
house near it, and Gabrielle Gomez worked at a nearby farm.
126
00:07:07.879 --> 00:07:11.959
All six Gomez children spoke English and understood English, but
127
00:07:11.959 --> 00:07:14.199
they could not read or write it. And so on
128
00:07:14.319 --> 00:07:19.079
June nineteenth, nineteen eleven, fourteen year old Antonio Gomez was whittling,
129
00:07:19.480 --> 00:07:22.079
which is like cutting a piece of wood to shape
130
00:07:22.120 --> 00:07:26.120
it into something. Heard fourteen and I'm already sad. Yeah,
131
00:07:26.160 --> 00:07:27.399
I don't know. I thought he was going to be
132
00:07:27.439 --> 00:07:28.680
a man. I didn't think he was in a little
133
00:07:28.720 --> 00:07:32.079
teen No, fourteen year old. So he was carving a
134
00:07:32.079 --> 00:07:34.240
piece of wood with his pocket knife. It was around
135
00:07:34.279 --> 00:07:36.519
seven pm and he was just outside of the Old
136
00:07:36.600 --> 00:07:40.920
Bank saloon in Thorndale. The saloon's owner, William Stevens, walked
137
00:07:40.920 --> 00:07:43.319
out of his establishment, and as soon as he saw Antonio,
138
00:07:43.399 --> 00:07:47.439
he was immediately angry. He took Antonio's piece of wood
139
00:07:47.439 --> 00:07:49.879
and threw it into the street, and he shouted that
140
00:07:49.959 --> 00:07:52.600
the sidewalk is no waste basket, even though he's the
141
00:07:52.600 --> 00:07:54.560
one who threw the piece of wood into the streets.
142
00:07:54.639 --> 00:07:56.800
Of course, he didn't that. Then he grabbed Antonio and
143
00:07:56.800 --> 00:08:00.639
threw him into the ground. Then to groups of men,
144
00:08:00.759 --> 00:08:03.480
one from inside the bar and another from the street.
145
00:08:03.519 --> 00:08:06.560
They were just walking by, surrounded Antonio, who was still
146
00:08:06.600 --> 00:08:09.000
on the floor, and they began to call him names.
147
00:08:09.199 --> 00:08:12.279
Antonio tried to crawl toward his wood carving and then
148
00:08:12.319 --> 00:08:16.680
get away, but one of the men there, Charles Sees Shang,
149
00:08:17.040 --> 00:08:22.160
CIEs does that matter, okay? Charles seas Chang declared that
150
00:08:22.199 --> 00:08:25.920
he would make the damn little skunk quit widling. What
151
00:08:26.160 --> 00:08:28.680
is it to them? He was just there, he was
152
00:08:28.759 --> 00:08:31.000
mighty in his own business. It's because they don't want
153
00:08:31.079 --> 00:08:35.279
us to exist. Since back then and now he didn't,
154
00:08:35.320 --> 00:08:38.879
snatched Antonio's wood carving from him again and began to
155
00:08:38.960 --> 00:08:41.240
hit him with it as the group laughed and kept
156
00:08:41.240 --> 00:08:44.960
calling him names. To defend himself from this attack, Antonio
157
00:08:45.000 --> 00:08:49.879
grabbed his pocket knife and stabbed Charles z shan Good
158
00:08:50.120 --> 00:08:53.559
in the chest. This is literal self defense. He's surrounded
159
00:08:53.679 --> 00:08:57.200
by men, grown men, grown men. He's fourteen years old.
160
00:08:57.279 --> 00:08:59.600
I don't know in what world this wouldn't be self
161
00:08:59.600 --> 00:09:02.759
defense today, right, So Charles C's chain fell over and
162
00:09:02.799 --> 00:09:07.240
died almost immediately right away. Good riddance, bitch. Right, But
163
00:09:07.639 --> 00:09:10.240
the story the white men told was different. We're too
164
00:09:10.240 --> 00:09:13.200
scared of before you do, boy, and were so scared
165
00:09:13.200 --> 00:09:15.759
that we surrounded him a bunch, you girl mean, because
166
00:09:15.759 --> 00:09:17.320
we didn't want to do We didn't want to street
167
00:09:17.720 --> 00:09:23.159
like fuck you guys because their little bitches, That's why,
168
00:09:24.960 --> 00:09:28.480
so they said. Charles went outside and grabbed a piece
169
00:09:28.519 --> 00:09:31.399
of wood from Antonio and then returned to the saloon.
170
00:09:31.840 --> 00:09:35.720
When Charles walked back outside again, Antonio was waiting for
171
00:09:35.799 --> 00:09:39.039
him a knife in hand. As soon as Antonio saw Charles,
172
00:09:39.120 --> 00:09:41.960
he lunged forward and stabbed Charles in the chest. I
173
00:09:41.960 --> 00:09:45.759
don't believe that for one second that's the version they told. No,
174
00:09:45.919 --> 00:09:48.639
not at all. Also, even if that version of the
175
00:09:48.639 --> 00:09:52.799
event was true and sure, this wouldn't warrant getting stabbed
176
00:09:52.879 --> 00:09:56.240
to some people. Why was he taking his little whittle
177
00:09:56.320 --> 00:10:01.399
whatever the hell it's called. Why exactly because they're bullies.
178
00:10:01.879 --> 00:10:07.360
They're evil little bullies. So the constable immediately apprehended Antonio
179
00:10:07.519 --> 00:10:11.240
and marched him to the caboos. It's like a one
180
00:10:11.279 --> 00:10:15.039
building jailhouse with a single cell. And as the constable
181
00:10:15.080 --> 00:10:19.159
marched Antonio to the jailhouse, locals cheered and offered themselves
182
00:10:19.480 --> 00:10:23.519
as witnesses for shit. They didn't witness, right, Yes, this
183
00:10:23.559 --> 00:10:28.080
is what they do to propagate their whiteness. They lie. Yeah,
184
00:10:28.200 --> 00:10:30.440
they hadn't seen it. None of these people saying they
185
00:10:30.440 --> 00:10:33.879
were witnesses were there. Wow. And so the town talked
186
00:10:33.919 --> 00:10:37.879
amongst themselves, and soon the version of the white men
187
00:10:37.960 --> 00:10:41.159
who were attacking him is the one that spread the most.
188
00:10:41.600 --> 00:10:44.759
And the constable knee right away that this was something
189
00:10:44.759 --> 00:10:47.399
that would lend a situation that would lend itself for
190
00:10:47.679 --> 00:10:50.720
a lynching. And he was like, Antonio, he is this
191
00:10:50.799 --> 00:10:52.480
young man in front of me. He's too young for that,
192
00:10:52.559 --> 00:10:55.360
and he would not allow it. Okay. He ordered everyone
193
00:10:55.399 --> 00:10:58.039
back inside their homes, and he ordered for saloons to
194
00:10:58.039 --> 00:11:01.720
stay closed, thinking hopefully this them down and they we
195
00:11:01.759 --> 00:11:04.240
can get through the night and he will just face
196
00:11:04.879 --> 00:11:08.399
quote unquote the normal justice system, the court, Yeah, which
197
00:11:08.679 --> 00:11:12.639
was not normal back then or now. But that didn't work.
198
00:11:12.919 --> 00:11:15.519
The crowd quickly grew to over one hundred. Is there
199
00:11:15.519 --> 00:11:19.039
a bit of blood Thursday? Racist little demons? Yeah, And
200
00:11:19.240 --> 00:11:21.679
fearing that the one room jailhouse would not be enough
201
00:11:21.720 --> 00:11:24.559
to keep Antonio safe from the crowd, the constable snuck
202
00:11:24.639 --> 00:11:27.919
him out around eight pm. He wrapped the chain around
203
00:11:27.960 --> 00:11:31.200
Antonio's neck. This is just how they transported people. No why.
204
00:11:31.600 --> 00:11:34.200
He wrapped the chain around Antonio's neck and led him
205
00:11:34.240 --> 00:11:37.200
to the home of G. W. Penny, just a bigger
206
00:11:37.200 --> 00:11:41.080
house that was easier to apparently secure or something or hiden.
207
00:11:41.399 --> 00:11:44.120
So the plan was to hide Antonio there until the
208
00:11:44.159 --> 00:11:48.080
constable could secure transport to the county jail in Cameron,
209
00:11:48.279 --> 00:11:51.000
which was another nearby tent like the biggest town in
210
00:11:51.039 --> 00:11:54.240
the county, with which had the county jail. And so
211
00:11:54.320 --> 00:11:58.360
the constable left to do that and Wilford, Wilson, and G. W.
212
00:11:58.440 --> 00:12:01.840
Penny stayed with Antonio. Somehow, in less than an hour,
213
00:12:01.960 --> 00:12:04.879
the mob learned where Antonio was being hidden, and they
214
00:12:04.919 --> 00:12:09.480
demanded Wilson and gw Penny give him up, and Penny refused,
215
00:12:09.639 --> 00:12:12.159
and he spoke to the mob, trying to be like, no,
216
00:12:12.600 --> 00:12:15.799
this is wrong. And while Penny was doing this, Wilson
217
00:12:15.879 --> 00:12:18.399
led Antonio out through the back. Okay, my god, I
218
00:12:18.440 --> 00:12:21.159
though I'm gonna say Wilson gave him up. No, no, no,
219
00:12:21.679 --> 00:12:23.600
I mean he's one of the good ones, you know,
220
00:12:24.320 --> 00:12:26.240
is what I'm saying. Yeah, he tried his best scene
221
00:12:26.240 --> 00:12:28.879
to offend him and hide him and keep him safe. Yeah.
222
00:12:29.120 --> 00:12:31.759
So Wilson and Antonio were headed to the oil mill,
223
00:12:31.879 --> 00:12:34.240
which was a pre planned meeting point where the constable
224
00:12:34.279 --> 00:12:37.759
would meet them with the secure transport. But on the
225
00:12:37.759 --> 00:12:41.039
way there three men on foot and one on horseback.
226
00:12:41.120 --> 00:12:45.879
They're so desperate, so desperate to kill little boy. Yeah really,
227
00:12:46.080 --> 00:12:48.240
And then they blocked the road and Antonio tried to
228
00:12:48.320 --> 00:12:52.200
hide behind Wilson, but the man on horseback grabbed the
229
00:12:52.320 --> 00:12:55.960
chain that was around Antonio around his neck and then
230
00:12:56.080 --> 00:12:59.360
dragged him. Oh my god. So he was on horseback
231
00:12:59.440 --> 00:13:03.759
pulling the dragging this fourteen year old Mexican boy all
232
00:13:03.799 --> 00:13:07.120
the way back to town in tears. I don't know the distance,
233
00:13:07.200 --> 00:13:10.840
but I read that and I was I was crying
234
00:13:10.960 --> 00:13:12.879
and mad and I was about to flip my desk,
235
00:13:12.879 --> 00:13:16.600
but it was too heavy, so they dragged him back
236
00:13:16.639 --> 00:13:19.440
to the jailhouse. There the mob tried to hang him
237
00:13:19.480 --> 00:13:22.639
from a ladder that was leaning on the telegraph pole,
238
00:13:22.720 --> 00:13:25.159
but that did not work. As Wilson caught up to them,
239
00:13:25.279 --> 00:13:30.000
he saw Antonio nearly lifeless as the crowd repeatedly kicked
240
00:13:30.039 --> 00:13:34.039
him in the head. Oh my gosh, I can't believe this.
241
00:13:34.519 --> 00:13:37.159
He was just one man. Then he tried to stop them,
242
00:13:37.159 --> 00:13:41.000
but he was outnumbered greatly, one man. He was being
243
00:13:41.039 --> 00:13:43.559
held back as a gre Another group of man picked