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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, February 2, 2011, marks the 163rd anniversary of the |
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signing of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, an act that officially |
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signaled the end of the Mexican War; and |
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WHEREAS, Concluding hostilities that had begun between |
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Mexico and the United States in 1846, the treaty constitutes a major |
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event in the history of both countries and in the annals of the Lone |
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Star State; and |
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WHEREAS, In consequence of its provisions, Mexico recognized |
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the annexation of Texas by the United States and accepted the Rio |
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Grande as the state's southern boundary; in addition, Mexico ceded |
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to the United States the territory of the present-day states of |
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California, Arizona, and New Mexico, as well as parts of Utah, |
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Nevada, and Colorado, in exchange for a payment of $15 million; and |
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WHEREAS, The treaty further offered American citizenship to |
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Mexicans living in the ceded lands, an offer accepted by an |
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overwhelming majority of the approximately 80,000 individuals who |
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thus became eligible; and |
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WHEREAS, Those holding Mexican title to land now situated |
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within the borders of the United States were also promised respect |
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for their property; in Texas, subsequent adjudication confirmed |
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almost all of the claims that were presented for validation; and |
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WHEREAS, Yet another treaty provision stipulated that Mexico |
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and the United States would refer future disputes to arbitration; |
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an outstanding instance of such a resolution is the Chamizal |
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settlement of 1963, which concluded a 99-year-old boundary dispute |
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in the vicinity of El Paso; and |
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WHEREAS, The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo secured for Texas |
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its claim to land between the Nueces River and the Rio Grande, |
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pointed the way toward a bilingual, multiethnic society along the |
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Texas-Mexico border, and pledged two proud countries to peaceful |
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negotiation of their differences; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 82nd Texas |
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Legislature hereby commemorate the 163rd anniversary of the signing |
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of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo on February 2, 1848, and |
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recognize the momentous significance of this date for the State of |
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Texas. |