| |
| |
|
|
R E S O L U T I O N
|
|
|
WHEREAS, The Blackwell School Alliance secured designation |
|
|
of the Blackwell School in Marfa as a National Historic Site in |
|
|
October 2022; and |
|
|
WHEREAS, Opened in 1909, in an era of de facto segregation of |
|
|
Mexican Americans, the school served local students until 1965, a |
|
|
year after passage of the Civil Rights Act, when Marfa integrated |
|
|
its schools; the faculty was largely White, and children could be |
|
|
punished harshly for speaking Spanish, even though for some, it was |
|
|
not only their native language, but their only language; the school |
|
|
was supplied with hand-me-down books and other equipment from Marfa |
|
|
Elementary, the school for Whites; and |
|
|
WHEREAS, Alumni of Blackwell School learned in 2006 that the |
|
|
school district planned to tear down or sell the nearly century-old |
|
|
one-room adobe schoolhouse; they began organizing to save the |
|
|
structure, forming the Blackwell School Alliance in 2007; joined by |
|
|
other community advocates, they cleaned up the building and |
|
|
fundraised to make repairs; they went on to seek recognition for the |
|
|
school from the Texas Historical Commission, which was granted in |
|
|
2010; nine years later, their efforts led to its inclusion in the |
|
|
National Register of Historic Places; and |
|
|
WHEREAS, The members of the alliance have worked tirelessly |
|
|
to document and preserve the school's history, partnering with |
|
|
universities, state agencies, private foundations, the City of |
|
|
Marfa, and individuals; in addition, they have garnered support |
|
|
from elected officials, and in 2021, a bipartisan group of |
|
|
representatives filed the Blackwell School National Historic Site |
|
|
Act; it easily passed both chambers of Congress, and President Joe |
|
|
Biden signed it into law on October 17, 2022, authorizing the |
|
|
designation of the site as a unit of the National Park Service; and |
|
|
WHEREAS, Today, the Blackwell School is one of the very few |
|
|
National Historic Sites devoted specifically to the commemoration |
|
|
of Latino heritage; the original school building functions as a |
|
|
museum and community center, with a replica classroom featuring |
|
|
rows of old desks; moreover, the Blackwell School Alliance has |
|
|
assembled a wealth of artifacts, from trophies, sports uniforms, |
|
|
photographs, and old letters to the wooden paddle once used to |
|
|
discipline children; the site also includes the 1927 Band Hall; and |
|
|
WHEREAS, Through their hard work and many years of grassroots |
|
|
advocacy, the members of the Blackwell School Alliance have ensured |
|
|
lasting protection of an authentic setting to commemorate and |
|
|
interpret the Mexican American experience, the culture of the |
|
|
borderlands, and the sometimes painful history of progress in our |
|
|
society; now, therefore, be it |
|
|
RESOLVED, That the Senate of the 88th Texas Legislature |
|
|
hereby recognize April 22, 2023, as Blackwell School Day at the |
|
|
State Capitol and commend the Blackwell School Alliance for its |
|
|
outstanding contributions. |