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“The Texas Capitol is a symbol of solidarity, as lawmakers from various backgrounds and perspectives come together to create change for our communities,” Anchía said. “The presence of Confederate memorials on the Capitol grounds undermine the unifying work that lawmakers strive to undertake.” Following last summer’s Black Lives Matter protests, Anchía and DeSoto state Rep. Carl Sherman joined six other Democratic state lawmakers also demanding the monuments’ removal. If passed, Anchía’s bill would remove the following: A portrait of Albert Sidney Johnston in the Senate chambe...

[uam_ad id="317182"] RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Between 1821 and 1865, thousands of enslaved African Americans crossed the Rio Grande to seek a different future; however, their stories and of those who aided them, remained buried in obscurity until recently. “In Mexico you could be free. They didn’t care what color your skin was”. (Photo internet reproduction) Unlike the so-called “Underground Railroad” – the network organized by abolitionists in the 19th century to help slaves escape to northern states and Canada – the history of which is taught to high school students in the U...

Turns out her great-great-grandparents, who are buried there,  were agents in the little-known underground railroad that led through South Texas to Mexico during the 1800s. Thousands of enslaved people fled plantations to make their way to the Rio Grande, which became a river of deliverance. "I don't know why there wasn't anything that we would've known as we were growing up. It amazes me to learn the underground deal — I had no idea at all," says Webber-Vasques, 70, who recently learned the story of her forebear John Ferdinand Webber from her daughter-in-law who has researched family hist...

Lawmaker files bill to end Confederate Heroes Day in Texas Lawmaker files bill to end Confederate Heroes Day in Texas Rep. Jarvis Johnson (D-Houston) held a virtual press conference to announce his filing of House Bill 36, which would abolish Confederate Heroes Day. AUSTIN, Texas - For years, several Texas lawmakers have worked to eliminate "Confederate Heroes Day."  The state holiday was formed in 1973 when lawmakers combined holidays honoring Confederate Generals Robert E. Lee and Jefferson Davis. They chose Lee’s birthday, January 19, the day after Martin Luther King Day.  "There is n...

    DALLAS, TX (KTVT) — Dallas County Democratic State Representative Rafael Anchía filed a bill Tuesday, Jan. 19, Confederate Memorial Day in Texas, that would remove Confederate monuments, memorials, and statues from the Capitol grounds as well as renaming the John H. Reagan State Office Building. House Bill 1186 would rename the building the Jackson-Webber State Office Building, named after Nathaniel Jackson and John Ferdinand Webber, abolitionists who helped slaves escape from Texas to Mexico via the “Underground Railroad to Mexico.” “Confederate monuments have and continue ...