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Throughout October, venues in Brownsville and San Benito will host free screenings of documentary films featuring significant aspects of Hispanic American history. Each screening will be followed by a scholar-led discussion about the film and the topics it addresses.

The Hispanics on Screen program coincides with Hispanic Heritage Month. The documentary films include:

The Longoria Affair

The Longoria Affair recounts what happened in 1949 when a funeral home in Three Rivers, Texas, refused to hold a wake for Felix Longoria, a decorated Mexican American soldier killed in battle during World War II. The "Longoria Affair" became a catalyst for the national civil rights movement. José Angel Gutiérrez of The University of Texas at Arlington will lead the post-screening discussion.

(October 3 @ 12:30 p.m., Salón Cassia, UTRGV, Brownsville Campus)

Walkout

Walkout documents the 1968 high school walkouts in East Los Angeles by Chicano students protesting discrimination and aiming to improve their school system. The mass walkouts heralded a new wave of youth activism. Diana Noreen Rivera of The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley will lead the post-screening discussion.

(October 5 @ 12:30 p.m., Salón Cassia, UTRGV, Brownsville Campus)

The State of Arizona

The State of Arizona tracks multiple perspectives on Arizona’s controversial SB1070 immigration law, also known as the "papers please" law. The film follows supporters and opponents of the law, as well as the national reaction to it as more states intend to follow suit. José Angel Gutiérrez of The University of Texas at Arlington will lead the post-screening discussion.

(October 10 @ 12:30 p.m., Salón Cassia, UTRGV, Brownsville Campus)

A Class Apart

A Class Apart is about the landmark 1954 civil rights case Hernandez v. Texas. The film recounts the stories of the central characters of the case and depicts the larger national struggle against discrimination of Mexican Americans. Rogelio T. Nuńez of the Narciso Martinez Cultural Arts Center will lead the post-screening discussion.

(October 11 @ 7:00 p.m., Iglesia Presbiteriana Getsemani, San Benito)

Rape in the Fields

Rape in the Fields tells the hidden story of the migrant women who work in America’s fields and packing plants and face exploitation and abuse. The film is part of a yearlong investigation and reporting effort. Phil Samponaro of The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley will lead the post-screening discussion.

(October 12 @ 12:30 p.m., Salón Cassia, UTRGV, Brownsville Campus)

The Hispanics on Screen program was created in collaboration with The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, Iglesia Presbiteriana Getsemani, and the Narciso Martinez Cultural Arts Center. This program is made possible in part by a grant from Humanities Texas.

For a schedule of events and more information, visit the Greater Dallas Legal and Community Development Foundation website.

Gustavo "Gus" García, attorney in the landmark case Hernández v. Texas, who argued before the U.S. Supreme Court for the end of a practice of systematic exclusion of Hispanics from jury service in Jackson County, Texas. García is featured in the documentary film A Class Apart. Institute of Texan Cultures (no. L-4303-1), The University of Texas at San Antonio. Courtesy of the Hearst Corporation.
Eleanor McCusker, former wife of attorney Gus García, interviewed by Carlos Sandoval for A Class Apart. Photo by Michael Jordi Valdés.