Raúl R. Vásquez Papers

Biographical Note

Raúl Reza Vásquez was born in Texas on April 21st, 1946 to Maria Elena Vasquez and Eduardo R. Vasquez. From 1968-1970, he served in the U.S. Army. He then attended college at the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP). At UTEP, Vasquez studied Political Science and English, receiving a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1971. After finishing his degree, Vasquez was accepted to the University of Texas School of Law where he earned his Doctor of Juris Prudence (JD) degree in 1974. After graduating from law school, Raul Vasquez returned to El Paso, Texas to practice law as a legal aid attorney. It was at this point that he became actively involved in the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC).

The League of United Latin American Citizens has its roots in 1920s Texas. Ben Garza, formerly of the Corpus Christi-based Sons of America organization, formed LULAC in 1929. At the time, Garza sought to unite a number of disparate Mexican-American organizations in order to form a larger, more unified group. The charter members of this larger faction included The Knights of America, The Sons of America, and the League of Latin American Citizens.

The newly formed League's goal was to counter discrimination against Hispanic-Americans, a mission rooted in the Mexican American War (1846-1848). The territorial shift that occurred as a result of the war created 77,000 new Hispanic-American citizens. However, many Americans did not welcome its new citizens with open arms and subjected Hispanic-Americans to discrimination and human rights violations. LULAC and its charter groups sought to counter these abuses through a strongly unified Latin American presence in Texas, and later, other regions as well.

Today, the League has over 100,000 members throughout the United States and battles discrimination against Hispanic-American citizens in such areas as education, politics, and the workplace. LULAC is represented at both the state and national level. The league's national offices are located in Washington D.C. Within each state LULAC organization, there are also individual District LULACS, and within each District, there are local councils.

Raul Vasquez began his career in LULAC at the local level, as a member of Council 8 in El Paso, Texas. Between 1974 and 1977, Vasquez rose within the Council 8 ranks, serving as Council 8's Vice-President from 1976-1977 and President in 1977. In addition to his council service, Vasquez served on the LULAC-Texas District Four education committee, which investigated and documented instances of racial discrimination at El Paso Community College. His efforts resulted in an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) complaint against the college.

Vasquez continued to rise in the organization and was appointed Texas LULAC legal advisor from 1977-1978. In 1979, he was elected State Director, the highest state-wide office within the organization. At this point in his career, he was living in Austin, Texas. Vasquez served two terms as State Director from 1979-1981. As State Director, he managed twenty one LULAC state districts and hundreds of councils. Vasquez's accomplishments as Texas State Director included resurrecting the Hispanics Organized for Political Education (HOPE) committee, working with the Texas LULAC executive board to formulate a legislative agenda for the 67th Texas Legislature, organizing a LULAC council at the University of Texas, promoting the hiring of Hispanics, and introducing and testifying on behalf of LULAC sponsored legislation.

After finishing his second term as State Director, Vasquez decided to run for the office of LULAC national president. His campaign emphasized increasing public recognition of LULAC, paying down the League's debt, and promoting women's issues within LULAC. Ultimately, his candidacy was unsuccessful. He lost the 1983 election to Mario Obledo.

Vasquez's loss in the 1983 presidential election did not end his career in LULAC. From 1983-1985, he served as the Texas State Legislative Liaison, meeting with members of the Texas House of Representatives and Senate on behalf of the League. From 1991-1994, Vasquez again served as the Texas state legal advisor for LULAC. In 1999, he decided to make a second run for state director. His 1999 platform emphasized reaching out to both state and national legislators on behalf of Hispanics, as well as better oversight of local LULAC chapters. His campaign was unsuccessful, and the 1999 election marked the end of Vasquez's career in elected office at LULAC. Nevertheless, he remained active in the organization, attending LULAC events throughout Texas and the United States, including national conventions and board meetings.

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Scope and Contents Note

The collection contains correspondence, handwritten notes, printed material, legal documents, press clippings, and reports that document the personal life and career of Raul Vasquez from 1963 - 2002, primarily his work with the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) on both the state and national level. The collection is arranged into five series: Personal and Biographical Materials, National LULAC, State of Texas LULAC, Texas LULAC Council 8 - El Paso, and Collected Materials. The bulk of the material dates from 1977 - 1985, years that include Vasquez's term as the President of the State of Texas LULAC and his campaign for the presidency of the National LULAC organization. A large amount of material dated 1991 - 1999 documents his work in Austin's District VII, and there is a gap in material from 1964 - 1966. Significant areas represented in the collection include family correspondence, Vasquez's admission to and coursework from UT Law School, the history and mission of LULAC, national and state LULAC conventions, LULAC elections, the financial administration of Texas LULAC, the business and administration of Texas LULAC districts, and conventions and meetings Vasquez attended either as a representative of LULAC or of the Latino community. Many press clippings and reports document issues advocated both by LULAC and Vasquez personally, such as bilingual education, police-community relations, Texas state teacher competency, welfare, Reagonomics, and the promotion of Latino culture. Among other formats in the collection are campaign fliers, a campaign button, a comic book, and a bumper sticker.

Series One, Personal and Biographical Materials, is primarily comprised of correspondence with Eduardo and Maria Elena Vasquez, his mother and father, dated 1968 - 1996. Transcripts and schoolwork from Vasquez's years in law school, as well as documents and collected materials from Vasquez's legal career are also included.

The National LULAC Series, Series Two, consists of booklets for LULAC National Conventions, correspondence with the National President dated 1977 - 1979, material documenting the activities of the National Executive Board, campaign material and research generated in the course of Vasquez's run for the LULAC National presidency in 1983, and LULAC historical documents and membership material.

Series Three contains extensive materials documenting the administration of the State of Texas LULAC, including material relating to conventions, delegates, membership, and finances. There is also material pertaining to the administration of the District LULAC organizations, their councils, and district-level events. Most of the state material is from 1978-1981 when Vasquez was State Director and at the height of his participation in the organization. Numerous press clippings document Vasquez's concern with the Texas education system and immigration legislation.

Vasquez's work with Council 8 in El Paso's District IV is documented in Series Four through correspondence, reports, administrative material, clippings, and other printed material. Most of the material is from his 1977 term as Council President. Numerous booklets from events Vasquez attended in El Paso represent his activity during this time.

Series Five, Collected Material, consists of printed material in the form of conference pamphlets, programs, convention information, and cultural magazines that represent the role of Latin-American Affairs in Vasquez's life. Extensive clippings document Vasquez's personal and professional interest in politics, criminal justice, and education.

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Restrictions

Access Restrictions

Unrestricted.

Use Restrictions

Standard copyright restrictions apply.

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Related Materials

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Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

Cite as: Raúl R. Vásquez Papers, Nettie Lee Benson Latin American Collection, University of Texas Libraries, The University of Texas at Austin.

Acquisition Information

Information of acquisition method not available.

Processing Information

Collection processed by Rachel Appel, Ryan Field, Michalle Gould, and Madeline Fendley (UT School of Information interns), 2010.

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Box and Folder Inventory

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