Ask the Scholar

{
    "localId": "183523403",
    "label": "Longoria, Felix  [Newspaper Articles]",
    "core": "doc",
    "dtoType": "document",
    "citationUrl": "https://catalog.archives.gov/id/183523403"
}

{
    "id": "183523403",
    "sourceUrl": "https://catalog.archives.gov/id/183523403",
    "contentType": "document",
    "title": "Longoria, Felix  [Newspaper Articles]",
    "citationUrl": "https://catalog.archives.gov/id/183523403",
    "collections": [
        "Pre-Presidential Confidential Files",
        "Confidential and Personal Office Files"
    ],
    "iiifBase": "https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/presidential-libraries/johnson/lbj-ppconf/7541354/7541354-prepres-cf-b003-f06-1.jpg",
    "thumbnailUrl": "https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/presidential-libraries/johnson/lbj-ppconf/7541354/7541354-prepres-cf-b003-f06-1.jpg",
    "largeImageUrl": "https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/presidential-libraries/johnson/lbj-ppconf/7541354/7541354-prepres-cf-b003-f06-1.jpg",
    "imageCount": 8,
    "hasImages": true,
    "source": "import",
    "hasTranscription": false
}

{
    "url": "https://catalog.archives.gov/id/183523403",
    "naId": 183523403,
    "levelOfDescription": "fileUnit",
    "recordType": "description",
    "ocrSource": "nara-archive"
}

{
    "seq": 4,
    "pageIndex": 0,
    "type": "photo",
    "url": "https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/presidential-libraries/johnson/lbj-ppconf/7541354/7541354-prepres-cf-b003-f06-4.jpg",
    "mediaId": "bd333e71f1fe2834",
    "ocrText": "Military Fúneral\nSet in Washington\nThree Rivers\nFor Texas Hero\nUp in Arms on\nWASHINGTON, Feb. 4 (P)\nArrangements.were completed Fri-\nday for ra military funeral in Ar\nlington National Cemetery for Fe\nFuneral Issue\nlix Longoría of Three e\nTexas.\nTHREE RIVERS, Jan. 13.-(UP)\nA Latin-American organization\nThis little South Texas town was\nhas accused a Three Riverstfuner\nin an uproar Thursday night over\nal home ,refusing to arrange\nplans for reburying one of its citi-\nservices for Longoria, whose body\nzens-a youth of Mexican descent\nwho went to war and fell in the\nrecently was returned from the\nBattle of the Philippines and\nPhilippines where he died in the\nOutside of Three ivers, most\nbattle of Luzon. The funeral home\neveryone knew by now of the re-\ndenied the accusation.\nports that the town's funeral di-\nThe Army Friday notified Sen\nrector, T. W. Kennedy, had de-\nator Johnson of Texas that Lon\nclined to handle arrangements for\ngoria will be buried in Arlington\nthe hometown funeral of Felix\nCemetery with full military hon-\nLongoria.\nors Feb. 16. It will be part of a\n\"Other white people might ob-\nmass ceremony for a group of war\nject,\" was the way Kennedy had\nheroes whose bodies have been re\nbeen quoted.\nturned from overseas.\nIn Washington, Texas' new US\nSenator Lyndon B. Johnson said,\nall. right, if Three Rivers felt that\nway, Longoria should be buried in\nArlington National Cemetery.\nThree Rivers said Thursday night,\nthrough the offices of its Chamber\nof Commerce president and through\nfuneral director Kennedy, that it\ndid not think that way.\nBlow For Friendship\nKennedy said he was willing to\nmake the burial arrangements: The\nuproar which was heard in Wash-\nA ringing blow for friendly Latin-American relations,\nington; it: was explained, was the\n\"downright Democracy, and plain ordinary humanity was\nresult of Kennedy's refusing the\nstruck by Texas' Junior Senator Lyndon Johnson when he\nuse of his chapel for the service.\n\"I did not refuse the use of the\ntook up the cudgels for an appropriate burial for the Three\nchapel because he was Latin-Amer-\nRivers Texas-Mexican war hero.\nican,\" said Kennedy. \"I felt I was\nThe mortician who is alleged to have refused to handle\navoiding trouble here at the funeral\nthe remains because of Mexican ancestry, says now he had no\nhome by asking Mrs. Longoria, the\nwidow, if she could use her home.\"\nintention of 'discriminating' but merely \"discouraged' the use\nKennedy and S. F. Ramsey, bank-\nof the chapel.'\ner and Chamber of Commerce\nAt any \"rate, Felix Longoria, will be buried at Arlington\npresident, said they understood that\nLongoria's widow and his parents\nNational Cemetery, that haven where America pays its\nwere at odds over some personal\nhighest respect for its outstanding battle heroes.\nmatters and the disagreement ex=\nAnd it is because of Lyndon Johnson, a man of goodwill\ntended to the funeral plans.\nfor his neighbor across the Rio Grande, who despite possible\nRamsey said, \"our funeral chapel\nhere probably would notibe appro-\npolitical reverberations took a forthright stand.\npriate anyway for such service.\nIt can be said that Texas' governor, Beauford Jester, also\nIt's small and it's used mostly-by\nwhites and alikei\njoined was. Latin-American Texans galore fought discrimination, was and one died of for the if Texas such\nwith Johnson in deploring such\n-only to let a body lie in state.\nit\nThe chapel isn't like in big cities.\nMost funerals here are held in\nin the late world war. Felix Longoria first\nchurches or homes.'\ncome\nof his ancestral background to pay the supreme penalty.\nThree Rivers, said Ramsey, \"is\nashamed of the publicity, which is\nSurely the mortician who was reluctant to use his chapel\nnot deservéd. You'll find no town\nfor the service does not reflect the sentiments of a majority\nanywhere in. South Texas that has\nenjoyed better relations between\nof his fellow-Texans.\nLatin-Americans and whites.\"\nSuch an attitude carries racial prejudice to an extreme\nunconscionable on the part of free Texans\n(At Corpus Christi, Jr. Hector\nGarcia, president of the American\nGI Forum, said citizens of his city\nhad raised $300 to send Mrs. Bea-\nSHERMAN (TEX.) DEMOCRAT 1-16-49\ntrice Longoria, the widow, to Wash-\nington for the service at Arlington.\nIt was, said Garcia, an effort to\nmake amends.)\nRamsey was hopeful that plans\nmight be made even this late to\nbring Longoria \"home.\" But if the\nbody goes to Arlington, Three Ri-\nvers will send along at least one\nmember of Longoria's family.\n\"I'll underwrite it here at the\nbank if civic. clubs don't make up\nenough money, which I'm sure\nthey will,\" he said.\nRamsey was angry with Senator\nJohnson. \"It is our feeling that he\ncapitalized on this to further his\nown standing with the Latin-\nAmerican population,\" said the\nChamber of Commerce man.\n(The body of Longoria, who died\non Luzon, wastreportedly due: to\narrive in San Francisco sometime\nThursday.)"
}