LCC history lecture focuses on borderland injustice
Students and history buffs will have an
opportunity to meet former Laredoan Dr. Beatriz de la Garza, who will share a
piece of South Texas history taken from her latest book, “A Law for the Lion: A
Tale of Crime and Injustice on the Borderlands.” She
will present a lecture and book signing on Wednesday, April 21, at Laredo
Community College.
Presented by the Villa San Agustin de Laredo Genealogical Society, the lecture
begins at 7 p.m. in the Kazen College Center, room 121. A reception and book
signing will follow. The event is co-sponsored by the LCC President’s Office
and the Social and Behavioral Sciences Department. Admission is free to the
public.
In
her latest book, De la Garza focuses on a true story of crime and injustice
involving the 1912 double-murder of prominent Laredo landowners Don Francisco
Gutierrez and his son, Manuel. The book was published by the University of
Texas Press in the fall of 2003.
De la
Garza was born in Mexico’s Ciudad Guerrero, also known as Old Revilla, the
setting of several of her literary works. As a result of the flooding and
destruction of her hometown by the Falcon International Reservoir, de la Garza
moved with her family to Laredo, where she enrolled in school without knowing
English. She began writing short tales and poetry in Spanish. After she
learned English, she began to write in this language, and while in high school,
won honorable mention awards for her short stories for two consecutive years
from Seventeen magazine’s short story contest.
De la Garza
received a scholarship from the Corpus Christi Caller-Times to attend the
University of Texas at Austin, where she studied journalism and creative
writing. There she won the undergraduate short story contest in her senior year
and had her short stories published in the student magazine.
Arte
Publico Press published her first collection of short stories, “The Candy
Vendor’s Boy and Other Stories,” which received a Star review from
Publisher’s Weekly.
De la Garza’s work, Pillars of Gold and Silver, a novel for young adults, was published by Arte Publico Press in 1997.
A resident of Austin for over 25 years, De la Garza has practiced law and taught at various colleges and universities. She has also been active in civic affairs.
For more information about the lecture, contact the LCC Social and Behavioral Sciences Department by calling 721-5294.
Beatriz de la Garza
Office of Marketing and Public Information
West End Washington St.
Laredo, TX 78040-4395
956- 721-5140
Fax 956-721-5443