BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! Dead falls Romaldo Cortez, Brother of Gregorio Cortez, thanks to Sheriff Morris. The day is June 12th of 1901 and Sheriff Morris shows up to Gregorio Cortez’s home. Sheriff Morris along side with Boone Choate (who was supposed to be an expert in the Mexican language) were both in search of a horse thief, start asking questions immediately when they see Gregorio Cortez and Romaldo Cortez. Choate asked Cortez “, did you trade a house with Andres Villarreal?” Cortez answered solidly “No”. Cortez had traded a mare not a horse. As soon as Sheriff Morris heard his response, he told Choate to tell Cortez and his brother that they were going to be arrested. Gregorio asked why but Sheriff Morris misunderstood and shot Romaldo to death. In defense, Cortez shot Sherriff Morris for his brother. Cortez knew that he was going to get into trouble so he decided to flee. (Garcia) Many question if he’s a hero for defending his brother the way he defended him. Many think he is just a rebel for killing a sheriff for no good reason, but Cortez had a reason. Cortez is a hero for the reason that he was brave enough to confront injustices from defending his brother, never giving up, and persisted as long as he could, demonstrating that he had the courage most individuals do not.
One of the many characteristics that a hero needs to have is bravery. Cortez of course didn’t want what happen to happen, but he had the bravery to stand up to an Anglo sheriff to defend his brother. At the time that this happened, Anglos intimidated many Mexican-Americans who were living in Texas because of the tension that was there from the war. Mexican American were abused and mistreated because of the language barrier that wasthere was between them. This...
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...ong. Wouldn’t you want to get out and leave? That’s exactly was Cortez did and he stayed strong about it.
Cortez is a hero and should be respected as a hero for the reasons that he stood up the way many were scared to do so in his time. We live in a city filled with many Hispanics that could relate and argue the same that Cortez is a here to the Mexican American culture. For now Cortez’s story is only told as a folk tale but I believe one day Cortez is going to be recognized as a hero. Just give it time. Viva Gregorio Cortez!
Works Cited
Ballad of Gregorio Cortez. Youtube.com. Metro Goldwyn Mayer, 2000. Web. 11 Feb. 2014. .
Garcia, Monica, and Kyle Putnam. "The Story of Gregorio Cortez." The Story of Gregorio Cortez. N.p., 7 May 2001. Web. 11 Feb. 2014. .
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Rodolfo”Corky” Gonzales is a hero because he was optimistic.Croky was optimistic when he did everything he could to start the crusade for justice. t is clear that
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Rafael Leonidas Trujillo Molina came into the world on October 24, 1891. He was born in the small city of San Cristobal in the Dominican Republic. He was the son of Jose Trujillo Valdez and Altagracia Julia Molina. Trujillo’s parents were married on September 24, 1887 in San Cristobal. Trujillo’s father was a merchant and was dedicated to buy and sell items that he could make a profit from. His mother was a housewife and was considered very sweet and kind hearted by those who knew her . Not much is known about Trujillo’s childhood and family because he had records changed to not bring any shame brought onto his name. What is known is that he was...
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A Texan, William B. Travis and a small group of Texans attacked a squad of Mexican troops in Anahuac with the motive that “taxes should not thus be collected from them to support a standing army in their own country” (SOS 1) and soon drove them back. Travis retreated to San Felipe and were assisted to Bexar. Skirmishes and the threat of war with Mexico soon followed.
The author has covered various aspects of the life of Cortez. There are no two opinions that her extensive research can help create a living portrait of a stable yet constantly evolving community.
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de la Cruz, Juana Ines. "Hombres Necios." A Sor Juana Anthology. Ed.Alan S. Trueblood. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard UP, 1988.