Revolution in Texas: How a Forgotten Rebellion and Its Bloody Suppression Turned Mexicans into Americans

by Benjamin Heber Johnson

A gripping narrative about a dramatic episode in the history of the American West—and a major contribution to our understanding of the origins of Mexican American identity

In Revolution in Texas Benjamin Johnson tells the little-known story of one of the most intense and protracted episodes of racial violence in United States history. In 1915, against the backdrop of the Mexican Revolution, the uprising that would become known as the Plan de San Diego began with a series of raids by ethnic Mexicans on ranches and railroads. Local violence quickly erupted into a regional rebellion. In response, vigilante groups and the Texas Rangers staged an even bloodier counterinsurgency, culminating in forcible relocations and mass executions.
Faced with the overwhelming forces arrayed against it, the uprising eventually collapsed. But, as Johnson demonstrates, the rebellion resonated for decades in American history. Convinced of the futility of using force to protect themselves against racial discrimination and economic oppression, many Mexican Americans elected to seek protection as American citizens with equal access to rights and protections under the U.S. Constitution.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, School, Academic, American History

272 pages, Paperback

First published October 11, 2003

Reviews

[Rhuff · Rating 5 out of 5]

Professor Johnson's reconstruction of this forgotten national uprising in south Texas brings the American ideal of national amalgamation into stark disfocus. A theory built on immigration and absorption into an existing culture, it became inverted when the "mainstream" imposed itself upon a land and people with a culture of its own. From a liberal, integrating project, assimilation became an imperial one based on military conquest, economic exploitation, and racial segregation. What ensued was a "little Yugoslavia" in the US underbelly, a fit of social indigestion purged in blood.

Which raises a larger issue: to what extent might this portend America's future, as "unmeltable" ethnic and linguistic identities spread over the landscape? Is multiculturalism a sustainable alternative to assimilation? Or must it give rise to inevitable alienation, ending in violence? The next generation will see, as in so many other ways the US is hell bent on reversing the 20th century.

[Melody Villagomez · Rating 3 out of 5]

Again, i would be willing to give you guys this book. I got it for a Mexican- American history class.

[Tim · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this well-written book. It is scholarly in a way (not exactly chronological, presents much information) but flows nicely. The subtitle is “How a Forgotten Rebellion and Its Bloody Suppression Turned Mexicans into Americans”. (Led to Over Here: The First World War and American Society)

[Maggie Broderick · Rating 3 out of 5]

not bad! the idea of the plot was really interesting and something i had never learned anything about before but i didn't find the main thesis to be compelling and i didn't love the organization/ writing style. i liked the new area of knowledge i gained

[Scott Ericksen · Rating 4 out of 5]

An eye opening account of south Texas history after Mexican American war.

[Litzi · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a MUST read for every American, it should be taught in schools, in every American History class. I don’t understand why this was never taught to me as a History Minor.

[Karl · Rating 5 out of 5]

A non-fiction "Lone Star."