-: Things like that.
She also had to make a little table,
a little box about that so she could stand
on it on top of the...
What do you call those?
The little Jeeps.
James: Wranglers?
Moisés: The Humvees?
-: That's it. -: Yeah.
-: 'Cause she could sit on top of me.
She was the gunner
and she's telling the reporter and says,
"Yeah, they'll come over and I feed 'em
"and they call me grandma."
They call her grandma (speaking foreign language)
and the next day she got blown away.
Deep blown away.
So she didn't feel a thing.
But she went to the university here
in A and M.
Graduated from Corpus Christi High School
and nobody talks about her.
Nobody talks about her.
The oldest woman to die in combat.
Major Sergeant
and nobody talks about her.
So when you go over there, you could look at it.
Look at that and I put her in uniform.
I put her in uniform
and when my cousin came in,
the sister of the...
No, her uncle for the 40 year old that died,
she served in the service and she came in
and she looked at the girl and says,
"Make sure her skirt is here.
"Don't put her skirt above her knees.
"It's against regulations."
I said, "Okay."
So I made sure I did that.
But it's sad that I've told reporters.
I've told people and nobody picks up on it.
You know, you forget very quickly about the fallen heroes.
Yeah, really sad.
Moisés: You said that you're getting involved with that.
-: Well,
we've lost several in Rockport,
Port Aransas, Kingsville in that area.
Yeah, I was putting that memorial up in the university
and this guy standing behind me says,
"He saved my life."
I said, "Who's that?"
"That."
"And he's dead for a long time."
I said, "Really?"
Yeah, he was a officer.
So you it's...
We forget.
So not only the students
that we care but the point is that
the people that have died.
So there's a lot of things that we can do.
There's a lot of things we should be fighting for
and we're not fighting.
We're not speaking up for 'em, you know?
So tell me about your project.
What are you gonna do with it?
Moisés: This project here?
Eventually it'll turn into a book.
Our project, we have four project directors.
One's at UT Austin.
One's at North Texas.
One's at TCU.
One's at UTR.
-: Wow.
Moisés: We've got six teams
in different parts of the state.
They're all doing the same thing.
Interviewing folks about civil rights.
-: Yeah, well I hope it works.
As a matter of fact
my grandson just got accepted to TCU.
They're over there right now.
James: Me too. -: Yeah.
He goes to...
He will be going too.
-: You gonna be going for your doctorate.
He's just beginning.
He went to Carroll High School.
Tall, good-looking guy going to TCU.
He's over there with his daddy and mom.
They were gonna be going there.
Moisés: Well, you never know.
Maybe I'll be teaching him at some point.
-: That's right.
Hey, that's right.
But he likes business.
But anyway, I told my wife, you know,
we need to start telling the people
the truth about the Democrats.
Read the book.
Listen, liberals.
We need to because a lot...
Instead of passing you're like,
"Yeah, yeah, yeah I used to do this."
What did you do?
What bills did you pass?
When were you there?
Where were you when this happened?
Because a lot of 'em just they get elected
and that's all.
They don't do their job.
They forget why the people...
I told my father-in-law he was a city councilman
and I pushed for him.
I said, "You got to be the people's hero.
"You're older."
He was older.
His was an older man.
He was about 76-years-old when he first ran.
I said, "You got to be...
"The people are hungry for heroes.
"You've got to be a hero.
"You just can't be out there cutting ribbons
"and throwing balloons up
"and cutting cakes and carrying babies.
"You got to be a hero.
"There's a lot of people that need you.
"Not the banks, not
"all the other big issues it's the little people.
"The guy that can't make it.
"Those are the guys that need you.
"Those are the women."
James: I don't mean to interrupt.
-: Yes, go on.
James: I'm getting notice we have five minutes left
on the memory card. -: Good.
James: So, can I ask a final question?
Moisés: Sure, sure.
James: We have one.
Take a little bit of time with this one.
Civilizing Black and Brown
is the name of the project.
Moisés: I'll give you guys a 30 second.
James: So yeah.
Just give us a heads up.
What has civil rights meant to you
looking back on your career, your life?
The fight for civil rights, how would you describe it?
-: It meant everything to me.
Everything.
I think it shaped my family.
My children saw me fighting for the issues.
My daughter used to...
When I used to come home, "Dad don't forget equal rights
"for men don't forget the ERA,"
'cause I would say, "Miriam, dad,
"don't forget what you said with the presentation."
Or my son would get out
and fight for issues that are important.
The food bank, diabetes board.
The one about the ulcer.
His law business is fighting for people
and doing the right things and being with his family.
Family is very important.
Extremely important.
Like I told you earlier, I just wish that I was younger.
There's only so much you can do
and you've got to give the young people a chance to get up.
But also you have to guide 'em.
Say, "Hey, you can't do that.
"You know, you're not doin' the right thing.
"You're not doin' the right thing.
"What you're doin' is wrong."
You know, you have to tell 'em
because that's your job is...
Once you get involved,
you just can't say I'm no longer involved.
I served on different commissions
and I do a lot of paintings
to promote, to donate for organizations.
But I like doing that.
I didn't run to...
I run for the glory.
You know, everybody wants to be on TV.
I happened to had a good look for TV.
People like me today.
People still come up and say, "Gonzalez."
I says, "Yes?"
"You were my teacher back in 1976."
They says, "You still look the same."
I said, "Yeah, sure." (chuckles)
And last night, the same thing.
This lady said, "You were my teacher."
And they say it with such love
that I must have been a good teacher.
And so, you know, you just...
I love doing things
and being up on stage
and speakin' out and fighting the issue
and winning the issue
and I won a lot of good issues.
When I was a state rep
I was on the front page.
Oh my God.
Constantly fighting on TV.
Constantly demanding people
to do things right without being ugly.
I just wish I'd have been born
with more money, but I wasn't.
So, like I told this editor one time
from the Caller-Times I said, "Hey, listen.
"I love this country."
I said, "'Cause if I lived in any other country
"I would've been shot a long time ago."
'Cause they asked me a similar question.
What are you gonna do?
I said, "I love this country.
"I love this.
"I love the right that I have to fight,
"to speak my beliefs and to fight for the people.
"I love that without being ugly
"with respecting people."
I don't discriminate and I taught my son and my daughter
not to discriminate against anybody, any group,
and that's the way I believe.
So it's meant a lot to me.
I just wish I could do more.
James: Yeah.
-: Yeah.
Moisés: That's a good answer.
James: That's a good wrap.
Yeah, it's like counting down 10 seconds.
Okay.