LULAC Houston Clubhouse Will Undergo Repairs After National Treasure Designation
A Houston building connected to the Mexican-American Civil Rights movement has been designated as a National Treasure and will share part of a $450,000 grant in an effort to raise money for restore historic buildings damaged by last year’s Hurricane Harvey, the National Trust for Historic Preservation announced Tuesday, January 30.
The LULAC Council 60 Clubhouse in Houston, along with an historic doctor’s office in Miami and a nature preserve in Puerto Rico, will share the grant. All of the sites were damaged by Harvey, Irma or Maria.
The clubhouse served as a meeting place beginning in the 1950s for Mexican-American civil rights leaders who plotted out key school desegregation cases and efforts to fight discrimination. Legendary leaders such as attorneys Gus Garcia, John J. Herrera and Tex-Mex restaurateur Felix Tijerina attended meetings at the clubhouse.
The building sits in a revitalized area outside of Houston’s downtown. For years, advocates have been trying to raise money to fix the roof and interior of the building, which was damaged by Harvey and previous storms. LULAC — the acronym for the League of United Latin American Citizens — is the nation’s oldest Hispanic civil rights organization.
Read more: https://www.houstonpublicmedia.org/articles/news/2018/01/30/264676/latino-civil-rights-site-in-houston-named-national-treasure/
