Discover the Cultural Diversity of the State of Texas
A discussion of the diverse cultures in Texas, from the documentary Behind the Lone Star: Institute of Texan Cultures.
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Transcript
[Music in]
JO ANN ANDERA: People have a tendency to think that everybody in Texas is a cowboy or an Indian or an oil millionaire. And when they walk in and they see that we have Hungarian Texans, that we have Wendish Texans, that we have Germans, Lebanese, they're a little taken aback.
SHIRLEY BOTCLER MOCK: They're, like, amazed. They're, like, "I didn't know there were black Indians in Texas." And I think that people see, but they don't really soak in, how diverse our culture is, how blended we all are.
NARRATOR: Black Indians, Italian cowboys, Japanese rice farmers, Jewish oil tycoons, overland pioneers seeking fortunes in the Mexican province of Texas, European immigrants seeking freedom through the Gulf port of Galveston.
MARY LOU ELLIS: We're all about people and the cultures that those people came from and the contributions that those cultures made to the state of Texas.
NARRATOR: Ten thousand years' worth of cultures. It's a tall order, but then, everything about Texas is big, isn't it?
JOHN L. DAVIS: Texas is one of those areas where the culture and the people who are here are changing as quickly as any place in the world.
NARRATOR: The Institute of Texan Cultures research covers more than 100 cultural groups and emphasizes at least 25 core groups that truly made Texas Texas.
REX BALL: It's a very diverse, interesting state. And—and in that sense, and in our ability to get along together, we are a reflection of, I think, the genius of the United States of America.
[Music out]
JO ANN ANDERA: People have a tendency to think that everybody in Texas is a cowboy or an Indian or an oil millionaire. And when they walk in and they see that we have Hungarian Texans, that we have Wendish Texans, that we have Germans, Lebanese, they're a little taken aback.
SHIRLEY BOTCLER MOCK: They're, like, amazed. They're, like, "I didn't know there were black Indians in Texas." And I think that people see, but they don't really soak in, how diverse our culture is, how blended we all are.
NARRATOR: Black Indians, Italian cowboys, Japanese rice farmers, Jewish oil tycoons, overland pioneers seeking fortunes in the Mexican province of Texas, European immigrants seeking freedom through the Gulf port of Galveston.
MARY LOU ELLIS: We're all about people and the cultures that those people came from and the contributions that those cultures made to the state of Texas.
NARRATOR: Ten thousand years' worth of cultures. It's a tall order, but then, everything about Texas is big, isn't it?
JOHN L. DAVIS: Texas is one of those areas where the culture and the people who are here are changing as quickly as any place in the world.
NARRATOR: The Institute of Texan Cultures research covers more than 100 cultural groups and emphasizes at least 25 core groups that truly made Texas Texas.
REX BALL: It's a very diverse, interesting state. And—and in that sense, and in our ability to get along together, we are a reflection of, I think, the genius of the United States of America.
[Music out]
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