Alberto Antonio Peña Jr. facts for kids

Alberto Antonio Peña Jr. (born December 15, 1917 – died July 3, 2006) was an important American civil rights activist. He grew up in San Antonio, Texas. Peña worked hard to make things better for Mexican-American people in his community. He was a lawyer and fought against unfair rules that separated students in schools. This made him well-known in the civil rights movement. He served as a Bexar County Commissioner for four terms, from 1956 to 1972. He was respected by both Mexican-American and African-American communities. He often helped the NAACP with their goals too.

Personal Life

Early Life and School

Alberto Antonio Peña Jr. was born in San Antonio, Texas, on December 15, 1917. His parents were Alberto and Dolores Peña. Alberto Jr. first went to St. Mary's Catholic School. But his family had eight children, and his father could not afford the school fees. So, Alberto Jr. then went to Stephen F. Austin Elementary. After that, he attended Hawthorne Junior High School. During his early school years, teachers and friends called him "Albert." He was known by this nickname for most of his life. Albert grew up in a traditional home. His sisters often did most of the housework. Albert focused on his schoolwork and fun activities.

Military Service

Peña Jr. joined the Navy after the attack on Pearl Harbor. He became a radioman during World War II. Peña was unsure about joining the Navy at first. This was because his girlfriend, Joséfina "Josie" Herrera, was pregnant. They quietly got married before he was sent to San Diego. While Albert Jr. was serving in the war, his first son, Albert Anthony Peña, was born on November 23, 1942. His daughter, Belinda Peña, was born on July 31, 1944, as Albert Peña Jr. was coming home from the war. Albert Jr.'s first marriage ended in 1947. He married again not long after.

Becoming a Lawyer

He married Olga Ramos in September 1947. Olga was part of a friend's wedding. Albert's father, Albert Sr., wanted Albert Jr. to become a lawyer like him. He even paid Albert Jr.'s child support so he could focus on school. Olga also encouraged Peña Jr. to become an attorney. She even said it was a requirement before he could ask her to marry him.

After his time in the military, Albert Peña went to St. Mary's University. But he left because he felt he was treated unfairly. He then decided to study law at the South Texas College of Law in Houston. His schooling was paid for by the G.I. Bill. This was a program that helped veterans pay for college. Peña graduated in 1950. He started getting involved in politics around the same time.

His Family Life

As Peña Jr. was finishing his law degree, Albert and Olga had their first child together, William Albert Peña. After William, Olga had four girls with Albert Jr.: Sandra Francis, Mary Magdalena, Olga, and Roxanne Peña. Peña passed the bar exam on August 20, 1951. This meant he could legally start practicing law. After 25 years of marriage, Albert and Olga divorced in 1972. Albert married Rosa "Rosie" Hernandez. Their marriage lasted for more than ten years. During their marriage, Rosie gave birth to their daughter Christina Peña. After Albert and Rosie divorced for the last time, he married Frances Guajardo. They stayed married until he passed away in 2006. After years of illness, Albert Peña Jr. died in 2006 from natural causes. He was 88 years old.

Political Career

Getting Started in Politics

Peña first learned about politics in 1948. He met Eddie Ball, another law student. When Peña returned to San Antonio in 1951, he became an attorney. He worked with his father and brother at their law firm, Peña, Peña, and Peña. At first, Peña was not sure about getting involved in politics in his hometown. But his wife, Olga, strongly encouraged him to help his community. Olga Peña often helped her husband and supported him in many ways. After Olga encouraged him, Peña joined the American G.I. Forum (A.G.I.F.).

Fighting School Segregation

First School Case

In 1951, Hector P. Garcia, the leader of the A.G.I.F., asked Peña for help. He wanted Peña to check the schools in Hondo Independent School District. They wanted to see if the schools were treating students unfairly. Peña found that the district had separated white and Mexican-American students. They said it was based on how well children could read English. The district denied they were separating students by race. But Peña took the case to the Texas Board of Education.

The state school board did not decide if the school's policy was fair or not. Mexican-American parents put pressure on the school. Peña then used a different plan. He told Mexican-American parents to try to enroll their children in the white school many times. This effort got attention from the news, especially the San Antonio newspaper. When the state school board in Austin heard about this, they ordered the school to allow all students to attend together.

Second School Case

After his success in the Hondo case, Peña became well-known. The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) asked him to look into a similar situation in Lytle, Texas. That school district had also separated white and Mexican-American students. In Lytle, the conditions for Mexican-American students were much worse. Also, Mexican-American students were forced to learn from teachers who only spoke English.

Peña again spoke to the Lytle School Board. He used the superintendent as his main witness. The superintendent had already admitted that students were separated. Peña's plan of putting pressure directly on the school board worked again. The school board then ended the separation in the school.

Running for Office

Peña wanted to hold public office. But he often lost elections. He even faced unfair treatment within his own political party. In many white areas of Texas, white voters did not support Mexican-American candidates. So, some political groups did not think it was a good idea to support a Mexican-American candidate. Peña ran for the state legislature in 1952 and 1954 but lost both times.

In 1956, he ran for Bexar County Commissioner. With his wife Olga's connections in the community, he was elected. He became the first Mexican-American commissioner for that county. After he held this elected position, Peña had better ways to support his family. He could also help the Mexican-American community at the same time. After serving four terms in a row, Peña lost his re-election in 1972. Olga continued to help manage Albert's campaigns until their marriage ended in 1972.

Helping the African American Community

Working with the NAACP

The African-American community and the Mexican-American community had similar goals. So, Peña and other leaders supported each other. They had a helpful relationship. After returning from the war, Peña Jr. became friends with the black community. He learned how both groups faced unfair separation. In December 1957, Peña was elected to the board of the local National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) branch. The next spring, he became the chairman.

The Harvey Case

Albert had already built relationships with the black community and their leaders, like Claude Black. Because of these friendships, many Civil Rights leaders asked him for legal advice. "Sporty" Harvey was a rising African-American boxer. Local black leaders sent him to Albert Peña Jr. Harvey had been told he could not have a "mixed match" by the state labor commissioner. Mixed matches were fights between people of different races. Harvey believed he could become a boxing champion. But not being allowed to fight white opponents was a big problem for him.

Peña took the case to court. He argued that Harvey's rights were being violated. This was because he was not allowed to fight a white opponent due to his race. The judge in the case sided with the state labor commissioner. The judge said that boxing was not a basic right. So, the 14th Amendment did not protect Harvey in this case. Peña asked for help from Carlos Cadena and Maury Maverick Jr. to appeal the case. On appeal, Harvey won his case. He was allowed to fight against white opponents. In 1955, he became the first African-American boxer to fight a white opponent in Texas.

See Also

• Civil rights movement (United States)
• Mexican American civil rights movement