Felix Longoria's Wake Essay Sample

The Longoria Incident

The Longoria incident never took place in an enclosed area but rather came as a result of a particular setting during a given period in a specific area. The Longoria controversy centered on two levels, Nueces Strip and South Texas. The strip happened to be a disputed land in the past, and it caused the American-Mexican war of 1846–1848. The upper parts of South Texas were the second level and corresponded to the eastern quarter of the Nueces River valley. A subzone of the two towns was described as the Longoria corridor because it happened to be the origin of the controversy. The controversy that arose in 1949 after the fall of Felix, world war two hero brought a structural change to the region.

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The area seems to have had differences ever since because they fought over the available resources to survive. The strip happened to have unique ambiance what made it different from other states in the midcentury. The region had a segregated social system with a combination of economic, demographic and social features. South Texas, on the other hand, was delicious in agricultural production as well as petroleum production. The area was rich with resource though they could not enjoy them following the frequent clashes. World War 2 contributed to the economic development of this region. Despite the precious resources in the area, numerous conflicts reduced it to nothing that made the natives move to America making raising the number of immigrants in the U.S. that has resulted in discrimination they face in the white's land as they are treated with no respect despite their sacrifices for that country.

Chapter 2

During 1945 summer, the fourth year of the Pacific war, Americans believed that it would conquer the Japanese (Carroll 56). As their confidence grew, military leaders became cautious as they predicted a prolonged conflict. Despite their victories in various parts, their planes were still poorly placed with a higher risk of getting bombed at Tokyo. Their invasion of Japanese Home Island failed following the resistance from the enemies (Carroll 56). During this war, many American soldiers lost their lives and Japanese won the war though suffered massive losses from their allies. The war ended mercifully, and it happened faster than others expected it. Felix Longoria, one of the American soldiers, was among those who lost their lives. Felix Longoria was killed in 1945 during the, yet the body reached his family four years later. The wife, Beatrice then went to ask for a chance to carry out Longoria's wake at the only funeral home within that state but was denied that opportunity. The director of the funeral home, Kennedy denied the widow that chance due to racism that was rampant in the region. Mr. Logoria happened to be American-Mexican, and so the whites could not allow the service to be carried out in their chapel.

They refused to hold the funeral service of slain soldiers because that would not make whites happy (Carroll 72). Following Tom Kennedy's remarks, it was clear that race discrimination was high in this region. Non-Americans were discriminated regardless of the work they did in the country. Due to racism, the director associated Mexicans with some immoral behaviors what made them deny them a chance. In as much as the warrior was not a white man's affair, he deserved some little respect for his burial as a way of appreciating his services to the nation. It was this that led to the creation of American-Mexican activist movement (Carroll 73). Instead of this controversy creating a ridge between Americans and Mexicans, it resulted in Mexican activism and that way enabled them to gain respect from the white people.

Chapter 3

The Principal Actors in the Drama

At the beginning of this scene, it had three principal actors that include Felix Longoria, Thomas W. Kennedy, Jr and Beatrice Moreno Longoria (Carroll 86). Felix was the American-Mexican soldier who was slain by a Japanese sniper during the Pacific war in 1995 and Beatrice was his wife, the widow. Thomas Kennedy was the director of the only funeral home in three river town. In all instances, the three are stars to their neighbors, friends, and acquaintances (Carroll 87). They played equally with even tempers what makes them outstanding. None of the actors portrayed bad behaviors in public, and the image they showed is what any other person can yearn for in life.

Felix was a brave man who believed in himself despite what others told him. Before joining the army, his friend Margarito de Luna discouraged him by saying "They will take you and get you killed," but that did not stop Longoria from joining the military (Carroll 14). Even though the soldier never came back alive, he died a hero. Beatrice happened to be a shy woman who depended on the husband for protection and could not associate with people easily in public. She was a quiet and attractive young lady with large brown eyes and light mottled skin. Moreno had a cheerful deposition that people admired (Carroll 90).

Conclusion

The death of the husband brought all these to an end when she realized that no one was there to fight for her and the family. Kennedy, the director character showed how other races faced discrimination in the U.S. Even after knowing that Longoria was a worldwar2 hero, he still couldn’t allow the family to carry out the burial service in the chapel because of his nationality.