To Mr. J. T. Canales, Brownsville, Texas, from [PERALES], October 31, 1927.
Item
Dublin Core
Title
To Mr. J. T. Canales, Brownsville, Texas, from [PERALES], October 31, 1927.
Subject
LETTERS
CANALES, J. T. (Jose Tomas), 1877-1976
BY-laws
CONSTITUTION
Description
Letter to Mr. J.T. Canales from [PERALES] requesting the organization create a Constitution and By-Laws. [PERALES} suggests changing the organization's name to the League of American Citizens of Latin Descent.
Creator
[Perales, Alonso S.]
Source
Date
1927-10-31
Rights
Items in this collection may be under copyright. Please contact apprec@central.uh.edu for more information.
Format
JPEG
Language
English
Type
Text
Identifier
pera0048
Coverage
BROWNSVILLE (Tex.)
Scripto
Transcription
October 31, 1927.
Mr. J.T. Canales,
Brownsville, Texas.
My dear Mr. Canales:
We are daily feeling the need of a Constitution and By-laws for our Organization. And in view of the fact that you and I are so busy all the time, I feel very much inclined to adopt the draft submitted by Mr. Eduardo Idar and with which you are familiar. Of course, I can make a few needed changes before returning it to him with instructions to print it. We can clearly state therein that said Constitution and By-laws are merely intended for temporary use while we work on a permanent one. I believe we ought to have it printed both in English and Spanish because there are quite a number of Americans of latin extraction who do not read English.
Mr. Tafolla has not yet sent me the names of the members of his Committee. I doubt very much if we shall come to a satisfactory agreement with the Order Sons of American, judging from his remark contained in his last letter, which reads: "Unless the changes or suggestions that your Committee might offer are very radical, I see no [Illegible - reason] why we could not be united under one banner". Therefore, we might as well plan on making our Organization a permanent one. By the way, what about changing its name once more and making it read:
[Underlined] League of American Citizens of Latin Descent
It is longer, but much clearer. All ambiguities incident to the term "Latin-American" are thus eliminated.
Mr. Canales, I have already launched the movement to make you our first President General. I know you are a very busy man, but at the same time we need you. I want to leave the whole matter in your good hands when I leave next December. Our Organization is destined to be the greatest thing of its kind we Mexican-Americans ever had, but we must keep the reigns in good hands.
Yours very sincerely,
P.S. I certainly enjoyed reading Senator Bingham's remarks: "I am sorry gentlemen", etc. He certainly hit the nail right on the head. I have always contended that the greatest defect our nation as a conqueror is its inability to assimilate its conquered peoples. Reason: Snobbishness on [Handwritten - the] part [Handwritten - part of our fellow citizens of Nordic extraction.]
Mr. J.T. Canales,
Brownsville, Texas.
My dear Mr. Canales:
We are daily feeling the need of a Constitution and By-laws for our Organization. And in view of the fact that you and I are so busy all the time, I feel very much inclined to adopt the draft submitted by Mr. Eduardo Idar and with which you are familiar. Of course, I can make a few needed changes before returning it to him with instructions to print it. We can clearly state therein that said Constitution and By-laws are merely intended for temporary use while we work on a permanent one. I believe we ought to have it printed both in English and Spanish because there are quite a number of Americans of latin extraction who do not read English.
Mr. Tafolla has not yet sent me the names of the members of his Committee. I doubt very much if we shall come to a satisfactory agreement with the Order Sons of American, judging from his remark contained in his last letter, which reads: "Unless the changes or suggestions that your Committee might offer are very radical, I see no [Illegible - reason] why we could not be united under one banner". Therefore, we might as well plan on making our Organization a permanent one. By the way, what about changing its name once more and making it read:
[Underlined] League of American Citizens of Latin Descent
It is longer, but much clearer. All ambiguities incident to the term "Latin-American" are thus eliminated.
Mr. Canales, I have already launched the movement to make you our first President General. I know you are a very busy man, but at the same time we need you. I want to leave the whole matter in your good hands when I leave next December. Our Organization is destined to be the greatest thing of its kind we Mexican-Americans ever had, but we must keep the reigns in good hands.
Yours very sincerely,
P.S. I certainly enjoyed reading Senator Bingham's remarks: "I am sorry gentlemen", etc. He certainly hit the nail right on the head. I have always contended that the greatest defect our nation as a conqueror is its inability to assimilate its conquered peoples. Reason: Snobbishness on [Handwritten - the] part [Handwritten - part of our fellow citizens of Nordic extraction.]
Collection
Citation
[Perales, Alonso S.], “To Mr. J. T. Canales, Brownsville, Texas, from [PERALES], October 31, 1927.,” Recovering the US Hispanic Literary Heritage Digital Collections, accessed October 29, 2025, http://usldhrecovery.uh.edu/items/show/246.