Felix Longoria’s Wake Bereavement Racism and the Rise of Mexican American Activism

Felix Longoria’s Wake Book Review
In his book Felix Longoria’s Wake: Bereavement, Racism, and the Rise of Mexican American Activism, Patrick J. Carroll narrates how the death of a World War II Mexican-American soldier Felix Longoria influenced Mexican-American activism. Owing to his exemplary service in Philippines during World War II, Longoria received several awards, including a Good Conduct Medal, a Purple Heart, a Bronze Service Star, and a Country Infantryman’s badge. Upon his death in Philippines, however, the only funeral home in his hometown of Three Rivers declined to accord him a wake as he was Mexican-American (Carroll 2). As Carroll demonstrates in his book, this discriminative act immediately turned out to be a crucial moment in the progression of Mexican-American activism, with figures like Dr. Hector P. Garcia being in the forefront. Following intense activism, Longoria was finally buried in Virginia’s Arlington National Cemetery. Based on research and interviews with several people including Dr. Garcia and Longoria’s wife, Carroll explains why Longoria’s funeral controversy ignited Mexican-American activism in the U.S. and beyond. Carroll is a professor of history at Texas A&M University. This paper provides a critical review of Carroll’s book, specifically focusing on Carroll’s general argument, summary of contents, author’s use of evidence, as well as style and presentation.
Carroll’s overarching argument is that Longoria’s incident was a defining moment in the history of Mexican-American activism. Though the incident was less severe compared to other discriminative acts against Mexican-Americans, it took Mexican-American activism to a whole new level, with diverse interest groups in the U.S. and Latin America joining the movement. Carroll argues that Longoria’s funeral controversy was a flashpoint for divergent interpretations of grief, emotion, racial discrimination, cultural identity, and nationalism.
Carroll begins his book by narrating events surrounding the death of Longoria and the controversy that followed the death. He narrates how Longoria was killed in Philippines, the grief Mrs. Longoria experienced, how the local mortuary denied his wife wake services, and how the denial caused uproar almost overnight in reaction to the discriminative act. As explained by Carroll, “the events that followed ushered in Felix Longoria’s greatest moment of fame” (2). Dr. Garcia was one of the key figures angered by the Longoria incident. He used the incident to pioneer a movement that would later turn out to be definitive in Mexican-American activism as well as Lyndon B. Johnson’s political career.
Longoria’s funeral controversy would not have passed unnoticed as such discriminative acts were widespread in South Texas at the time. As Carroll narrates in the first chapter of his book, the controversy came at a time when racial discrimination in the U.S. was still rampant, especially in the south, and at a time when tensions between Whites and Hispanics were still high. This explains why the incident quickly gained famed nationally and internationally, resulting in the establishment of the American G.I. Forum, a powerful, nationwide Mexican-American civil rights organization. In Chapter two, Carroll delves deeper into the Longoria incident, narrating how he joined the military, his posting to Luzon, Philippines, how the war claimed Longoria’s life, and how the incident elicited different reactions, According to Carroll, the incident fuelled discourses relating to “emotion, racism, ethnocentrism, honor, and patriotism” (85).
Exactly why the Longoria incident gained national and international fame remains a debatable matter. There were other severer instances of racial discrimination in South Texas at the time, but Longoria’s case attracted attention never seen before. Carroll explains the reasons for this in Chapter 3. He points out that the fame had a lot do with Longoria’s background and character as well as the refusal of his wife and actors such as Dr. Garcia and Thomas W. Kennedy to remain silent following the denial of wake services at the local funeral parlor. It is without a doubt an incident that deeply angered the Mexican-American community. In the next three chapters (Chapter 4, Chapter 5, and Chapter 6), Carroll turns his attention to the mobilization of the Mexican-American community in South Texas against racial discrimination, the influence of the incident on national and international politics (especially with respect to equality, inclusion, and racial identity), and the burial of Longoria. One thing that comes out clear is that the Longoria incident influenced America’s political scene to an extent perhaps never fathomed.
The use of evidence is prevalent in Carroll’s book. Indeed, this is one of the most intriguing aspects about the book. Carroll extensively relies on documentary evidence and interviews with several people familiar with or interested in Longoria’s funeral controversy to illustrate discrimination against Americans of Mexican origin and how the incident fuelled Mexican-American activism. He uses evidence to bring to light the significance of Longoria’s funeral controversy for Mexican Americans, for Lyndon B. Johnson’s political career, for politics in Texas, and for the American society at large.
Carroll’s book is organized into six chapters, excluding the introduction and conclusion. With carefully selected words and a paragraph structure, each chapter focuses on a specific theme, with racism, inequality, and civil rights being the major themes. This helps the reader resonate with the influence of the Longoria incident on Mexican-American activism. With the book’s organization and writing style, its readability is quite commendable. The content stretches to only 214 pages, excluding notes and works cited pages. This is a fairly attractive length, especially for readers who prefer short texts.
On the whole, Carroll’s book is a fascinating and insightful account of the advancement of Mexican-American activism following the death of Felix Longoria. Through the book, the reader understands the struggle of the Mexican-American community amidst White supremacy. The book appeals to not only historians, but also general readers.


Work Cited
Carroll, Patrick J. Felix Longoria’s Wake: Bereavement, Racism, and the Rise of Mexican American Activism. 1st ed. Austin: University of Texas Press, 2003.