Interviewer(s): Natalie Garza

Project: University of Houston

Mary Louise Ramos (neé Palacios) was born in Houston, TX in 1950. She recounts her early days in Houston’s 5th Ward, including attending Marshall Middle School, which at the time was notorious for its high gang presence. She proceeds to describe how she got into real estate and eventually how she got involved with LULAC.

Ramos feels that everyone has a right to be treated equally and expresses her desire to see Latinos in positions of power throughout the government. She provides an insider’s perspective of LULAC, its goals, structure, and membership. Stories of her involvement with a variety of landmark cases for minority rights through LULAC provide a colorful timeline of the progress the organization has made throughout the past thirty years.