Then name it after Big Chief Shitinabucket! Whoever that Tonkawa fella was. He had the Mexes beat by centuries.
Sam Deeds arrives at the restaurant Santa Barbara to speak with Hollis about the night Charlie Wade disappeared. Fenton makes a few remarks about his discontent with Mexicans. First her complains about the newspaper’s disagreement with naming the Courthouse after Buddy Deeds. Then he makes a remark about all the streets names in Spanish. To this, Sam Deeds replies that Mexican’s were here first. This is when Fenton states that if that were the case then they should name the memorial after Big Chief Shitinabucket, meaning that Native Americans were there long before Mexicans were. Sam argues back by stating that 19 out of 20 inhabitants of the County are Mexican and therefore they are outnumbered. This quote is the premise of one of the main important plots of the film which is resentment of the Alamo. Between the lines, Fenton is telling Sam that Anglo Americans won Texan Independence and may have displaced Mexicans but he is arguing that Mexicans have displaced Native Americans.
You got a hard winter coming, though, you got to plan ahead, and that gives your cerebral cortex a workout… … we are in a state of crisis. The lines of demarcation has gotten fuzzy--to run a sucessfull civilization you got to have lines of demarcation between right and wrong, between this one and that one--your Daddy understood that. He was like the whatchacallit-- the referee for this damn menudo we got down here. He understood how most people don't want their sugar and salt in the same jar.
The bartender of the bar Lonestar is inconspicuously talking about White Supremacy. While most believe that white supremacy is only about violence, this quote is in reference to control over other “inferior” races. During the Alamo, the Mexican government had invited Anglo-Americans to immigrate into Mexican territory and then consequently fight for their territory to break away from that same government. Cody, the bartender, is talking about the same process happening again but being reversed which is why he believes that Anglo-Americans have to plan ahead and avoid what in his mind seems like an invasion. Cody believes that Mexicans can revolt and Texas can become part of the Mexican territory once again. There are racist undertones in his comments. For one, he talks about lines that separate right and wrong, in his mind, the United States is right and Mexico is wrong. Cody uses the analogy of a Menudo (the name of a Mexican soup) , this can be compared to the image of America being a melting pot. He is also lightly talking about segregation by making the remark that people don’t want sugar and salt in the same jar. This rhetoric resembles the “Separate but Equal” slogan during the fifties. He proceeds to say that Buddy Deeds would give a white man and black woman a warning if they were seen eating together. In Cody’s mind, Buddy Deeds was fair and knew how to keep order by keeping the ethnicities separate. He also seems bothered that Jorge, a Mexican, will most likely become mayor. He exclaims that they will be the last stand before a complete takeover. Cody’s opinion is evidence that there is an underlying fear that one ethnicity will take over and that anglos will lose their government and control.
There is not a borderline between the good people and the bad people. You’re not either on one side or the other.
While Cody believes that lines are necessary in order to run a government, Chucho Montoya believes the polar opposite. Sheriff Sam Deeds travels to Mexico to ask Chucho what he knew about Eladio Cruz. Chucho creates a line on the ground with his foot, he asks Sam to cross the line and then proclaims that Sam is no longer Sheriff but just a Texan with a lot of questions. Chucho compares men to birds and rattlesnakes who migrate and don’t change their nature just because they have crossed a line. Sam argues that the Mexican government never had a problem with having a line. Chucho expresses anger and says that both the Mexican and American government can screw themselves. He believes in humanity and the right for all people to be able to move freely and also be seen as individuals. He believes that Eladio was just giving his friends a lift in the back of a truck but that Americans view Mexicans as criminals just because they have crossed a territorial line.
It’s always heartwarming to see a prejudice defeated by a deeper prejudice.
Cliff tells Mikey that he is planning on marrying Sergeant Priscilla Worth. Mikey asks if it would be a good idea since Clyde is white and Priscilla is black. Cliff makes the comment that since Priscilla is over thirty years of age her parents would rather let their daughter marry a white man than be a lesbian. This is when Mikey proceeds to make the sarcastic comment that its nice to see one prejudice defeated by another. Hierarchal prejudices are seen throughout the film. Mexicans are pitted against African Americans meanwhile anything is seen better than being gay. The film expresses the idea that prejudices aren’t just a binary way of thinking but that it is very complicated. We see this same idea resurface again when Ray is arresting Shadow, the man responsible of shooting Private Ritchie. Shadow tries to agitate Ray by saying that the white man is using Mexicans to keep the black man down while Ray tell him that Mexicans pretty much run Rio County. Shadow laughs at him and says that Mexicans haven’t had a good day since the Alamo. These dialogues demonstrate different groups being prejudice to one another and consistently battling on the terms of which groups is better.
"By blood you are. But blood only means what you let it… …"
"My father says from the day you’re born you start from scratch, no breaks no excuses, you got to pull yourself up on your own."
Chet secretly visits his grandfather without his father or mother’s permission. Chet asks Otis why he has photos of people that are Native/African Americans. Otis responds by saying that the people on the walls are their people. The Payne lines traces back to Florida,Oklahoma and Piedras Negras where African Americans and Native Americans had children together. Chet is surprised and rhetorically states that he is part-Indian to which Otis replies, “by blood you are. But blood only means what you let it”. There is a distinction between allowing other people tell you who you are and you telling them who you are. Otis is trying to tell Chet that he has the power to determine how he would like to be defined. Labels hold certain signifiers that are attached to identity but you have the ability to change the signifiers. Chet’s father, Colonel Payne does not define himself as a victim or by certain aspects of the African American historical past, instead he finds whichever way he can to excel even if his options of success are narrow and limited. Even though he cannot change his skin color, Colonel Payne believes that it is better to focus on what you can change and what you can do. Chet is a teenager that is starting to be aware of his racial identity, he also believes that perhaps his only option is the Army and not just because of his father. While Chet draws tanks, Colonel Payne reassures Chet that he has the power to be whatever he wants to be.
Start from Scratch? All that other stuff, all that history, to hell with it right? Forget the Alamo.
Pilar discovers that she is Sam’s half sister. Despite being kin to one another they agree to continue a romantic relationship in which they will not have children. Although the dialogue is unspoken, they are both agreeing to move forward and build a life together despite the fact that the older town folk know that Mercedes was Buddy Deed’s other woman. After demonstrating the complexity of the County of Rio, the film suggests to focus on the present and the future in order to create something new for all people. Even though the older generation will know the past (the Alamo) the newer generation should focus on moving forward despite the rest of the population. Through Pilar and Sam’s decision to disregard societal rules, the filmmaker is arguing that people can come together and form their own rules. The film argues that this should be applied to racial relationships as well. People have the ability to change the way they view one another especially in areas where racial tensions are extremely present and racism dictates government and laws.
