![]() ![]() Former Confederate soldiers started the Ku Klux Klan in 1865 and began committing acts of racial terrorism expressed in the social order through racist Confederate monuments and the willingness to name school buildings after Confederates. Since emancipation threatened the social, economic, and political order in the South, white Texans fought back against Reconstruction as the same story played out across the former Confederacy. The presence of 50,000 US troops in Texas quickly decreased to 3,000 within a year. Custer was stationed in Austin more than a decade before his death at the Battle of the Little Bighorn. Grant embarked on his attempt to reconstruct the south - in 1865, for instance, General George A. “I would like to paraphrase that utterance and say to you, ‘Forward, young men and women of the university, the eyes of Texas are upon you!”įollowing the defeat of Lee and the Confederacy, president Ulysses S. “The officer gave this command, ‘Forward, men of Texas, the eyes of General Lee are upon you.’ “On one occasion in the Civil War, it fell to the lot of a Texas troop to be reviewed by General Robert E. ![]() So, what is that important history for the Eyes of Texas?Īccording to a 1926 account from Mary Lee Prather Darden published in the Dallas Morning News and then recounted by The Alcalde, the story starts with an 1899 speech to new students from UT’s third president, her father, William Lambden Prather. There’s also a “ Student Community Statement” co-written by 126 student organizations that echoes many of the requests from Texas football players and is in further conversation with years-long discussions about the presence of Confederate statues on campus, buildings named after Confederates, and buildings named after unreconstructed racists like Robert E. The first petition may be this one from that is closing in on 14,000 signatures by Friday evening. Racial Geography Tour - Explore the history of the University of Texas campus “One petition calls for acknowledging racist roots to the song, another calls for discontinuing its use at all university events.”Īnd, of course, there’s that request by athletes to remove requirements to sing it. ![]() “In the wake of the protests over the killing of George Floyd, students are petitioning the university to reexamine the legacy of the song,” it reads. The statement on Friday from current players and the discussion by former players have centered a topic also emerging from the student-led elements of the burgeoning movement, as acknowledged by a UT page on the subject. Cedric Golden June 12, 2020įormer offensive tackle Donald Hawkins says he was told that it was originally a slave song featuring a verse that went, “The Eyes of Master is watching you.” One remarked that the part that says "you cannot get away" was aimed at slaves who tried to escape their slavemasters. I've been told over the years by a few former Longhorn athletes that they didn't sing the Eyes because of the racial overtunes. EYES OF TEXAS LYRICS HOW TOWe knew about the racial undertones but didn’t know how to address them.”Īustin American-Statesman columnist Cedric Golden recalls multiple conversations on the topic. “Most black players hated singing that song,” he wrote. Another student said she was “shocked” to learn about that history.Īn article in The Daily Texan two years ago wondered, “Racist tradition or cornerstone of school spirit?” As writer Jessica Luther aptly noted on Twitter, “The answer is ‘Yes’ and that’s the problem.”Īmong black former players, the discussion behind the scenes over the years was much more substantial than it was among the average fan.įormer defensive end Sam Acho, who has a long history of missionary work in Nigeria and outspoken activism in pursuit of racial justice, most recently regarding racial disparities among NFL coaches and front office members, addressed his own feelings about the song on Twitter. One student interviewed in 2009 by ABC News said that he’d stopped singing it completely after learning of its history. Weeks later, Mitchell entered the NCAA transfer portal before ultimately removing his name.įriday’s statement sparked a debate about the Eyes of Texas that normally lingers around the edges of university discourse.Ī story first told in 1926, The Alcalde retold it as far back as 1985. A history of ‘The Eyes of Texas’: Song performed at minstrel shows is now part of every-day UT life | įormer walk-on linebacker Cort Jaquess then started over Mitchell in the Alamo Bowl against Utah. ![]()
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