In life, people often feel as if they are separated from other cultures and classes; sometimes we can feel disconnected with our own customs which have evolved though a history that we may or may not have been a part of. Author Mimi Swartz in “Once upon a time in Laredo” correlates the complex history of the small border town of Laredo in south Texas with an annual debutant ball honoring the first United States President and his wife. In an effort to “gin up patriotism along the border” (p.4) the pageant celebration can not only remedy the town’s struggles with their history and multicultural background but also show Laredo’s present struggles with lineage and class structure in a changing modern world.
Swartz makes evidence of her claim by giving historical examples behind Laredo and how the town became so famous for its debutant ball. Understanding the unique challenges this border town in Texas was facing, the author paints a picture of how its existence came to be. “After the U.S. defeated Mexico in 1948 in a bitter war for control of Texas, the boundary between the two countries shifted to the Rio Grande, and Laredo jointed the Union”(p.4). Once territories were drawn and many of its citizens came from across the border and even “drawing immigrants from Europe and other parts of the U.S.” (p.4), the town was becoming multicultural in nature. In an effort to cement itself in the country, the citizens of Laredo had created a celebration for George Washington “…to prove that Laredo’s loyalty was to the U. S.” (p.4). Understanding these historical facts, the author is able to support her claim about the importance of history, concluding that it is relative to understanding the importance of these annual pageants. The author begins to show a town consisting of many backgrounds was able to form their own celebration; unique and special only to its residents.
The author describes the importance of the border region and the influence of multicultural backgrounds. The George Washington celebration would include a debutant pageant for the women of the town; “…a way to connect the city’s most eligible belles with the most eligible bachelors, cementing and maintaining dynastic alliances.” (p.4). Participating in this elaborate celebration became the cornerstone for the citizens of the town; a way to embrace their multicultural backgrounds. “Every year a boy and a girl from Laredo embrace their counterparts from across the border in Nuevo Laredo on the International Border before huge, cheering crowd, epitomizing the love that people on both sides have for each other.” (p.1) Showing that boundaries were not going to hold them back, the Martha Washington pageant was a opportunity for the town of Laredo to participate with its Mexico counterpart thus embracing the town’s dynamic cultural past. The George and Martha Washington celebration benefited the citizen’s two-fold; they were able to celebrate an important part of American history while simultaneously holding onto a diverse cultural past.
Mimi Swartz also points out the problems with the pageant in relation to the town’s lineage and prestige. She uses descriptive narration to point out how years of unique history and heritage would create internal “politicking” (p.5) within the pageant. Years of precedent have created obstacles for many of the citizens that “blithely –women can spend up to eight years on the society’s waiting list so their daughters can be selected as debutantes by longtime members”(p.2). Showing that only a small elite group of women are actually chosen for the pageant illustrates how rigid and formidable the celebration has become making their lower class citizens refer to them as “don and doña” (p.3). The Author describes another one of her problems with the celebration in pointing out the divide that has been created within. By holding on so tight to lineage the town of Laredo had created a society only few could prosper in.
In their attempt to find the answers to a greater life, Swartz uses cause and effect to show how Laredo had done to its citizens what its larger brother; the United States had done to it by creating a class structure. From this point, the Author describes how one girl in particular will grapple with this situation and finds a way to open her life, and the life of the town up to the rest of the country.
Pointing out the authority the pageant had created in Laredo, Swartz sums up her claim about the problems with class structure in a detailed narrative about one girl in particular who was not going to follow the status quo. Describing Alyssa Cigarroa and her families struggle to succeed in the changing society “Loyalty, service and education take precedence over wealth for its own sake” (p.5). Explaining how society has shifted with the escalation of border violence and a closed border, Mimi Swartz begins to show the reader that the residents of Laredo can no longer “depend on immigrants” or “look to Mexico as their wider world” (p.6). Understanding this unique challenge, the author is able to sum up her piece by showing the irony in becoming a “Martha”. Swartz uses the character of Alyssa to show in detail how one girl in particular realized that because of the changing tides, the pageant was no longer a means to an end. Alyssa had to search elsewhere; outside the town’s borders in order to become a prominent member in the ever-changing modern world. Much has changed in the South Texas of Laredo and Author Mimi Swartz is able to use history as a way to take the reader from the past to the present situation. She is able to explain how historical events and multiculturalism have played an important role in the lives of the citizens of Laredo. Her description about the pageant illustrates how a town; deep in history and wealth use a celebration of the first United States President as a unique way of holding onto class structure. Swartz proved that argument and assured that history and the modern times can often compete with long-standing traditions.