Houston Mayor John Whitmire has been on the receiving end of criticism from some Hispanic and Latino residents, elected officials and local organizations for comments he made in early May about people living in the Gulfton community.
After a groundbreaking event for Houston METRO’s Westheimer improvement project, Whitmire said in an interview that there would be potential changes to proposed plans to install a bus rapid transit line to the Galleria from the Southwest Houston neighborhood.
He added that after talking with Gulfton residents, he found there wasn’t a need for it because there wasn’t a “strong demand” for shopping there.
“They’re largely undocumented immigrants. They just want basic services,” Whitmire noted. “They don’t want to be part of the Galleria. You think they’re going to be welcome in the Galleria?”
In response to Whitmire’s statements, two dozen advocacy groups sent a letter to the mayor on Monday, requesting that he apologize and retract what they refer to as his “deeply offensive” comments.
“It was not okay to hear those comments that the mayor was mentioning, especially for the Gulfton community,” Maria Hernandez, executive director of Madres Del Parque and co-coordinator of LaUnidad11, said. “It’s hard for us to think that we belong. We understand that many don’t think this is our country. But this is our home now.”
“We are supporting the economic growth of Houston. We pay our taxes, even with no status at all. I think we deserve better improvements in our area.” Hernandez added. “We rely on [public] transportation because some don’t have cars. So, the comment saying that we only need basic things, that’s outrageous.”
Former Texas Senate District 15 candidate Karthik Soora penned the letter, which was signed by Hernandez and representatives of Woori Juntos, United We Dream, Black Lives Matter Houston, the Immigrant Legal Source Center and other organizations.
As of Tuesday afternoon, Whitmire had not responded to the letter publicly. However, in a written statement to the Houston Press, he wrote:
“My support for Gulfton as a senator and now as mayor is well-established. I am partnering with Harris County Commissioner [Lesley] Briones and other stakeholders. We are listening to residents and will make a positive difference in Gulfton. METRO has a plan for the area. It is in the process of designing a data-driven strategy to improve mobility giving people better access to reach services at Baker Ripley and Legacy Clinic.”
The letter stated that Whitmire’s comments “reveal a shocking level of ignorance and prejudice.” It went on to say Whitmire’s assumption that Gulfton residents are “largely undocumented” and uninterested in amenities such as the Galleria was “an egregious misrepresentation that smacks of xenophobia.”
The document doubled down, calling the mayor’s statements a “disturbing detachment from the community you claim to serve.” Those who endorsed the letter also took issue with what they described as Whitmire’s “dismissive attitude” toward Houston City Council Member Edward Pollard.
Pollard, who represents District J which includes the Gulfton and Galleria-area, addressed Whitmire at a recent city council meeting. He said he was disheartened by what the mayor said about the community. Pollard noted that he took issue with Whitmire making generalizations about such a diverse neighborhood. The council member encouraged the mayor to “truly engage” with the community.
Most of Gulfton’s population is Hispanic or Latino. According to a 2019 survey included in a report by the city of Houston’s Planning and Development Department, the most spoken language in the neighborhood is Spanish. However, residents speak over 50 languages. Some are immigrants from other regions, such as Africa and Southeast Asia.
Whitmire told Pollard his remarks were taken out of context and that residents in the area told the mayor that they hoped to prioritize public transit that would take them to necessities first rather than the Galleria.
“I don’t think he intended for it to be insensitive,” Dr. Sergio Lira, president of the Houston-area League of United Latin Citizens, said. “But at the heat of the moment, he said something that can be construed as insensitive to folks — especially undocumented immigrants living in the Gulfton area.”
Lira thought the broader context was the mayor’s concerns about what he referred to as potentially wasting money on the transit system’s expansion. However, Lira noted that regardless of whether Whitmire’s comments were misconstrued, they could be harmful to those in a community used to being “picked on like a piñata.”
“To say those folks do not go to the Galleria,” he added. “It’s just not — the undocumented immigrants work around the Galleria area. Some of them shop, and then you also have immigrants who are here visiting during the holiday season and spending quite a bit of money.”
According to Hernandez, Whitmire needs to take the time to meet with the community, not just one part or population of the neighborhood. She said he needed to speak with the essential workers because not having the opportunity to have a bus rapid transit system was “not fair at all.”
“It takes a while to spend time with the community and hear what the community has to say,” Hernandez said. “Instead of not seeing the whole picture and making these comments. No matter what, we are human beings, and we are a part of Houston and this country, as well.”
This article appears in Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2024.
