Bidal Aguero was born on July 23, 1949, on the Goodnight Farm, which was located at the present-day Acuff Avenue. His parents, Ignacio and Eulalia Aguero, were from around Karnes City, Texas. His grandfather was originally from the San Antonio area, while his grandmother came from Mexico. He has two brothers, Ricardo and Jose, and two sisters, Alicia and Maria.
The Agueros were originally migrant workers from the Temple and Tyler area, following the cotton crop around Texas, before settling on the Goodnight farm. Neither of them received much education, with Mrs. Aguero reaching the third grade. The family later moved to Lubbock, where they settled in the Guadalupe neighborhood area. Bidal's father started working for the city's sanitation department. They later moved to the neighborhood north of the Clovis Highway, bounded by Avenue Q and Avenue U.
As a youth, Bidal experienced racial discrimination of the kind common to Texas in the 1950s and 1960s. Mexican Americans were banned from entering theaters, restaurants, and swimming pools. Even drinking fountains were off-limits, as fountains existed for whites and blacks, but none for Mexican Americans. Teachers often could not speak the language of the Mexican American students, so it was rare for students to graduate from high school.
Bidal attended school at North University Elementary School in Lubbock (present day Mahon Elementary). He later attended Matthews Junior High School and Lubbock High School. While at Matthews, Bidal won an election in the school band, but the band director gave the office to an Anglo student.
After being advised by his high school counselor to join the army or to be a mechanic, Bidal began attending classes at Texas Technological College (later Texas Tech University) in the fall of 1967. While there, he became active in college activities, joining a Mexican American student organization called Los Tertullianos. He became vice-president in 1970, and president in 1971. Los Tertullianos organized gatherings and seminars to encourage Mexican American students to be more active.
Bidal Aguero himself became more of an activist as a result of the 1970 Lubbock tornado. He volunteered as an emergency worker in the aftermath of the tornado. During this time, he observed that while the downtown and Lubbock Country Club areas received assistance, the Guadalupe neighborhood areas were neglected when it came to receiving relief. As a result, he left Los Tertullianos since they were more a social club. Instead, Aguero helped to found MECHA at Texas Tech, which was more activist.
Aguero graduated from Texas Tech in December 1972, with a B.A. in music education. After working for Learn-Education Talent Search for seven months, he helped found COMA (Commerciantes Organizacion Mexicano Americano), the Mexican-American Chamber of Commerce, in 1972. However, when Aguero left for the University of Wisconsin, COMA collapsed. Aguero returned with his Master's degree in December 1974, and started COMA up again in 1976.
Aguero was also heavily involved in local politics. He joined La Raza Unida Party and ran for local offices such as county commissioner. He participated in organizing protests for injustices done against Mexican Americans. Aguero was one of those who filed a lawsuit against the Lubbock Independent School District to change its method of electing school trustees. He traveled to the Middle East to meet with members of the Palestine Liberation Organization. After the end of the Raza Unida, he joined the Democratic Party.
Aguero has worked in several local social service organizations such
as Defensa, Inc., Chicanos Unidos-Campensions, and Llano Estacado Farmworkers
of Tejas to help such groups as migrant workers. He also worked closely with
governmental groups such as the South Plains Association of Governments, the
State of Texas, and the City of Lubbock. Aguero is currently publisher of one
of the two weekly Spanish newspapers in Lubbock,
The collection consists of personal, financial and business records, civil rights and social service organization materials, and government papers.
The papers are organized into the following series:
The subject headings used by the Southwest Collection/Special Collections Library are derived from the Library of Congress and/or locally developed.
Accession number(s):
Gift, 1989
Open for research
Bidal Aguero Papers, 1949-1988 and undated, Southwest Collection/Special Collections Library, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas
Abel Ramirez, August 2000
For related materials located in the Southwest Collection/Special Collections Library, see the following collections: