A longtime leader with the Texas State Historical Association was moved to tears Thursday while discussing former Alamo Trust CEO Kate Rogers’ ouster last year.
J.P. Bryan, a retired Houston oilman, has largely been a champion among the conservatives who favor a more patriotic telling of Texas history, according to The Texas Tribune.
On Thursday, however, Bryan parted with state GOP leaders who accused Rogers of “wokeism,” offering a heartfelt defense of her work.
“The job that she did maneuvering between all of the disparate forces around the Alamo was brave,” Bryan said on a panel with Rogers at The Texas Tribune Festival, where he paused to compose himself at one point.
“I cannot tell you what a great loss she is to Texas history in that respect, and I’m saddened by it. Look at me — you tear up like this when you’re 86 years old.”
The Alamo and its surrounding plaza is in the midst of a major redevelopment that’s expected to bring tens of millions of dollars to the region in tourism.
Bryan, whose family has led the Texas State Historical Association for many years, said Friday that Rogers deserved credit.
“I thought her service was great to our cause, and we’re all going to greatly miss her,” Bryan said.
“That institution is going to be the most visited historical asset in the state of Texas, or maybe the entire United States, in large measure, thanks to her.”
Lawsuit moves forward
Rogers resigned last year after Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick took issue with passages from her doctoral dissertation, which he said were “incompatible with the telling of the history of the Battle of the Alamo.”
Rogers ultimately sued Patrick, Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham and members of the Alamo Trust’s board of directors, and scored a procedural victory in that case last month.
Though she was replaced in her role more than a year ago, she was invited to The Texas Tribune Festival to discuss challenges telling Texas’ story.
Rogers said her goal at the Alamo was to take a story many people already know about and use it to inspire curiosity about other characters.
“Women were a key population we were trying to bring forward … women [who] were known as the saviors of the Alamo at the turn of the century,” Rogers said.
“You know the battle. That’s probably why you came to visit the Alamo … but we have this opportunity to teach you something you didn’t know while you were there, and that’s what we were trying to do.”
State leaders accused Rogers of trying to elevate racial issues too high in that discussion, and called for her ouster over it last year.
“I kind of knew what I was getting into when I accepted the role at the Alamo, but I didn’t really know,” Rogers said. “It’s difficult unless you’re there to understand the level of emotion that surrounds the Alamo. It is unbelievable.”
