La Raza Unida Party
By the late 1960s, Crystal City would become the location of continued activism in the civil rights movement among its Mexican-American majority population, and the birthplace of the third party political movement known as La Raza Unida Party founded by three Chicanos, including Jose Ãngel Gutierrez over a conflict about the ethnicity of cheerleaders at Crystal City High School. 200 Mexican-American students went out on strike with their parents' support. La Raza Unida, and related organizations, then won election to most offices in Crystal City and Zavala County in the periods between 1969 and 1980, when the party declined at the local level. See the Handbook of Texas History Entry
In the 1970s, following protests of charges (essentially non-payment of services) on the part of La Raza Unida, Crystal City's natural gas supply was shut off by its only supplier. Crystal City residents were forced to resort to mostly wood burning stoves and individual propane gas tanks for cooking. To this day, there is no natural gas supplier in the Crystal City area, although most residents purchase propane from the city.
Political corruption
In February 2016, almost every top official of the city were arrested under a federal indictment that accuses them of taking bribes from contractors and sending city workers to help an illegal gambling operator. The mayor, city manager, mayor pro tempore, one of three current councilmen. and a former councilman were arrested. A second councilman was already charged in a separate case with smuggling Mexican immigrants. That leaves one councilman not facing federal charges.
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Economy
North of Crystal City is a unit of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.
South of Crystal City on U.S. Highway 83 is Ecoloclean Industries, founded in 2001. The company engages in the manufacture and sale of machines for the treatment of contaminated water. In 2005, the company was retained by officials in Biloxi, Mississippi, to provide drinking water to Hurricane Katrina victims and to establish water remediation needed in the aftermath of the storm along the Mississippi Gulf Coast.
it begins- we’re a third-world country.
That is always the first thing I think of when I hear Crystal City
Cruz Country!
Why, who do you suppose they think they are? These Texas City officials, Clintons?
Ha!
If you come to south Texas and look under enough rocks you will find that almost all small cities in the area that are run by over 90% of mexican heritage are completely corrupted.
Corruption is the major export of Mexico to the U.S..
Getting rid of the competition?
What a mess they made before a recall election could be held. Turned a city surplus into a one million dollar debt in less than a year with all their give-aways to the getto dwellers. The police dept. couldn't even afford gasoline for the patrol cars. Took a while to get everything fiscally straightened out.
***Almost every top official in a remote South Texas city was arrested on Thursday***
Almost like another little Texas town!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Race_with_the_Devil
They demand it.
....and no reflection on our fellow Mexican Americans citzens.
Not the first time for criminal officialdom in Crystal City.