Patty Griffin Quotes
I love Texas itself. The landscape is remarkable. The combination of cultures here is incredible. And the history here is pretty remarkable, too, going back centuries.
Griffin, Patty. Interview by John Spong. Texas Monthly, 23 Sept. 2015.
This quotation is one of the few times where history helped to implement policy. President Johnson & Singletary, a historian and ex University of Texas Chancellor, has decided that Camp Gary at San Marcos would serve as the first Job Corps urban center; enrollees from 6 different states were to be sent. The youth would be living in integrated quarters in proximity to San Marcos, whose citizens were concerned for the safety of their area and the virtue of their daughters. But most of the opposition was racial. One group to go was 100 youth from Memphis. Connolly’s staff had recommended that he veto the Tennesseans, and he sent a communication to Singletary asking him to withdraw the Memphis contingent as prevention to his veto. The phone was silent for a minute after Singletary’s statement. Then the governor replied, “We Texans are a lot of things but we are not ungrateful. OK we’ll take the Tennesseans, Otis, but make sure that they are nice boys and not too uppity.” History had won.
Patricia Jean Griffin is an American singer-songwriter and musician. She is a vocalist and plays guitar and piano. She is known for her stripped-down songwriting style in the folk music genre. Her songs have been covered by numerous musicians, including Emmylou Harris, Ellis Paul, Kelly Clarkson, Rory Block, Dave Hause, Sugarland and The Chicks.
