°®Éñ´«Ã½

Dr. Demetrius W. Pearson will share his research on the long history of Black cowboys and cattle raisers of the SETX and Gulf regions. Some of the earliest ranching enterprises in Texas emerged in the tall grass prairies and coastal marshes of the region. Dr. Pearson is associate professor and co-founder of the Sport and Fitness Administration Program, University of Houston, and author of  Black Rodeo in the Texas Gulf Coast Region (2021). He is also two-time Center Fellowship recipient. Refreshments provided. Free and open to the public. Photo courtesy of Texas Monthly.

Gary Pinkerton will talk about his new book Bridles and Biscuits: Contraband Culture in Spanish East Texas. From the publisher: Pinkerton "explores the complex economies and shifting structures of a borderland environment. In 1773, as residents of Los Adaes were abruptly forced to relocate to Béxar, the Spanish retreat from the region created a greater opening for unregulated trade among French, American, and Italian settlers ... Pinkerton demonstrates how the region that hosted the exiled Adaeseños “became the entry point for those with bigger goals than trading horses and skins.” Pinkerton is the Managing Director of the Alliance for Texas History and the author of Trammel’s Trace: The First Road to Texas from the North (2016) and other books. Refreshments provided. Free and open to all.

Dr. Alison Fields will discuss John Sayles's acclaimed Texas film Lone Star (1996), marking the 30th anniversary of its release. She will give a presentation at °®Éñ´«Ã½ at 1:00 pm (Reaud Event Space) followed by an introduction and screening of Lone Star at the Jefferson Theater in downtown Beaumont. Critically ranked as one the best and most important films about Texas, Lone Star uses the backdrop of a border town murder-mystery to examine themes of national, generational, and personal borders and the ways communities enforce those divisions with stories about the past. It features outstanding performances by Chris Cooper, Elizabeth Peña, Matthew McConaughey, Kris Kristofferson, Ron Canada, and many others. Dr. Fields is the director of the University of Oklahoma School of Visual Arts and author of Lone Star (2026), a new book about the film.

Lamar Presentation: Refreshments provided. Free and open to all.

Jefferson Theater Screening: Lamar Students receive free admission with presentation of valid ID.