Name Something After José M. López

By Diego Garcia III | Editor of The Brownsville Beacon

With Veterans Day upon us, and with all the controversy surrounding the renaming of East Fronton Street after Harry McNair's family, I figured I'd present someone who should have something named after him here in town.

If you've ever gone to the Brownsville Public Library, you've passed by Veteran's Park. In Veteran's Park, there's a statue of a World War II soldier holding a machine gun locked, loaded, and ready for battle. 

The soldier that statue memorializes is Sergeant José Mendoza López. López was born in Mexico and eventually made his way to Brownsville where he would gain notoriety as a boxer. While in Australia for a boxing match, he joined the Merchant Marines. He was drafted upon his return to Brownsville in 1942. 

On December 17, 1944, Sergeant López would commit an unbelievably selfless act of bravery which would lead to his earning the Medal of Honor, the country's highest award for gallantry. Instead of trying to explain what he did, I'll quote his Medal of Honor citation. It reads:

On his own initiative, he carried his heavy machine gun from Company K's right flank to its left, in order to protect that flank which was in danger of being overrun by advancing enemy infantry supported by tanks. Occupying a shallow hole offering no protection above his waist, he cut down a group of 10 Germans. Ignoring enemy fire from an advancing tank, he held his position and cut down 25 more enemy infantry attempting to turn his flank. Glancing to his right, he saw a large number of infantry swarming in from the front. Although dazed and shaken from enemy artillery fire which had crashed into the ground only a few yards away, he realized that his position soon would be outflanked. Again, alone, he carried his machine gun to a position to the right rear of the sector; enemy tanks and infantry were forcing a withdrawal. Blown over backward by the concussion of enemy fire, he immediately reset his gun and continued his fire. Single-handed he held off the German horde until he was satisfied his company had effected its retirement. Again he loaded his gun on his back and in a hail of small arms fire he ran to a point where a few of his comrades were attempting to set up another defense against the onrushing enemy. He fired from this position until his ammunition was exhausted. Still carrying his gun, he fell back with his small group to Krinkelt. Sgt. López's gallantry and intrepidity, on seemingly suicidal missions in which he killed at least 100 of the enemy, were almost solely responsible for allowing Company K to avoid being enveloped, to withdraw successfully and to give other forces coming up in support time to build a line which repelled the enemy drive.

When the Korean Conflict erupted, Sergeant López was called upon to serve again. However, when the army realized they were going to send a Medal of Honor recipient back into harm's way, President Truman recalled him and was ordered to serve stateside.

Sergeant López would later move to San Antonio, where he would live until his death in 2005, just one year after the death of his beloved wife of 62 years, Emilia.

Sergeant López in his dress uniform

There is a middle school in San Antonio named after Sergeant López. While there is the statue in Veteran's Park, there are no streets or schools named after López. With all the talk about naming things after people, and with all the negativity surrounding people who want to come into the United States from Mexico, I find it interesting that someone who came from Mexico and didn't ask anybody to name anything after him ended up becoming a real American hero. 

I have always found it strange that Brownsville names things after people who are still living. I also find it strange that certain people think they should have streets or schools named after their families. If there's a list of names the city is considering naming things after, I certainly hope the name Jose M. López is at the top of that list.

We here at The Brownsville Beacon would like to thank all those who have served our country in uniform. We all owe you a debt of gratitude we will never be able to repay. May you all have a happy Veterans Day.