Texas state history museum abruptly cancels speech by authors of new book on the Alamo

The Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum in Austin abruptly canceled an event scheduled for Thursday evening featuring the authors of a new book on the Alamo and its role in the mythology of Texas. Chris Tomlinson, a Houston Chronicle columnist and one of the authors of the book, Forget the Alamo: The Rise and Fall of an American Myth, said a museum employee told him they had to cancel the event "following a social media campaign by right-wingers and an order from the board," made up of Gov. Greg Abbott (R), Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick (R), state House Speaker Dade Phelan (R), two other GOP state lawmakers, and a citizen board member.
A spokeswoman for the museum told members in a note that the museum is not longer co-hosting the event with the Writers' League of Texas, adding, "We apologize for any inconvenience and thank you for your support."
"I think we're being censored, which is a shame because the mission of the Texas history museum is to promote examining our past," Tomlinson told the San Antonio Express-News. "We've done more than a dozen events, and this is the first time we've been shut down like this."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Forget the Alamo, co-authored by Bryan Burrough and Jason Stanford, explores the Battle of the Alamo as more a fight to ensure the preservation of slavery, enshrined in the original Texas Constitution, than a heroic battle by 180 star-crossed rebels defending Texas from Mexican aggression. The Alamo has been central to the "whole Texas creation myth" and it's time to look beyond the "Heroic Anglo narrative," Burrough told NPR recently.
Tomlinson tweeted Thursday night that he presumes the event was canceled because "we don't regurgitate the propaganda that Abbott's Texas 1836 Project wants to promote," and instead "promote a more holistic and honest view of Texas's glorious history."
Abbott recently signed a bill creating "The 1836 Project" — a play on the Pulitzer-winning New York Times series "The 1619 Project" — to advocate for the "patriotic education" of Texas history. The conservative Texas Public Policy Foundation compared Forget the Alamo to The 1619 Project in a post earlier this week, calling it "a radical reinterpretation of history" and "an effort to diminish the great figures of history and place slavery at the center of every story." TPPF chief executive Kevin Roberts applauded the Bullock's decision to cancel the talk Thursday night.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
Thieves nab French crown jewels from Louvre
Speed Read A gang of thieves stole 19th century royal jewels from the Paris museum’s Galerie d’Apollon
-
Bolivia elects centrist over far-right presidential rival
Speed Read Relative political unknown Rodrigo Paz, a centrist senator, was elected president
-
Millions turn out for anti-Trump ‘No Kings’ rallies
Speed Read An estimated 7 million people participated, 2 million more than at the first ‘No Kings’ protest in June
-
Millions turn out for anti-Trump ‘No Kings’ rallies
Speed Read An estimated 7 million people participated, 2 million more than at the first ‘No Kings’ protest in June
-
DOJ indicts John Bolton over classified files
Speed Read Continuing the trend of going after his political enemies, Trump prosecutes his former national security adviser
-
Trump, Putin set summit as Zelenskyy lands in DC
Speed Read Trump and Putin have agreed to meet in Budapest soon to discuss ending the war in Ukraine
-
Courts deal setbacks to Trump’s Chicago operations
Speed Read President Donald Trump cannot deploy the National Guard in Illinois
-
Pentagon reporters turn in badges after refusing rules
Speed Read They refused to sign a restrictive new press policy imposed by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth
-
Supreme Court points to gutting Voting Rights Act
speed read States would no longer be required to consider race when drawing congressional maps
-
Trump says he authorized covert CIA ops in Venezuela
Speed Read He is also considering military strikes inside the country
-
‘Vile, racist’ leaked chats roil Young Republicans
Speed Read Leaders of Young Republican groups made racist, antisemitic and violent comments in private chats