How we reported on the Texas Rangers and a historical South Texas slaying

Arelis R. Hernández spent months reporting on the South Texas slaying of three Tejanos, whose family say they were ambushed by Texas Rangers 100 years ago.

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May 15, 2024 at 5:00 a.m. EDT
A Texas Ranger and his children participate in a clay shooting event in South Texas in October celebrating the Texas Rangers' bicentennial. (Desiree Rios for The Washington Post)
5 min

As a Washington Post correspondent covering the Texas-Mexico border and immigration, I spend a lot of time on the road and often strike up conversations with people I meet.

These chats sometimes lead to tales of uncles, cousins and grandfathers who lost their lives in detail-scarce encounters with Anglo lawmen generations ago. It hasn’t happened just once or twice in my travels across South Texas, but many times. Spend enough time in the borderlands, and you’re bound to hear the stories.