CORPUS CHRISTI, Tx — The Molina neighborhood is often known for Selena and its Latino roots, but what's less well known is how one street has long divided the Latino and Black communities here.
This Black History Month, I'm sharing the stories of the Black community in Molina, exploring the rich history that exists on both sides of Villarreal Street.
I first met Stephen Fillmore when I interviewed him about his appearance in the "Molina: Hardships, Traditions, and Resilience" documentary. That's when I learned about Villarreal Street, which separated Black and Latino families.
Fillmore invited me to drive through the neighborhood with him, where I met Bobby Davis, a Molina native who grew up in the area during the 1950s.
"I used to be the neighborhood paperboy," Davis said.
Davis showed me all the houses he grew up in and took pride in his street's reputation.
"I'm not bragging but this right here was the most popular street in the neighborhood. Brag about it! I am," Davis said.
While the street may have been separated, Davis says the Black and Latino people were not divided.
"Every house I would go to, I would stop, eat tortillas, and watch cartoons," Davis said.
When we reached Villarreal and Elvira streets, Davis explained the layout.
"The left side was the Hispanic side, and the right side was the Black side," Davis said.
I saw the community love firsthand, with neighbors stopping in the middle of the street just to say hello. Davis says back in the 1950s, more Black families moved in trying to build something better.
"It was a way of moving us out of the projects," Davis said.
On our way to our next stop, Davis played old school soul music and drove me to Robbie's Barbershop on Westpoint. The shop was filled with Black art, photographs and vintage Black magazines.
Robbie Richard tells me she's been cutting hair in the community for almost 50 years.
"I knew Steven's grandparents. His grandaddy, his grandmother," Richard said.
She says Black barbershops are about more than just hair.
"The hair pattern is different. And a lot of them don't understand that," Richard said.
While I sat in her shop, I met her cousin, former NFL halfback Bobby Smith. Looking around the room filled with generations of Black stories, I realized there is so much Black history right here, and it's still living.
"The love, it shows," Richard said.
People here tell me there is no Black history in Corpus Christi without knowing the Black history of the Westside.
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