Longview proclaims July 10, 2025 as 1919 Longview Remembrance Day; marker and documentary planned

The City of Longview on July 24 proclaimed July 10, 2025 as 1919 Longview Remembrance Day and received a brief presentation from the 1919 Longview Remembrance Project.

A project representative described a multi‑year effort by local educators, authors, filmmakers and other community members to document and memorialize racial violence that occurred on July 10, 1919. The speaker said the project had two initial goals: placement of a Texas Historical Commission marker and production of a documentary. He reported the marker had been approved by the Texas Historical Commission and by the county commissioners and that it is scheduled to be erected in front of the courthouse later in the year. He added the documentary was in postproduction with a named Houston director working on the film.

The mayor read a proclamation noting the July 10, 1919 violence — described in the proclamation as racial violence during the Red Summer that resulted in “the destruction of black homes and businesses, the loss of precious life, and widespread terror and trauma across the black community” — and said remembrance and truth‑telling are steps toward reconciliation.

Organizers invited residents to follow the project’s updates on social media and to participate in forthcoming events and the marker unveiling. The proclamation and the project’s plans were presented as a recognition and community remembrance initiative; there was no formal council vote recorded beyond the mayor’s proclamation.