We wish to thank Dr. Oscar Martinez for standing up to his friends on the left and telling how J.P. Bryan was disrespected by those who should have been his allies. We also wish to thank Martin Paredes for having the courage to publish Dr. Martinez’s essay.
As everyone knows, J.P. Bryan financed the litigation that was critical for saving El Paso’s oldest residential neighborhood from demolition yet, as Dr. Martinez shows, he was intentionally and strategically omitted from the film that documented the struggle.
Why was he disappeared from the film?
Because the filmmakers and their activist allies in Paso del Sur could not bear that a conservative oilman from Houston saved a Hispanic barrio from the developers because it did not fit the political narrative they wished to promote.
The filmmakers also left out that Romelia Mendoza, the only property owner in Duranguito who fought the Arena project, was given a first-rate legal defense, courtesy of J.P. Bryan. Thanks in large part to him, she still lives in her home on Chihuahua Street.
What is more, Bryan gave many thousands of dollars to support Paso del Sur’s efforts and was their largest donor during the Arena fight, and he even funded the historical research of one of its leaders.
Finally, it should be noted that Bryan helped finance the election campaigns of all the candidates for City Council who opposed the Arena, which would have cost the taxpayers more than $800 million, including interest.
What Bryan did for El Paso, the taxpayers, and the cause of historic preservation is monumental and should not have been erased by the filmmakers.
Dr. Martinez’s essay: https://elpasoheraldpost.com/2025/12/16/the-saving-of-the-duranguito-barrio-a-movie-and-an-inconvenient-truth/