Manuel Gonzalez

3rd president - elected in 1931

He began working for Mexican-American civil rights while he was employed at the Patterson and Love firm. He played a key role in the founding of La Liga Protectoria Mexicana (see MEXICAN PROTECTIVE LEAGUE) around 1917, the Asociación Jurídica Mexicana (a legal-assistance organization) in 1921, and the Sons of Texas in 1922. Gonzales also served as vice president of the Order of Knights of America in 1927, wrote the constitution and charter for the Mexican Chamber of Commerce in 1928, and acted as secretary at the founding convention of the League of United Latin American Citizens on February 17, 1929. He was active in LULAC for many years. In 1931 and 1932 he participated in the Del Rio ISD v. Salvatierra case. He became the third LULAC president in 1931. He also worked with the "Flying Squadron," a San Antonio LULAC organizing team, in the 1930s, and served as national executive secretary in LULAC under the George I. Sánchez and Ben Osuna administrations (1941–43). Gonzales worked as legal advisor for the Mexican Consulate from 1926 to 1958 and held several diplomatic positions with Mexico and Guatemala. He was a proponent of the Good Neighbor Commission and Pan-Americanism