← Back to the front page

Frank Hamer, Legendary Texas Lawman Who Bagged Bonnie and Clyde

Khalid Elhassan December 27, 2024 12 min

Hamer - Frank Hamer — Frank Hamer. Free Range America

7. La Matanza Along the Border

Hamer - Texas Rangers during La Matanza — Texas Rangers during La Matanza. University of Texas, Austin

During La Matanza, the Texas Rangers spearheaded a wave of extra judicial killings, lynchings, and massacres amidst operations against cross border raids known as the Bandit Wars. The raids were carried out by rebels from south of the border, amidst the chaos of the Mexican Revolution that was taking place at that time. Coupled with ever-present anti-Mexican racism, the raids triggered a violent backlash that extended to all Mexican-Americans in Texas, and especially those living along the border. Those suspected of harboring any sympathy for the rebels were blacklisted by the Texas Rangers, and often “disappeared”.

Written by

Khalid Elhassan

A lifelong history buff, I developed a particular passion for WW2 history as a child, when I spent hours listening to my grandfather, enraptured, as he recounted his wartime experiences in the British East African Campaign and with the British 8th Army in North Africa.

I graduated with a history BA from George Mason University, then went on to get a JD from the University of Virginia School of Law. After lawyering for a decade, I moved to sunny Rio de Janeiro and a less demanding career, opening a tourism agency in Copacabana.

A big chunk of my free time is spent blogging (you can follow me on Quora https://www.quora.com/profile/Khalid-Elhassan ) or freelance writing, mostly about my favorite subject, history.