By Dr. Christine Marin
Ray Martinez (1918-2002) —Born in Tempe, Arizona, in 1918 and passed away on December 5, 2002, at the age of eighty-five. He served in the U.S. Navy during WWII, trained as a radio man and served on the USS Macaser Straits until 1944 when he was injured in an enemy attack and sent to a hospital in San Diego until he recovered. Ray’s tour of service included duties for supporting American forces for the Pacific Island invasions, including Iwo Jima.
After service, Ray returned home with a strong sense of duty and unity to address the long-standing and persistent practices of racism and discrimination the Tempe and Phoenix communities of Mexican American veterans and their families experienced.
The formation of the American Legion Tony F. Soza-Ray Martinez Thunderbird Post 41 in 1945 provides an example of how veterans organized for equality. Their first challenge came in the early Spring of 1946: Tempe’s veterans approached Ray Martinez and asked for Post 41’s assistance in the elimination of the 1923 “No Mexicans Allowed” policy at Tempe’s public Olympic-sized swimming pool and recreation center, known as Tempe Beach. It was built on land donated to Tempe by Charles Trumbull Hayden. This 23-year-old policy was approved and sanctioned by the City of Tempe and enforced by the Tempe Chamber of Commerce. The veterans arranged to begin a series of discussions with members of the Tempe Chamber of Commerce and the City of Tempe, and they met often. Veterans spoke of their honorable military service and American patriotism during wartime. They explained why the segregation of Americans like them at Tempe Beach was un-American. Veterans deserved better, they said. They argued that they proved their American loyalties and bravery. Segregation was wrong, they reasoned. Convincing arguments, indeed. Finally, on May 21, 1946, the Tempe Chamber of Commerce and the City of Tempe agreed to end their “No Mexicans Allowed” policy at Tempe Beach.
Ray Martinez served as Post 41’s Commander from 1945 to 1948. In 1950, he became the first Mexican American Vice Commander, American Legion, Department of Arizona. The following year, he was elected as Commander, the first Mexican American nationally to serve in the State Commander status. Ray Martinez is the first Mexican American to hold a State Supervisory Office as Commander of Civil Defense. He became the National Chairman for the American Legion’s Department for Children and Families. In addition, Martinez served as Children and Youth Commission Chairman for 27 years and was elected as Chairman of the Legion’s Western States Commission. Commander Martinez was instrumental in establishing the Arizona State Veterans’ Home. Ray Martinez was inducted into the Arizona Veterans Hall of Fame in 2001, the first year of its establishment.