Will Julian Castro give the United Nations control of the Alamo?!?

YIKES:

The New Battle of the Alamo
by George Rodriguez

Texans should be aware that San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro may have started a new “battle of the Alamo”. He has made some initial moves to allow the United Nations to influence and even manage the Alamo, and the San Antonio Express/News is doing a soft sell of the idea in their Sunday, September 15 opinion page. It has been reported that Mayor Castro and his close ally, City Councilman Diego Bernal, have been meeting with U.S. Department of Interior officials about the future of San Antonio’s historical missions. Castro wants to make the missions a greater tourist attraction by designating them national and world cultural treasures.

But there is the catch in designating the Alamo and the other missions “world cultural heritage” sites. Castro and Bernal want the United Nations’ UNESCO or United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization to do the designation. The UNESCO is a specialized agency of the U.N. whose purpose is to contribute to peace and security by promoting international collaboration through education, science, and culture in order to further universal respect for justice, the rule of law, and human rights along with fundamental freedom proclaimed in the U.N. Charter. According to their charter, UNESCO’s aim is "to contribute to the building of peace, the eradication of poverty, sustainable development and intercultural dialogue through education, the sciences, culture, communication and information".

It is ironic that while many Texans across the state talk about the dangers of the UN’s Agenda 21, the Alamo, the very symbol of Texas liberty and freedom, may fall under U.N. influence. Castro wants to UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee to help manage the Alamo. The World Heritage Committee has a list of recognized sites that are managed through legal agreements regarding cultural heritage for protecting diversity. Quite simply, the U.N. would manage the Alamo under these agreements.

The influence of the U.N. has already been felt when there was a proposed hotel tower for the old Joske’s building near the Alamo. But because it could have jeopardized the World Heritage Site status for the Alamo and the other four missions, the proposed hotel tower was nixed. The U.S. National Park Service, which plays a key role in nominating U.S. sites, warned Castro that such a skyscraper so close to the Alamo could be a deal breaker. Apparently, the U.N.’s World Heritage Sites had threatened to yank the status because of the potential for new development. Thus, the U.N. influenced a local issue and decision.

Cahnman's Musings was hesitant to post something from Facebook, but this May report from the Express-News is confirmation:

The National Park Service is proposing World Heritage status for 14 new American sites over the next 10 years, potentially raising the number of U.S. sites from 21 to 35. One of them comprises five 18th-century Spanish missions along the San Antonio River. Four form a National Historical Park. The fifth and oldest, run by the Daughters of the Republic of Texas, was founded as San Antonio de Valero. We know it as the Alamo.

The proposal argues that these Franciscan missions meet the World Heritage status requirement of “outstanding universal value” because of their role in Spain's global expansion. They are living symbols of how Spain shaped history. [Emphasis Ours]

The World Heritage List is perhaps not well understood in the United States, even though America took the lead in creating it 41 years ago. Probably the most successful international program for preservation and conservation, World Heritage is a powerful brand for overseas visitors. Tour operators feature World Heritage sites in their advertisements. Some travelers have World Heritage bucket lists, visiting as many of the 962 sites as they can.

Notably, foreign visitors tend to spend more on their trips than domestic travelers.

The San Antonio study, by the Harbinger Consulting Group, was commissioned by Bexar County and takes a hard look at the likely economic benefit of the missions being named a World Heritage Site.

Bottom Line: Julian Castro is working with the United Nations to redefine the cradle of Texas liberty into a "living symbol of how Spain shaped history" under the guise of economic development.