Visit Fort Worth honors Opal Lee, calls for more diverse tourism as the pandemic unwinds
Fort Worth’s tourism agency honored local Black history legend Opal Lee for her efforts to create a national Juneteenth holiday, and called for an expansion of multicultural tourism as the city begins to emerge from the pandemic.
Lee, 94, dazzled a socially distanced crowd with a short speech after receiving Visit Fort Worth’s hospitality award Friday morning during the group’s annual breakfast at the Omni Fort Worth Hotel downtown. In addition to the in-person crowd, about 300 people watched a live stream of the invitation-only event online.
Lee began by offering a simple message, calling for North Texans to treat each other as equals. But she also used her time on the hotel stage to call for more Black tourism in Fort Worth — at one point suggesting that the Texas Department of Transportation ought to rebuild the original Guinn School (formerly the Southside Colored School), a desegregation-era building that was demolished in 1986 for the expansion of I-35W, and turn it into an African-American history museum.
She also promoted efforts to convert a former KKK building in north Fort Worth into an arts and community healing center.
Lee beckoned attendees to make it their personal mission to open the eyes of anyone in their circle of friends and colleagues with a bigoted heart.
“Let that person know we all bleed red blood,” Lee said. “We’re willing to work for what we need and want. All we want is equal pay, health care we can depend on ... We want a decent education, affordable housing.”
To politicians, she said: “Now, don’t gerrymander me out of your neighborhoods.”
Lee’s comments highlighted the annual breakfast, during which Visit Fort Worth president and CEO Bob Jameson offered an optimistic view of how the tourism economy will rebound as the COVID-19 pandemic unwinds.
Jameson said the Visit Fort Worth organization, which is the city’s official marketing arm, had commissioned a study showing that Fort Worth’s local music scene — everything from jazz and hip hop to swing and modern country — generates $256 million in annual earnings and accounts for 7,555 jobs.
Jameson said his group would work to expand Fort Worth’s reputation as a gathering spot for musicians, and take steps to ensure that local laws protected and encouraged the development of more music venues and artists.
He said Visit Fort Worth would “double down on community-based tourism,” with emphasis not only on major events but also smaller nooks and crannies of the city that tourists would find interesting.
Although it may take years for tourism to rebound to pre-pandemic levels, Jameson said there are signs of progress that small businesses are hiring again.
“The pandemic hit hard. Nearly half of all tourism jobs have been lost and are slowing being reclaimed,” Jameson told the crowd. “It’s the front desk clerk, the restaurant server, the tour guide, but it’s also the florist that makes arrangements for events, and the barber who takes in visitor walk-ins. The ripple effect of the job losses is significant.”
The 90-minute event began at 8 a.m., with chef Tim Love making palomas cocktails for himself, Jameson and Fort Worth Mayor Betsy Price — all of whom offered a toast to the event’s guests.
“People are going to feel comfortable coming back, and people are going to see our attitude is still there,” Price told the crowd.
Tokyo Cafe chef Kevin Martinez also was honored by Visit Fort Worth for providing 48,000 meals to service workers, health care workers and others during the pandemic.
This story was originally published February 5, 2021 at 11:55 AM.
