Meet Chris Leal | Teacher and Candidate for TX State House District 114

We had the good fortune of connecting with Chris Leal and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Chris, what role has risk played in your life or career?
I always tell my students: anything worth really doing in life is going to be hard, and it will take risk. The bigger the risk, the bigger the reward. The bigger the challenge, the more rewarding and fulfilling the achievement. The risk-reward tradeoff is a rule in finance and economics but it’s also true in our everyday lives. You create the most value by doing the things other people think are too hard or impossible. Embracing risk has defined my life and my career. I always strive to get out of my comfort zone.

This perspective is how I navigated college as the first in my family to graduate. It’s how I managed to break into the corporate world of NYC finance coming from a ‘non-traditional’ background. It’s also why I decided to give up that career to come back home to Dallas and teach middle school. And it was a factor in deciding to run as a progressive Democrat for the Texas State House District 114.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I’ve been fortunate to live many different lives so far – from a car washer, to a retail worker, to an activist, to a newspaper editor, to a stock market analyst, to a middle school Law & Justice teacher. And now as a candidate for Texas State Legislature District 114.

While diverse at the surface, what all of these experiences share is a passion for people, a passion for service, and a passion for trying to help others make a little more sense of our world. I am finally able to combine all of these passions in my current role as political candidate, and it’s why I’m so excited to have the opportunity to be on this path.

I’ve learned a lot up to this point. The artist Barbara Hepworth once said, “Perhaps what one wants to say is formed in childhood and the rest of one’s life is spent trying to say it.” I really feel that to be true in many ways. Maybe the most fulfilling paths in life are the ones where you can navigate the adult world while staying true to the dreams and inner voice of your childhood. It isn’t an easy task. The pressures of the world are phenomenal. You must be willing to struggle, fight and risk everything to not lose that voice. The proximity to this innate childhood brilliance and perspective is one of the reasons I love teaching so much. I often joke that my students make me feel old and young at the same time.

What I’m most excited about is the opportunity for Dallas and Texas to help lead the fight for progressive change in our country. I know that might sound crazy… Texas!? Leading the country for progressive change!? Yes. Emphatically yes. And it isn’t as crazy as it sounds. In fact it’s old news, and it’s already happened before. From architects of the New Deal to the author of the Great Society and War on Poverty, progressive Texas Democrats led the way in fighting to build inclusive prosperity in our country, and in the process they took the national Democratic Party to its most successful levels in history.

What I’d like Dallas, Texas, and the world to know about me and my story is that I am committed to bringing about this change. I truly believe that if we’re going to turn the tide of insanity that has taken hold in our state and country, that we have to start leading the way right here in Dallas by reminding the world what progressive Texas values look like.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Great question! Showing off my city to visitors is one of my favorite things to do, and I actually just got to play tour guide for a friend visiting from Ecuador last week!

If the time of year is right, the State Fair is definitely a must-do. The history and energy of Deep Ellum also makes it a top attraction; from live music at the Free Man, to a tour of Deep Ellum Distillery, to cocktails at Kim Finch’s Thunderbird Station, or just gazing at all the murals of famed music pioneers like Lead Belly, Blind Lemon Jefferson, Lightnin’ Hopkins and Bob Wills who used to roam the streets of Dallas.

Driving tours are one of the best ways to sample the city. I always drive guests by 508 Park – the historic Warner Brothers sound studio downtown where Robert Johnson and Bob Wills recorded – and also by the old Longhorn Ballroom, originally called the Bob Wills Ranch House. I usually then take them through south Dallas to see the house Ray Charles lived in. I also like to drive by the old duplex I grew up in off King’s Highway in Oak Cliff.

Cruising down the boulevard of historic homes on Swiss Avenue is also a must, and along the way I always point out the old Mrs. Hartgraves Café where Bonnie worked around the time she met Clyde. Clyde also worked on Swiss Ave less than half a mile away in a mirror and glass company.

Then we’d move through the West End, the oldest part of the city with the original grid laid out by founder John Neely Bryan. Just down the street is the former site of the long-gone Farmers Alliance State HQ and Exchange, a testament to Dallas’s progressive-populist history.

As we get hungry or thirsty on the tour, we’d stop off for brunch at Mark Wootton’s Garden Café, for lunch at the Sky Blossom rooftop downtown, for dinner at Kevin Ashade’s Pangea (we went to high school together!), and for dessert at Botolino on Greenville. And of course I’d have to take them to the birthplace of the frozen margarita: Mariano’s off Skillman.

We would shop at Zahra Darwish’s boutique Artesanías, which sells goods made in Mexico by indigenous communities. We’d travel through time at Dallas Heritage Village. We’d peruse some graveyards like the hidden Beeman Cemetery (the first family of Dallas), the Founders Cemetery downtown, or go see Micky Mantle’s grave at Sparkman/Hillcrest. We’d get a drink at The Statler, hitting their rooftop bar and their speakeasy Bourbon & Banter. Then we’d have sunset drinks atop Reunion Tower, taking in the views of the city as the skyline lights up. And finally a night cap at the Atwater Alley speakeasy is always a good idea.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
There is so much credit to give, I could fill a book. As a life-long learner, I am always looking to learn from other people, their lives, books, teachers, history, successes, failures and struggles. Everywhere.

But at the top of the shoutout list would have to be Ms. Allen & Ms. Conrad, my elementary and middle school teachers for a Gifted & Talented class called LEAP. It’s hard not to get emotional thinking about the impact each of them had on my life, especially since I’m now a middle school teacher myself. They created spaces where I felt comfortable and also challenged me in ways I could never fully appreciate at the time. I’m still connected with Ms. Conrad, it was surreal to have her support my campaign. Some other students and I have been trying to track down Ms. Allen for years, but we can’t seem to find her. Last I heard she was in Germany. I wish I could tell her how often she crosses my mind.

The other critical shoutout would have to be to Dallas – the city that made me who I am. I credit the sensibility, values and drive that Dallas – and Texas – exude for my ability to take the risks and opportunities that have brought me to where I am today. There are so many unique and historical factors about the city which seem to converge on this exact point in time. In many ways it feels like Dallas (and Texas) is at the center of our political & cultural universe right now.

Website: lealfortexas.com

Instagram: @lealfortexas

Twitter: @lealfortexas

Facebook: facebook.com/lealfortexas