Transforming Our World: Art & Social Change

Hello everyone and welcome to our Library Art Gallery panel series in this year’s theme of climate change. Today, we are speaking directly to social change in 2020 and the histories that we build upon and that have brought us to today. Specifically, we are interested in the role of art, the role it plays in social movements and its ability to recontextualize and help us make sense of our reality. Today, we are speaking with Marsha Terry and Dr. Theresa Gatling, who founded Village in the Valley, ViVa, an organization that focuses on building professional relationships in our community.

And also Josué 00:40 - Ramírez a writer, content creator, and organizer for Neta and also a visual and performance artist in the RGV. Would you all like to give a brief introduction of yourself? Well, hi, I’m Dr.Theresa Gatling, and I am currently, I’m one of the founders of Village in the Valley. I’m currently the co-president for Village in the Valley with my colleague, Marsha Terry, who you’ll hear from in a minute, I’m a mother. I’ve been married for 33 years. I have four adult young men who are also married with children of their own at this point. And I am by profession, a physical therapist.

01:22 - I’ve been a physical therapist with 33 years, and I’ve worked in the genre from pediatric to geriatrics, home health, ergonomics, pretty much all of the areas of physical therapy that there is. And I’m currently working on building if Physical Therapy Assistant Program, developing that program for RGV College, which is a fairly new college here in The Valley. It’s located in Pharr, Texas. So you know, about me, I’m originally from Boston, Massachusetts, and I went to Boston University on a interestingly, so on a full scholarship that I was told that I wasn’t good enough for by my my guidance counselors. They literally looked at my S.A.T. scores and whatever else they saw about me and said, you’re not good enough. We’re not going to we’re not going to nominate you for this scholarship at the time.

02:17 - I remember it being, I was angry about it. I didn’t end up feeling bad. I felt very angry because I didn’t think they had the right to tell me since they were not the committee that was making the decision. So I was really upset about it. I wasn’t really sure the reasons. I happened to go to a school that was primarily white, I guess. there were a few Black, a few Puerto Rican’s, few Chinese, but for the majority, it was, it was a Caucasian school. So I don’t know if that had anything to do with at the time.

02:50 - I just knew that I wasn’t going to let that stop me. The long and short of the story is I continue to berate them, talk to my headmaster, and eventually they did nominate me and I did get the four year scholarship. So I went to Boston University and that is where I got my physical therapy degree. And I went on to get my doctoral degree at A.T. Still University in Mesa, Arizona, and a post-graduate degree in Healthcare Education at Washburn University, So, which is from Topeka, Kansas.

03:21 - So I think just to give you an idea of my development of where I came from, other than that little tidbit, is I happened to grow up at a time back in the sixties and seventies, where they were, there was a lot of racial violence and a lot of, we all familiar with Civil Rights Era and Vietnam was going on. There was a lot of things going on. Well in Boston, Massachusetts, there was a movement to desegregate the schools after the whole law of desegregating. And I was one of the very first Black students who left the inner city to travel about an hour and a half away from my home to attend kindergarten which I think now looking back at it, my mother was very brave to send their child off that far, where she didn’t even drive a car, she didn’t have a license at that time. So, but very brave of her. And it was a fantastic experience. It was a pilot program and they were trying to figure out what it work because the contention was that the inner city schools were not well- funded. They didn’t have books that were updated, teachers who were afraid of the gangs that were operating there and the thought was, if we can get these kids in an environment where it’s more conducive then they will do better.

And it did, we did, we had a great time that, 04:39 - that particular, the way it’s affected me now is that I’m aware of the fact that they worked hard to integrate all of us. So we actually celebrated, unlike most people’s experiences, we celebrated all of the Jewish holidays. We celebrated all the Christian holidays. They taught you about each of them. We even had rabbis come over and talk. And we learned Black History very much so through all of February, we spent with everybody learning about notable characters. And so when I got out of that elementary education was very odd to me that nobody else got this type of it was very rare to get that. So it was an amazing program. And I think it’s really affected who I am today because I learned at an early age for real, that we were all the same.

05:29 - And even though children were a little curious about me, maybe because I was so young, I just thought it was curious. I didn’t think they were picking on me. I, I didn’t know what that meant at five. And as a result, it kind of helped me to really learn and see how it could be. And it worked really well as a child. So as an adult, looking at all the crazy that’s going on, and of course I’ve been through other things since then, I’m hopeful, I’m hopeful that, that we can change and that we can figure out ways to get along better and understand cultures and people better. So, yeah, that’s who I am. Hi, my name is Marsha Terry. I’m originally from Canada. I’ve been in the United States for roughly about 20 years, maybe a little bit longer. I am a registered nurse by profession. I obtained an associates degree initially from what’s now called Grant MacEwan University in Canada, wasn’t that when I got my associates degree.

06:32 - I’ve gone on since then to obtain a Master’s Degree in Leadership and Management from Walden University. I am a mother of two boys. I’ve been married for almost 18 years. And so my experience is very different in that I moved to the United States, um, not really understanding, I guess, what it is to be Black in America. My husband is from Virginia. And so I quickly got inducted into what that meant here in the U S and, I guess my first real experience here when I understood on a personal level of what that meant was when Trayvon Martin was killed. I have two boys and my son easily, I mean, both of my kids now easily walk around in hoodies. And so it just took a whole different personal meaning to me of what it means to be Black in America and the differences that exist here in the United States different than in Canada. So, that’s kind of my experience.

And since then, I’ve become a lot more aware, 07:37 - a lot more educated, and very vocal about what it means for me and my boys when I see different things happening. I usually speak out about it because I believe that it affects people in a very meaningful way, even if it’s, you know, happening to a stranger. So that’s kind of my story and what I wanted to share today. So thank you very much. Hi everybody, my name is Josué Ramírez. Pronouns he, him, his and I am a multidisciplinary artist, I guess just naturally cause I’m self-taught. As far as my work, I’m a housing advocate.

08:19 - I’ve been a housing advocate for almost seven years. So advocating on policies around land use around housing infrastructure around equity, particularly in the colonias or the Rio Grande Valley. And so working with grassroots organizations and helping them organize and campaigns around around equity and infrastructure. And I’m also an artist like I mentioned. I am a self-taught. So a lot of my experience around that comes from collaborations with individuals or just personal experience and just trying things out. it’s a lot of like my train of thought around art, but around with life too, I guess. I’m formerly undocumented.

I grew up in the colonias in the Rio Grande Valley. And so a lot of my experience has shaped around that immigrant experience and around the policies that, you know, policed my experience growing up and my family’s experience and a lot of communities experience. And so that’s really shaped who I am now in terms of my passion or my, I guess, responsibility for advocating for certain communities through my art and through that kind of work. And so also my experience as a queer individual also helped shape, you know, where I am today and, how it is I perceive life. And the lived experiences is not only my community, but you know, those who I share space with.

And so, nice to meet you all, 10:01 - it’s a pleasure to be here with everybody, but yeah. Thank you. I think it’s important to talk about our personal experiences because in these, social movements, people get kind of tied up in the big monolithic ideas and can be polarizing, and we kind of forget our own personal stories and how we came to the work. Switching gears a little bit, Josué has prepared a presentation for us that recontextualizes this conversation the industrialization of the RGV and under told stories in the RGV, how we connect to the larger movements in Texas, the United States, the world, and then also the Valley’s specific response to using masks during COVID, which ended up being pretty popular and being shared around Texas, which I thought was pretty fun. Cool. Well, thank you, Gina. Yes, so I’m going to share my screen. So just bare with me for a second, but, what I’m going to be presenting is, a presentation around, basically contextualizing the history of the Rio Grande Valley in terms of, very specific instances that are highlighted through the work of an artist from the Rio Grande Valley that does ceramic art, Jessica Denise Villegas. and this is part of her work at UTRGV for graduation thesis or exhibition.

And so what I really wanted to do with this work is showcase, 11:56 - I guess, art that spoke about the history of the Rio Grande Valley specifically, you know, in an honest way around, the violence and the I guess examples in history that continue in terms of contemporary experiences of Brown people and people of color and Black people in the South and Southwest. And so I wanted to, through the art, talk about specific experiences of the Rio Grande Valley, but also tie it back to what’s happening and and to the intersectional experiences of people of color that share a lot of these similar symbol or ideas around the symbolism that’s being used. And so this first work is the first piece in Villegas’ timeline, and it’s called El Distiero. And it basically has the it represents the treaty of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo which was one of the major events in RGV history that really defined the border and defined our contemporary experiences. And so we see that through the creation of these huge vessels which are around four feet big. So they’re pretty tall.

And this one in particular 13:20 - has a saying on it that says we were jerked out by the roots, truncated, disemboweled, dispossessed and separated from our identity and our history, which is actually a quote from Gloria Anzaldúa. And so it, it speaks of this violent, act of, well, you know, that was war, right. but that talks about a longer history, right, a longer effect on people’s, you know, ethos and people’s ideas around themselves, the land, and the region. And it really did have a lasting effect in founding the Rio Grande Valley as it is as a nation state. And so the symbolism here is really, the roots, right? the idea of the roots diving deep and being, really, you know, connected to the earth, and this huge jar, but also being honest about the fact that, you know, that’s all that remains often, is because, you know, the plants are ripped out or they’re cut cutoff. And so, but these roots run deep, right.

14:36 - And so I feel that’s a strong symbolism that not only connects the Black experience with the experience of the Rio Grande Valley, in general, but with a lot of South kind of like symbolism, we talk about roots. We talk about that. We, we think about the South, at least in my mind. And then the the eagle is obviously a symbol for the statehood of Mexico, right. And so a little bit of nationalism, but also kind of showing the resistance, right? The with native imagery and the flora, right? So the cactus, which is very symbolic, not only the Mexican nationalistic framework, but also in just the regional landscape is very striking to me. So I just w I wanted to point that out, but I did want to talk about like the symbolism behind the roots and also, you know, the saying, and maybe see how, how that connects to the experience of my panelists, my fellow panelists.

So with that, 15:44 - I kind of want to leave that open for a conversation. So yeah. That’s true. And in looking at this we, what was very striking about it, to me, are two things, primarily, which is the roots and the actual saying, that’s written there about being jerked out by the roots and the African American experience in general, we were removed quite forcibly from our homeland and brought somewhere else. And definitely there was some truncating of history. We, our ancestry, not ancestry, but people who would be coming after us would not have their roots in the homeland and being separated. And of course, you know, even with names being changed, the identity being changed, your whole history.

16:39 - And I think that even though this piece was not made about that it’s very, very much integrated within it. And then looking at the symbolism again, of those roots, there’s so intertwined. And I think, like you said, again, it just lets us know that people are all together. They’re not just roots and going straight down, they come in, they cross over, they go underneath and borough and that’s how we are as human beings. So much of our history is intwined. It does come together and it’s so, the deeper they are, the harder it is to remove it.

17:17 - And the last thing I’ll say, and I hope I’m not taking away Marsha’s thought, is that eagle. When I look at the eagle, I see an animal that is protective is in this state where it’s very, like I survived. Yes. But don’t come, don’t come, don’t come after mine. I’ve got you. I’m protecting this cactus. Like, it just seems very protective. Like, even though we may have been jerked out and all this I’m still standing and I’m still gonna, I’m still going to be an eagle. You can’t stop me. I think that’s our human experience stuff may have happened, but you know what, we’re still going on. We’re still standing. Jewish people are still standing.

17:58 - The Black people are still standing and we’re still moving. The Mexicans are still moving and where we are. We’re one. So, yeah, that’s what I wanted to say. Thank you so much, Theresa. As you know, since we’ve talked earlier, I actually recently watched a documentary by Samuel Jackson, which was showing how he went back and he found his roots in Gabon in Africa. And he was very connected to that place where he came from and wanted to know more about the culture, about the tribe and how they really accepted him back into their, their tribe and into their culture. And they did this whole ceremony and they gave him a new name and they were really applauding him for coming back home to the motherland.

18:48 - And as I was watching that and reading this inscription here, it is so true that we are jerked out of our roots. We are truncated, but despite that, there’s still a connection to where people come from. And I think that, you know, whether you are African American, I’m Canadian with my parentage being Jamaican. There is still this sense of connection to where you come from and your desire really is to know, like, what is everything there is to know about that place. So I think that even though we might be separated from our identity and our history that we still have this ability to reconnect with it in a very meaningful way and it has this really great impact on our lives. Yeah, for sure.

I mean I think if you were to see the 19:34 - piece without the top and just like the front of the English inscription, like, you wouldn’t know what, experience that comes from, right. Like it could be so many and just like the symbolism to earth, I think was also something very striking with the ceramic pieces, right. Because it is clay that comes from earth that you mold and that in this instance, I think she really wanted to, well I know so, I know that she wanted them to be symbolic for holding that history, right. And so I definitely agree with that. The roots are going to come back or like the idea of plants and the idea of growth is also I think something that, not to me punny, but like she planted, right? Like, so this is going to come back in the future. And I want us to think about it, but if we can move on from this piece, I think there’s some more that we can talk to.

In these pieces, 20:25 - again we have imagery that’s pretty violent and these are pretty big. but this is actually speaking, called “La Matanza” which means “The Killing” in English. And it speaks to a history of the lynching and the killing of Mexican, Mexican Americans, Tejanos, Natives in the Rio Grande Valley by the Texas Rangers and by, you know, cowboys, and just indiscriminately, right. And so it was a pretty violent history, and pretty violent time in the Rio Grande Valley. And so when we look at this, that might be, it might be uncomfortable to look at just because there are so many symbols that are pretty violent, right.

And so 21:15 - but I do think that the artist does a a great job of being respectful in terms of like, you know, showcasing, not showcasing faces, or like not trying to do that, leaving them, like it can be anybody, right. And then while it is, disturbing, in the sense, I think it is a huge piece of history, right? It’s a huge piece of history that while uncomfortable, definitely shaped the path of the Rio Grande Valley. I mean, because of these Matanzas, were the reason that white ranchers, you know, got ahold of the land and got ahold of the the resources by getting rid of Tejanos and Mexicanos who owned them. And so this talks about this very particular time in the Rio Grande Valley in Texas history. So I do want to though tie to the fauna, right.

22:13 - So we see the tree, which has a huge symbolism in terms of, in the South, right. And definitely in the Black experience and the African American experience in the South, in the United States in general and then the skull imagery and the noose imagery again. So I did want to talk about this, and I think there’s a lot of like intersectionalities here. So I want to leave it open for you all to discuss and talk about. Yeah. I mean, most definitely, you know, when you look at this piece of art, it is disturbing to look at because you do see the noose, you see the skulls, you see the trees and immediately, you know, even though the creator was depicting, you know, something that was representative of Mexican American history, it just rang true for me as how it relates to African American history.

23:13 - So I think a lot of times people want to forget those things that are really jarring and disturbing about, you know, what was happening to African Americans in the sixties and, you know, during the whole Civil Rights Era and before even the whole combination of why that occurred is because people were being hung for, you know, on trees for, you know, no reason, really. And so I think that it’s important that we understand that there is this connection, despite the two differences of culture, there’s a lot of connection between what happened between with Mexican Americans and with what happened between African Americans. So, despite the fact that is jarring to look at, I think it’s important that we remember. And also, I think it’s important that you can’t see the faces of the people. So when you’re looking at this piece, I mean, you could easily identify with it depending on where you come from. Thank you, Marsha. I totally agree with you.

24:10 - And that was a thought running through my head as well about the faces not being put there. So they really can be whatever your imagination can bring. So whatever you are, and unfortunately, American history has involved a lot of killing lynching and, you know, that’s, what’s happened throughout history. I was recently reading about, Fort Ringgold and how during that whole thing in don’t ask me, not a historian. I never quite get those battles correct. But the, the main point was that when they did decide a lot of Mexicans owned a lot of the land that was here, all of the land, really, much of it, that was not Native American. And when the U.S.

came in and decided to make the Rio Grande River 25:01 - the border, the dissection between Mexico and Texas, they were told, okay, now you have to choose, do you want to be American or do you want to be Mexican? But whatever part you use the land that used to be yours in whichever area, it’s no longer yours. And I thought, wow, that’s awful. Just take somebody’s land why don’t you, I guess the same thing with us, let’s just take their life, you know, and I see this noose and it’s around the neck of the urn. And, you know, we’ve had that recent symbolism, I guess now you look at it with the George Floyd case. You’re, seeing this noose and that that’s still happening, that people are still choking people. That there is people are being, you know wiped out for no real reason.

25:48 - And what you’re left with is a sea of skulls on a barren tree. And I think that tree, the fact that the tree it’s not bearing fruit, like there’s no fruit, there’s no leaves, it’s, it’s dead. And so everything about this, just reeks of death and killing, and it’s unfortunately very symbolic of our American history and how we came to be who we are from raiding the Native American lands. to, you know, fighting with Africans, fighting with Mexicans, just yea, it is just who we are, even though we may not want to, we don’t want to think about it like that. We like where we are, pretty roses, Or we think it is anyways, but this speaks so much truth. Yeah, definitely.

I mean, definitely what you said about, I mean, the, 26:38 - the noose was really a symbol for the state. I mean, if you think about it back then, that’s like the technology they had, as far as like, you know, other than the gun, right. But this was really like a symbol for like white supremacy in general and by state sanction, white supremacy, nonetheless. I do love the, what you note about the tree, right. Not giving fruit, not being alive. And so it, we see it continue. And so, but this was definitely a very dark period.

27:09 - It’s also the biggest piece in the collection. And so it also shows like that it was a significant importance, in general. And so I do want to move on from there, but it’s great. I mean, the details there’s striking and it’s huge too, so. so this next piece is called, “El Camino de Hierro” and it’s a conversation around the industrialization of the Rio Grande Valley and the introduction of the railroad system and mass agricultural production into the Rio Grande Valley landscape.

And so, 27:48 - what we have here is, I guess, a never-ending loop of railroads that kind of starts from there beginning, towards the bottom, that is paralleled by a group of seedlings that are growing and kind of representative of agriculture, but also kind of look like horse hoofs, in my mind. And so I saw it also as like, you know, industrialization coming and the ranching economy leaving, something around that. And so, at least that’s how I interpret it. And then it leads into these bombs that basically the seedlings become bombs and lead you to this figure of a skull in a uniform, kind of luring you in. And so this is particularly speaking about that industrialization, but also about the Bracero program and about the use of Brown people, right. To basically keep the homefront fed and while folks were off in war.

And so that’s 28:59 - what’s representative of the bombs falling, right. And also talks about like the future of pesticide use and like, and so there’s a lot of symbolism there. I also read the figure in the in the uniform is some just as somebody in a uniform, he could be a farmer in my mind, it’s like a police person, or like a border patrol agent. So it kind of brings to light like the militarization of the border after, or during this program, or like after this period of when the war was over. And so, it, the image then leads to the top, which has, a tombstone that reads, “it was a of suffering.

” And it has, I guess, 29:44 - a bounty of fruits and vegetables that are being offered to The Braceros, I guess, in this instance that never really saw the fruit of their labor. And so that’s how I read this piece, as far as, the symbolism with Rio Grande Valley history. But I do know that again, so much tied to the Southern experience in general. And I know that history, the history of the railroads, the history of forced agricultural production, right? Slavery is huge in the African American experience, basically the foundation of it. And so I wanted to hear more about y’all’s thoughts around this piece and the symbolism that we discussed or that I brought up.

30:33 - Well, I, you know, as we looked at this before and I thought about how closely related the Mexican American history and the Rio Grande Valley is with Black History and just looking at the railroad and the way that it is put on this piece, it’s kind of separated beneath the railroad, you see nothing, essentially it’s kind of barren, there’s nothing there. And like you said, there’s seedlings on the other side, and there was a lot of segregation and I think we failed to realize often that Mexican Americans and Black Americans had the same type of segregation occurring, you know, there were white only fountains, meant that, you know, Blacks nor Mexicans could bring from that fountain. I was told by an older gentleman here who grew up through this time, he was a patient of mine, former patient of mine. It was saying, yeah, you know, we couldn’t, we couldn’t cross the railroad tracks. We have to stay, you know, on our side. And I look at it and think, I can imagine that our side being the barren side, there’s not much going, but on the other side of those tracks, you’ve got, you know, growth.

31:50 - You’ve got things that are moving forward, the seeds have been planted and you have to stand there and watch this. Or you were the ones who had to take care of the seedlings and the fruit for somebody else, even though it was your land, but you don’t get to reap those benefits that, of your labor. And I think that, you know, when you see it, it really does all culminate and I wonder, it says it was a time of suffering. And I was looking at it going, you would think it’s a tombstone, that’s been dead and buried, but yet it’s not. That is something that still continues to this day.

32:28 - It’s still a time of suffering and it would have been nice had this been, yes, we put this up, you know, we’re over, that was one time and now we’re somewhere else. But I think as you look at this, realize, wow, as much as that was done with hope, we are still in this cycle, not so much of the extreme segregation as it was during Jim Crow, but people are still not seeing each other as equals, as just living, breathing beings that God created. And we’re just here. We should be able to work together, but there’s still a lot that is separating us, probably in our own minds. So the thing that really stood out to me when we were looking at this, was that the inscription on the tombstone that says, “it was a time of suffering.” And then, as Josué pointed out, the fruits and vegetables are at the bottom.

33:21 - And so I thought about, you know, how my ancestors here in this country, they were planting things and bringing forth, you know, harvesting the fruit and vegetables that they were planting. And yet still it represented suffering for them because they never saw, like, where did this go? Like, where they were never able to get off the plantation. They weren’t really able to have a life, their lives were not their own. And so it became a time of suffering, but as if we fast forward to today, when I think about the fruit and the vegetable, which is harvest, right, and it seems to be a bountiful time. And when you think about people are living their lives and we are, have advanced in so many different ways, but as Theresa mentioned, we’re still suffering as people.

34:05 - We are still suffering based on things that we can’t change: the color of our skin, our gender, you know, or whatever it might be. It still represents a time of suffering for a lot of people. So even though that we are in this bountiful time, still a lot of people are suffering with just basic understanding of one another and the differences of our culture. So that’s what really, what stood out to me when I looked at this. Yeah, definitely. I mean, the pattern of inequity is even higher, right. I mean, it’s the it’s continued, right.

In terms 34:40 - of the general population and those who have, and the people that are relegated to not having anything, what do you call it? It’s that gap is so much larger. And I also agree with the observation around the railroad and segregation, right. And I think these times, or this instance in history was when the segregationist attitudes and policies were being actually put in place, right? Like the railroad didn’t only bring and take fruit. It brought, you know, people, and along with those people came their attitudes towards white supremacy, right. And the idea that they were better than everybody else and that everybody else was the other.

And so that really did 35:26 - cement these ideas of segregationist attitudes that really did relegate people to a life of suffering, to a life of not seeing the fruit of their labor. And so, I know that a lot of these pieces might seem like violent, right. But I think that since colonization of the Rio Grande Valley and the native people, a lot of the experiences, at least the major experiences that have definitely marked the contemporary Rio Grande Valley, were very violent. And I think a lot of the contemporary examples that are shifting history, we’re seeing are very violent. And so I think it gives truth to that idea that, you know, with change comes, oftentimes, violence, but also, you know, suffering.

And, 36:26 - the question is who’s really suffering, right. And it is the violence, who was inflicting the violence, right. And so, that’s the, this is the third piece from her collection, and this is the last one in this color tone, sepia color tone. And so what she wanted to do there is basically let you know that these were like, this is a collection of like a very bad time. Right? So like the color itself is like in a sepia or like I guess, clay tone because it, she wants you to see the uniformity in that, in those times.

37:01 - And so this next one is the, the last piece in the timeline, and it’s supposed to represent the present. And basically it has a, another quote that says, “Despite everything, here we are, and here we will remain in our land.” And this is obviously a lot more colorful than the previous work, and it has a more organic form in my mind. And it all comes back to the idea, the cactus, right, the nopal, which she started off in the beginning, and rather than just being a little section of it and now encompasses the whole thing. And it really shows like that cactus overcame or like the roots came back.

And so in my mind, like all these, 37:52 - the symbolism or imagery around plants right around the cactus, around the tree, around the seedlings around now the cactus is all like, uh, ties all these pieces together and really shows that we are regrowing and that we are now here in this, what looks to me like a very pregnant cactus, or like a very, you know, something that’s about to give life something that’s there to like protect, but also has the beauty and the resistance like that symbolized through, the rose on top or like the flower imagery. And so that’s kind of what I see in this piece. And, and it does, you know, it, that quote is like, we’re here and we’re here to stay. I was really, this is one of my favorite pieces in the collection just because of the difference, but I really do love the ceramic technique too. So, it’s really cool, You know, as I’m looking at this piece now, and reading the words, despite everything here we are, and here we will remain in our land.

38:58 - You still see the thorns that are on the cactus. So it still represents to me that there is still some struggle that exists, even as we go through change. but even though we are still struggling, we’re not going anywhere. And I think that, you know, you know, people are kind of staking their claim to this is where I am. This is, I might have have been brought here against my will, you know, slaves on the slave trade.

39:22 - But, you know, several generations later this country is my country just as much as it is your country. And so despite the struggles that we may still have represented by the thorns, we’re, we’re not going anywhere. And I think it also gives hope to the future that we can find a way to work together, to understand differences amongst ourselves and amongst the cultures, and just really look to have a better future. That’s right. And I think also I see that as well. I love that, that quote, you said it actually earlier in another piece, we’re looking at that here we are, and we’re going to remain here. We’re not going anywhere. And I think when I look at the cactus, you know, cacti are really hardy. They are difficult to kill. They’re difficult to destroy.

40:13 - They survive wind storms and sand storms and hurricanes, droughts and they’re still there. And I think it’s great that she chose a cactus, you know, to put even just that, the words that are on it, that verbiage on a cactus and how it’s so representative of the experiences of Black Americans and Mexican Americans, that, you know what, we are cacti. We are hard to kill and we’re going to continue. And I think putting that little flower on the top was this it’s kind of perfect in that, it always keeps that, the thought in your head that we’re still growing and there’s still life. And it’s still beautiful because a Rose is very much different from a cactus it needs pruning and it’s, you know, it smells and it’s beautiful, but it’s seasonal.

41:06 - Then it dies off, comes back, you know, does what it does when cacti is always standing. And they have it sitting at the top of a cactus is just, it’s just an amazing, I find it very, very striking in this going, wow, I’m a cactus, but I’m a rose too. I’m beautiful regardless. So this piece, I think it’s called, “La Resistencia” or I have to double check, but I am going to send all the work or all the links to Jessica Denise’s Instagram and her website, but this is her and I was just lucky enough to have talked to her a little bit more and really gotten to understand where she comes from as far as her work. And I thought they were great examples of tying histories. Right. And so basically what I wanted to do is showcase that there’s a lot of symbolism and a lot of experiences that are very tied, right.

As far as the 42:06 - Brown experience here in The Valley and the African American experience in general in in the Valley or in the South in the United States and in general. And so, that’s kinda what I wanted to talk and show that oftentimes we forget or there’s like this historic amnesia, right. Or that oftentimes as Mexicans or as Latinx folks we disregard racism as just a Black and white thing. Right. And we don’t take ownership of that. And also don’t acknowledge that we ourselves are, you know, people who have had a violent history with white supremacy as well. Right. And so that we have more in common with the the individuals that are being oppressed than the individuals that are oppressing us, and that we should really look at those examples in history and understand that and move forward with that.

43:04 - And so that’s the reason why I really wanted to showcase Denise’s work and she’s used it, to, start conversations with the community right around those kinds of topics. And this is an example of an event called Encuentro en la Frontera where her work was kind of used to start a conversation around this history of violence, right. And to reclaiming, our space, but also acknowledging these facts. And so I want to give a shout out to Jessica. And this also, I guess, her more contemporary work, in a digital design that she made and kind of wanted to tie it back more to the current experiences that we’re dealing with, racial injustice, right.

43:49 - and how Rio Grande Valley artists are using their artwork to talk about that and to show, you know, support. And this is an example of her digital artwork that says Black Lives Matter, which you share on Instagram. And then the following are examples also of, I guess, artistic interventions, around, intersectional issues. So this is an action that was placed over the Jefferson Davis, Jefferson Davis Memorial in Brownsville that was now removed. And so, it says no racist idols. And after that, I made a zine about that instance or whoever made that.

And 44:35 - so I continued that, and then somebody else made this cool t-shirt that is based on the image. And it has a James Baldwin quote in the back that says, “People are trapped in their history, and history is trapped in them.” And that’s by an artist named Edgar Gonzelaz, I believe. But he basically used the image to raise funds for DACA recipients to apply or to use for their applications. And so we see an example of how, you know, an artistic intervention can, around, you know, in support of Black Lives can help or continue, right.

And 45:16 - be used for more intersectional issues. Right. I mean, like there are DACA recipients that are Black. And so, one of these, some of this money could go to help individuals like that, right. and so this is just an example of how Rio Grande Valley artists are continuing to show support and solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement and talk about, you know, what we’re doing currently. Yeah. So I just like to say that, you know, Theresa and I are here representing an organization called Village in the Valley. So VilliageintheValley.

org and 45:57 - our goal really is to create a larger awareness about, Black people here and really to combine, cultures so that people can understand, like, what is a Black experience here in the Valley and how does it correlate and relate to the Mexican experience in the Valley? And so we’ve done a lot of things. Our organization started a year ago, we’ve been catapulted like severely into the future. But really, even as I was sitting here, the discussion on social change, really, in my opinion, revolves around mindset. And as aside from me being a nurse, I neglected to mention that I’m also a mindset coach and a lot of my work focuses on really helping people be reflective about the thoughts that they have, how those thoughts make them feel. And then the words that you say that come out of your mouth.

46:47 - So I think this conversation is really one about social change, but it’s also about how can we shift our mindset and our beliefs and what we used to believe and hold true into new beliefs that we can hold to be true for was applicable to today. So I think the art that we’ve discussed really helps, you know, create an understanding of where people may have come from, but, you know, I’m very hopeful for the future of where we can be. And it really, in my opinion, it starts with your mindset. Yeah, I agree. It definitely starts with the mindset. So many things can be changed if we just change our perception. And I think that’s where the visual art comes from as well, because sometimes you don’t remember the battle names or certain historical things that have happened, but when you can associate that with a piece of art, something that is visual, it really packs another part of your brain and attaches at a deeper level.

47:44 - You might not remember, you know, the what was said on the cactus that we’re just looking at that piece, but you’ll remember the feeling that came, your perception from, oh well, that cactus, that’s just amazing. Yeah. I’m still standing here. I might’ve had suffering might have thorns after me or attached to me, but I’m still moving here. And so you still, you see that. And I think that the visual art is just amazing To go back, back in the seventies, a huge symbol was, you know, for Black people was that raised fist. And that still says a lot that Black power, that I’m strong. It means a lot. We might not have been there, but when you see it, you still have that same feeling when you can remember it.

48:32 - So I think some of the work that we are doing with Village in the Valley is really poignant and needed at a time such as this, that we’re living in now. I certainly didn’t think that we would be having a second Civil Rights Era. I mean, I thought it was an era, it was supposed to be gone, but yet I feel like that is exactly where we are. And Village in the Valley is really intent on creating and bridging those gaps and making sure that we do understand, you know, who we are as Black people and Mexican Americans and how that history intwined So I really enjoyed this discussion. There’s a lot more we talk about, but I will stop and let Gina tell us where to go from here.

49:22 - I think that’s an important statement about the fist that even what, 50 years later, it’s still the symbol of the movement today. those ceramic pieces were so beautiful. They really hit hard. The last one, the green one, it reminded me of, you know, even though you go, like you go through things and you survive them and you kind of grow these little thorns all over you, and it’s somehow makes you a little bit like stronger, but then also puts a little, I don’t know, maybe like a little barrier or something so that when you rub up against people, they know to get out of the way. Okay. Well, the, and also I liked that they were functional because it reminded me, cause you can carry water in them. You can kind of use them to bring life. So from all of this history of suffering, somehow we can use these pieces to either hold our history or you mentioned them being like an urn and hold those memories. I thought that was very powerful. So I guess the last thing that I wanted to ask you about was the work that you’re doing and Via and Neta.

I know ViVa, 50:52 - I think you’re working on a scholarship currently and is that it’s on my calendar, I think. There are several things that we’re working on. Scholarship is one major things, but we do have an event that’s, I guess it’s coming up on 31st of October Which is a food distribution and the City of Penitas. We were very fortunate to be able to get some boxes of food, to distribute to that region out there, but we are, and we’re going to be doing that monthly going forward. We’re going to choose different cities that we can distribute the food to the residents in that area for free, but there are other things that we’re doing.

51:34 - I think Theresa you can speak to the historical African American Historical Commission. Yes. In fact, today, as Marsha said we just had a meeting with Judge Richard Cortez. We had split up our board. So part of our board was at that meeting. And part of the board is over here, who is working to see if we can get a Hidalgo County African American Historical and Cultural Council and Commission. So we actually have the council already, but we are looking to get a commission. In other words, those commissioners, once it’s approved, it will be at the County level will be part of that whole state system.

52:13 - But it’s about learning, looking for, and archiving the history of the Rio Grande, the Valley where African Americans and Mexican Americans intersect. what was here, who was here, events, places, people who were very integral to the growth of The Valley, to the beginning of The Valley. And at the end of that all it’s going to be a part of the Texas African American Cultural Historical Commission Trail. So they’re making a landmark trail, that’s going to be going all over Texas. There’ll be a map. They have a website you’ll be able to go through to find it.

52:55 - If you wanted to find sites or places that you can visit, to learn more about the Mexican and African American interaction, especially here in the Rio Grande Valley, kind of intersected a lot. I’m not sure how much that intersects throughout the rest of Texas, but for sure it does here in and we’ll be able to travel through it. So it’s really amazing. And I haven’t heard how it went. My husband just stepped in and it was on that other meeting to see if we can get on their agenda. This coming November 3rd, which is their next council meeting to formally address them requesting, the formation of the commission here in Hidalgo County and when we’re also working on Cameron County, simultaneously. So that’s another major thing that we are working on and we’re very proud of our work and it’s a little bit in awe because it wasn’t really what we, what we thought we’d be doing, but we’re so happy to be here and that we are an organization that is available and willing with so many fantastic members and leaders in our organization to help us move this forward.

And, uh, yeah, I think we’re gonna, 54:09 - I think we’re going to be doing a lot of stuff in the community. Thank you guys for your work. It’s inspiring and just incredible. Thank you. Josué? Yeah, so currently Neta is, we are in a transitioning period, but we have been, before COVID we were working with the Equal Voice Network doing arts organizing work and so supplementing their artists committee to basically organizing artists and connecting them with grassroots, you know, events or grassroots narratives that local organizations are working on and movement building type stuff and basically connecting them to support them. And so that’s something that we did earlier and we’re looking forward to 2021. But yeah, as of now we’re been posting mostly through Instagram and supporting other stuff that’s happening. but our original content has been at a standstill.

55:18 - but we look forward to 2021 and sharing new stuff. Awesome. Me too. I love you guys’ work. And it’s a great place for information. I know a lot of people are like what’s happening in the RGV. Like where are the artists, where are the, where’s their voice? And you could always go to Neta to figure that out. So, Okay, I guess before we go, is there any parting advice you have for students looking to get more involved? Any life advice? What’s the favorite part of your job? Well, for sure, for Village in the Valley we are always looking for more people to join so that we can be more connected. And you don’t have to be Black, you can be anything. It really doesn’t matter.

56:16 - We’re very much about connecting the different cultures together and really it takes a village to raise a child in this case just to raise a community. We need our village, we need people. So they can certainly go to our website which is VillageintheValley.org or to our Facebook page which is Village in the Valley RGV or Instagram which is Viva RGV. To check out anything, follow, join. There are always things going on. Like you said, we are looking for volunteers for our food distribution, October 31st. We’re going to be there at seven in the morning. Distribution begins at nine.

56:59 - So we’ll take any volunteers from seven, even if they’d like to come. Just there is, I think, Marsha is it on our Facebook page yet? Where they can sign up? And it’s going to be on our Facebook page by the end of the day, as well as any future events that we have for the food distribution and we will definitely need volunteers. So I think if students really want to participate and be agents of social change, interestingly enough, that was, that is a theme of Walden University being an agent of social change. So I think it’s a good place for people to get involved and just to give back to the community and just really learn about each other as we are distributing food to, you know, those who can’t afford it. So there’ll be several opportunities from October through December to be able to participate in that venture.

57:49 - So yeah, I would say go follow ViVa and then go follow Neta and then go follow Jessica Denise Villegas to see more of her artwork. And then if you want to follow me on Instagram, but yeah, stay tuned for 2021 cause we are really excited about it. And so, help us spread the word once that gets around. Question, is Jessica Villegas on Instagram and that’s what her handle would be as well? Yes, her handle is at J Denise Villegas and you can find her work there and then her website is JDeniseVillegas.com, which is beautiful because it’s awesome. Awesome. Thank you. Thank you.

58:37 - That’s the one I mentioned that we are having each of the four months: September, October, November, and December, this is part of a larger panel series called, “Transforming Our World and included in it is, we’re looking for poetry submissions on any of these topics. So it’s going to go into an anthology that the STC library is putting out. And then also if you’re making any artwork about these themes, we’re including those artworks in the anthology. So just if you want to submit them on social media and tag the library, or if you want to submit them directly to me, my email is GOtvos@SouthTexasCollege.edu. And anything else? Thank you. Thank you so much for the invitation. Yes. And awesome. Thank you everyone for tuning in and we’ll see you soon. Thank you everyone. Thank you, bye. .