Latina South

“I still hold myself accountable for sitting at the table and having a voice at the table when others don’t. For me that’s a huge responsibility but it’s also a huge honor to be able to be a voice for people who perhaps feel unheard or unseen.” – Nury Castillo Crawford

In 2016, Nury Castillo Crawford was driven to write her own book based upon her own personal journey from Peru to the US in order to counter the negative immigrant narratives being circulated on the time. While doing the research in publishing her book, she decided to create her own publishing house, 1010 Publishing which focuses on bilingual stories. Her book, 3585 Miles to Be an American Girl, is the first in her Sofia series.

Nury talks about how being Latina has always been a big part of who she is and how it helped her to thrive in a new and changing world. Education and giving back to the community is very important to her. Nury shares her experience of living in the South and speaking up, even when others may not like it. She has some tips for both children and adults on how to speak your voice – it’s not always what you have to say, but how you say it.

Nury talks about another book, Soy Mexicana, Soy Me, a story of a young girl moving between two countries and two cultures. Her publishing company is also expanding offerings in multiple languages.

We can best support Nury and her work by visiting 1010Publishing.com and by sharing on social media @1010Publishing to help increase awareness of biliteracy which helps to empower bicultural communities.

Nury offers words of wisdom: you can make a difference, even if you help one person. She encourages everyone to think about elevating others in their daily lives, even just one person at time.

Thank you for listening! You can support Latina South on Patreon and by sharing this episode with a friend.

“I don’t necessarily believe in the idea we were fed that everybody is in competition with each other. I truly believe that with collaboration you can actually accomplish a lot more, and what better way to be able to grow in so many different markets if you’re able to work with us instead of against us.” – Rita Bautista

Rita shares her vision for the Latina Podcasters Network. Adela asks, “Why Latinas? And Why now?” Rita says “Why not Latinas?” The Latinx community have a 1.7 Trillion dollar buying power and Latinas are the fastest growing segment of small business developers. It is time and representation matters. Latinas are an important part of what is going to shape this country.

Rita talks about the beauty of Honduras and mentions a recent hurricane that devastated the area. She shares her parent’s background - her father was a merchant marine and her mother who bravely moved to the US on her own as a young woman. Rita describes how she brings the bold and gritty aspects of being Catratcha, or Hondureńa, to her everyday life.

Living as Latina in the South, specifically in the unique cities of Houston and New Orleans, leads her to appreciate the prevailing sense of tradition and keeping those traditions alive - whether good or bad. Kindness, football and food are also important aspects she enjoys. She talks more about sports and how it allowed her to be loud with her family.

Her family had a big influence on her being a visionary and tells us all to stop worrying about what other people think. She shares more about the 10:10:1 concept: 10 goals she wants to accomplish, 10 things to be grateful for, and the 1 next step to help you get you closer to accomplishing at least one goal. It’s how she trains her mind to see the opportunities all around her.

Rita talks about her approach to being welcoming and providing support to Latina podcasters which includes building community and resources for helping to monetize their work. She talks about the uniqueness of Latina voices in the South and showing the talent coming out of the region and changing the narrative of Latina’s contributions in the community.

She reveals how she’s worked on herself a lot and having been in some challenging and uncertain times in her life.

She shares some words of wisdom – we must be the ones to determine what happiness looks like and position yourself to get want you want. And also take a second to look at the happiness you already have around you.

To support Rita, follow the list of Latina Podcasters on Spotify playlist and connect to the Latina Podcasters Network .

Thank you for listening! Please visit us at https://www.latinasouth.com/

"It's important to me to be unapologetic about the stories that I'm representing through my work and even being unapologetic about the way that I represent myself in the spaces that I get to be in." - Yehimi Cambrón

Host Adela Yelton asks Yehimi, “How did Art find you?” Yehimi explains how the art classroom became a space for her to express herself as a little girl in an English language-dominant environment. She talks about being Latina, undocumented and Mexicana, in the South and how she hopes her Monuments theme will lead to a more inclusive South in spite of the area's ubiquitous monuments to the confederate legacy. (1:40)

Teaching and her relationships with students and the community were integral to Yehimi's path to being able to pursue her work as an artist full time. She talks about working with the nonprofit organization Living Walls and finding the courage to say yes to her first public art projects in her Atlanta community. (5:16)

Yehimi's personal experience as a Latina, undocumented and Mexicana in the South influences her artist voice and work. She also focuses on creating spaces through her murals where others can share their stories and speak for themselves. (12:08)

Adela and Yehimi talk about “Monuments, Our Immigrant Mothers” located in Decatur, Georgia and moments of connection. She welcomes conversations about her murals and understands that her work sometimes makes people feel uncomfortable. As creators, they talk about not taking on all the burdens of the world and for people having the responsibility to educate themselves - and ask themselves why - when they feel discomfort. (14:21)

The migrating monarch butterfly features prominently in the mural “We Give Each Other the World” located in Hapeville, Georgia near Atlanta's airport. The monarch image serves as a symbol of migration and is a way to connect to the stories of immigrants and why they migrate. Her approach is community-centered and inclusive. The individual stories and interactions are what keep her going, even in difficult times. (22:13)

Yehimi talks about her legacy and her hope for the long-term impact of her work in spite of the ephemeral nature of her murals. Adela asks how we can best support Yehimi and her work – by purchasing prints directly from her at www.yehimicambron.com. Sharing her images on social media platforms like Instagram: @ycambron is also an impactful way to support her as an artist. (28:34)

Yehimi wants Latinas and young immigrant women to know, "there is hope and you have the power to go after your goals." (34:12)

Thank you to our listeners for your support! Visit us a Latina South or drop us a line at [email protected] and let us know what you think. And please subscribe, rate, and leave us a review wherever you are listening.

“Even in this past year... I’ve had the opportunity to just breathe for a minute. As a Latina, family has always been everything to me and it just made me realize again that I needed to focus on my family and I wanted to spend more time with them. And it was okay...it was okay.” – Jennifer Salazar Hutcheson

Jennifer talks about her Latina identity and her Peruvian background and growing up in New York. After 9/11 she moved to Georgia where she met her husband who became aware of the racial overtones to her experiences. (1:30)

She finds herself back in North Carolina to be with family. She shares a scary experience that happened to her and her two young sons while walking in Charlotte. (8:30)

Jennifer opens up about her youngest son and the beginning of their journey with autism. She finds support with family and the blogging community. She talks about seeing things in a different way. She shares her experience with her son using the word ‘Tree’ during the holidays and her reaction of happiness that they are able to connect with the word. She talks about how it is difficult to find in-person support in her area and how it may be because parents are in different places about being open with their needs. (11.50)

Jennifer talks about starting her blog Mami2Mommy.com. With a background in public relations and communication she was able to connect with other Latina moms using this platform. She talks about the early days of blogging – attending Blogalicious and Hispanicize events and finding her people in the Latino community and helping to build it. Her son calls her a pioneer. (20:40)

She talks about her parents and family hustling and working hard and learning from them. Jennifer talks about taking a pause for now and shares her words of wisdom: to give ourselves the opportunity to take a break and just breathe. Adela thanks Jennifer for opening our eyes on so many things. (27:37)

Thank you! The best way to support Latina South podcast is to listen, share with a friend, subscribe, rate and leave a review wherever you listen. Also support us on Patreon.

"As young people, your job right now is to put in a lot of work. And for me, I see that as the investment. You have to invest in yourself first, by putting in the work and by doing the best job that you can. And when you're young...you don't have to sleep." - Brenda Lopez Romero

.............

In the first of two parts of this Episode, we talk with powerhouse Latina, Brenda Lopez Romero. Brenda made history in 2016 when she became the very first Latina elected to the Georgia General Assembly. Born in Mexico, she came to the US at age 5 and became a US citizen in 2008. Let’s listen as Brenda talks about how it feels to be among the first and the few. She shares her personal story, like that of her father’s, as one of responsibility and hard work from a very young age. She also talks about what we can do to offer young people exposure to the places where decisions are made - helping to build experience in the future leaders of our community.

And there we pause the first of two parts of Episode 18 of our interview with Brenda Lopez Romero. Stay tuned and be sure to listen to the second episode where Brenda reveals some critical lessons learned during her 2020 US Congressional campaign in Georgia - a process she says she could only learn from by running and trying it herself.

Podcast Music: “The OGS Present Higher” Written by Divinity Roxx, Marcie Chapa, Katty Rodriguez, Nikki Glaspie, Tia Fuller Published by Hot Tottie Music (ASCAP), Wambui Publishing Company, I M A Funkateer (BMI) Used by permission. All rights reserved.