Ruben, they/them
Call me: Rubén
Pronouns: they/them
Work I’m proud of: I’ve been an artivist, organizer, and storyteller since my youth, more than twenty years of my life. In that time, I’ve been a part of dozens of organizations, campaigns, networks, and projects of all sorts. I’ve met and learned from thousands of people, and have collaborated with hundreds. All of it has lead me here to my work with Lupe & Michelle at Voces - of which I am immensely proud.
Inspirations: My friends and family. My community. The RGV landscape. Artists, activists, truth tellers, shit talkers, people who play music real loud, people who are fashionable, queer people, funny people, sex workers, poets…
Dreams: I know it’s cliché, but I dream of world peace - a world without prisons or borders, where we are all free.
What makes the Valley ‘magic’: The people. The culture. The land.
Michelle, she/her
Call me: Michelle
Pronouns: She/Her
Work I’m proud of: I am proud of the work I did as cultural organizer in the past as founder of Brownsville Artists and Musicians (BAM) and I believe it’s because of this that we have a solid base of public support for the cultural organizing Voces Unidas does today.
Inspirations: DIY punk organizers, Jean-Michele Basquiat, Henry Rollins, Alice Bag, the Rio Grande Delta and all the beings that dwell upon it.
Dreams: Liberation for all beings is my number one priority.
What makes the Valley ‘magic’: The coastal breeze that moves across the lomas and prairies, whispering through the trees of our thorn scrub forests. The meandering waterways and riparian forests that instantly cool our bodies when we shelter beneath them. Friday night gatherings and Saturday nature strolls. Barbacoa Sundays under a backdrop of relaxation. That’s what makes the Valley magical to me.
Lupe, they/she
Call me: Lupe
Pronouns: they/she
Work I’m proud of: I’m proud of the nebula of organizational work that has lead me to this position, including; transformative justice work with Divest/Invest RGV specifically documenting instances of police harm in our Police Misconduct Database, cultural organizing with Trucha on their ‘Roots Break Walls’ campaign, the Sembramos y Florecemos fellowship that ultimately connected me to Voces Unidas and the project that grew from my time with SYF, Never-Before-Zine an autonomous artist collective based here in the RGV. It's all one in the same struggle and spawns from my love of community and creativity.
Inspirations: my family and friends, creatives, dissidents and troublemakers. People who think deeply and feel deeper.
Dreams: i dream of liberation, love and creative fulfillment for everyone
What makes the Valley ‘magic’: local legends (the chupacabra, johnny canales, q tacos), the senora/vecino mutual aid network, unwavering resistance in the face of constant threat (border militarization, immigration narrative etc.). When you’re alone on a trail/off-road somewhere on the banks of one of our local waterways/observing nature in your front yard and you stop and you let yourself really see what’s in front of you, you’ll recognize our magic is inherent.
