WEBVTT

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<v Speaker 1>Marl Boyle and DC do have a history. I will

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<v Speaker 1>complicate a history with cultural representation in their books, you know,

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<v Speaker 1>being Latino at the same time, being Chicano living in Texas.

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<v Speaker 1>I was longing for characters that understood me.

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<v Speaker 2>From futuro media. It's Latin Usa. I'm Maria Ino Josa today.

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<v Speaker 2>Ecdor Rodriguez the creator of Elbso Hero, a comic book

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<v Speaker 2>superhero celebrating in ten years of fighting Mexican cartels, corrupt officials,

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<v Speaker 2>and advocating for the rights of migrants on the border.

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<v Speaker 2>By day, ec Door Rodriguez is a school teacher in Dallas, Texas,

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<v Speaker 2>but by night, he's hard at work building up the

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<v Speaker 2>world of Elbeso Hero. Launched in twenty eleven, the comic

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<v Speaker 2>book draws from Ector's imagination and his own experiences growing

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<v Speaker 2>up on the border. Historically, there's been very little diversity

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<v Speaker 2>in mainstream superhero comic books. The ones whose stories have

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<v Speaker 2>recently been magnified by the big screen are so few

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<v Speaker 2>that we can almost name them all here. In twenty eleven,

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<v Speaker 2>Miles Morales, an Afro Latino teen from Brooklyn, New York,

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<v Speaker 2>was introduced by Marvel as an alternate version of Spider Man,

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<v Speaker 2>and seven years later, Miles would be the star of

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<v Speaker 2>the Academy Award winning animated feature Spider Man into the

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<v Speaker 2>Spider Verse. Marvel Entertainment also brought Black Panther to the

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<v Speaker 2>big screen. The critically acclaimed film was nominated for six

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<v Speaker 2>Oscars and won three. Mexican actress sal Mahayak, alongside other

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<v Speaker 2>non white actors, will have a role in The Eternals.

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<v Speaker 2>It's scheduled to be released in November. Still, these big

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<v Speaker 2>name superheroes haven't quenched the loud and growing demand for

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<v Speaker 2>representation in the comic book landscape. Meanwhile, several Latino and

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<v Speaker 2>Latina independent creators, from illustrators to writers and others, are

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<v Speaker 2>trying to make up for that void. In this week's

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<v Speaker 2>How I Made It, Ecto Rodriguez talks about growing up

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<v Speaker 2>loving superheroes but not feeling represented by them, something he'd

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<v Speaker 2>eventually deal with by creating his own comic world centered

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<v Speaker 2>on the Border. Here's Hectro Rodriguez.

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<v Speaker 1>I am the creator of the graphic novel LATINX series

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<v Speaker 1>El Paso Hero. I was raised in the Border, so specifically,

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<v Speaker 1>I was raised in Egopass, Texas, which is about two

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<v Speaker 1>hours away from San Antonio and the sister city of

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<v Speaker 1>Piedras Negras Quaila north of Mexico. The border is a

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<v Speaker 1>whole different world. It's a bridge between cultures, languages, food.

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<v Speaker 1>Growing up, I had a huge appetite for Mexican entertainment media,

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<v Speaker 1>and so I used to watch a lot of Lucre

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<v Speaker 1>Canteen Flass and my grandparents loved the Golden Age of

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<v Speaker 1>Mexican cinema, and so those characters are just greater than life.

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<v Speaker 1>And I had that influence my father. He was also

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<v Speaker 1>a huge geek himself, with being raised by watching you know,

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<v Speaker 1>the old schools Star Track and you know, reading Captain

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<v Speaker 1>America Southern Rock, and so I had these two worlds,

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<v Speaker 1>and I was just fascinated with these greater than life characters.

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<v Speaker 1>But you know, the American characters never really spoke to me,

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<v Speaker 1>you know, like like I like to get around. You know,

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<v Speaker 1>when was the last time you saw Batman eat and banadas,

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<v Speaker 1>you know, or Superman eat bandul say, you know, Spider

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<v Speaker 1>Man and Posole? No, of course not. It wasn't until

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<v Speaker 1>by late ninety one ninety two we moved to Middle

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<v Speaker 1>of Texas College Station, which to me, was a huge

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<v Speaker 1>culture shock, going from a majority Latino classroom, bi lingual

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<v Speaker 1>classroom to a general ed monolingual classroom. But really cool

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<v Speaker 1>thing about College Station that they actually had independent comic

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<v Speaker 1>book stores, and so my dad would take me and

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<v Speaker 1>my siblings to pick up comic books. You know, I

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<v Speaker 1>was looking for that hero that really spoke to my world.

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<v Speaker 1>Marvel and DC do have a history, will complicate it

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<v Speaker 1>history with cultural representation in their books, with a lot

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<v Speaker 1>of black exploitation eras, and you know a lot of

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<v Speaker 1>typical sterotype characters within their books, you know, and they

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<v Speaker 1>were just you know, basically like second class superheroes. The

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<v Speaker 1>way I would fill the void of black reversentation, I

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<v Speaker 1>started creating my own comics, and I remember I started

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<v Speaker 1>penciling and drawing, and then in middle school I was

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<v Speaker 1>selling my images, my prints. I was drawing first, I mean,

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<v Speaker 1>you know, just the Marvel characters of Wolverine, Spider Man, venem.

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<v Speaker 1>Kids would buy them for a couple of dollars and

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<v Speaker 1>it would be, you know, just popular characters. And so

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<v Speaker 1>in a way, I was flexing my creative muscles, flexing

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<v Speaker 1>my graphic art. And then on the side, I would

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<v Speaker 1>create these, uh, these small comic books, you know, and

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<v Speaker 1>usually I would I would have very simplistic story, but

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<v Speaker 1>in nothing serious because I was still learning a lot

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<v Speaker 1>from the art. One of the very first characters I

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<v Speaker 1>created had a mask that would change depending on the perspective,

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<v Speaker 1>and it changed through wherever I was looking at it,

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<v Speaker 1>which now that I'm thinking about it, is, well, that's

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<v Speaker 1>actually pretty deep. And they just spoke to I guess

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<v Speaker 1>the challenges being a Chicano kid in a being a

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<v Speaker 1>minority within my middle school world, and living through being

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<v Speaker 1>part of these different worlds, you know, being part of

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<v Speaker 1>the general public, and then going back home to my family.

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<v Speaker 1>A great thing about our communist that we have a

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<v Speaker 1>long history of storytellers. We have a lot of family

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<v Speaker 1>members our storytellers. We're natural storytellers ourselves. A Mecto the

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<v Speaker 1>third and he, you know, he really believed in the

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<v Speaker 1>American dream, and so he was born in Kuahila, in

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<v Speaker 1>Gidas Negadas, and so growing up he would tell us

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<v Speaker 1>about you know, crossing in and out putout any issue.

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<v Speaker 1>And I do recall my grandfather telling me this rumor

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<v Speaker 1>of these ex military guys breaking away from the Mexican

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<v Speaker 1>and special Forces and creating their own criminal organization, you know,

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<v Speaker 1>and so and they're setting up shop in the border world,

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<v Speaker 1>and I felt that there needed to be a somebody,

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<v Speaker 1>a hero to confront them. And so there it was

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<v Speaker 1>the fuse to create a Pesto hero. It was two

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<v Speaker 1>dozand and three I started writing a Pesto hero and

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<v Speaker 1>adding a lot of my cultural experiences, adding a lot

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<v Speaker 1>of individual nuances, and putting a lot of heart into

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<v Speaker 1>some of these cultural moments. Just as simple as a

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<v Speaker 1>Bezl hero going to the border and not being able

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<v Speaker 1>to buy things because he forgot to change his paeszos

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<v Speaker 1>through dollars, and seeing that the evaluation of the Bezl

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<v Speaker 1>being an issue. There's little things like that, you know.

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<v Speaker 1>I had that in the back burner. It wasn't until

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<v Speaker 1>I actually became an educator here in Dallas where I

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<v Speaker 1>found out the great need and opportunity to have heroes

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<v Speaker 1>that represented us, superheroes that needed to be in the

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<v Speaker 1>front cover. And noticing in my school library there was

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<v Speaker 1>this was two and ten, my first year of teaching,

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<v Speaker 1>and so seeing a huge lack of representation, seeing that

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<v Speaker 1>all of my students were Latino, and noticing the demographics changing,

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<v Speaker 1>but the content definitely remained the same. Another way that

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<v Speaker 1>really was the catalyst for me to create a puzzle

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<v Speaker 1>hero was when one of my students father was deported,

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<v Speaker 1>and I felt that he needed to have a hero

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<v Speaker 1>to look up to within the vary same books he

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<v Speaker 1>checks out in the library. I needed to be that

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<v Speaker 1>father figure within the school for him. And this was

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<v Speaker 1>early twenty eleven, so you know, as he just speaks

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<v Speaker 1>to the long ways we have with immigration policy in

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<v Speaker 1>our country, regardless of who's in office. But I felt

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<v Speaker 1>that Ignosti rived puzzle hero was needed, you know. And

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<v Speaker 1>Bezi Hero is a nickname of Ignacio and a lot

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<v Speaker 1>of kids growing up, they grew up with different nicknames.

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<v Speaker 1>I grew up with nicknames myself. I was also Teto

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<v Speaker 1>Actorine too, and so, uh, Ignacio has you know, Nacho

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<v Speaker 1>Nachitoo hero al toro pesado, which he is called in

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<v Speaker 1>in Mexico. So within el pesto Hero specifically, this is

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<v Speaker 1>a name that was given to Ignacio by the Porto

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<v Speaker 1>Patrol in a way devaluing his heroics. He's not worth

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<v Speaker 1>a devalued peso kind of it, put down right, and

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<v Speaker 1>so this moniker becomes a joke between them and it

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<v Speaker 1>just catches fire as a peso hero, larger than life heroism,

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<v Speaker 1>you know, he's and have you heard about a pesto hero,

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<v Speaker 1>you know, the I got a story to tell you

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<v Speaker 1>about elpeso hero. This name becomes legend and he owns it.

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<v Speaker 1>Ignacio is from a complicated family in the vorder, and

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<v Speaker 1>so he himself is lost and is taken in by

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<v Speaker 1>a very humble family with a Grandeta, Dona Rosa and

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<v Speaker 1>her ranch hand don't Fetimine, And so these characters become

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<v Speaker 1>their his sarrogate grandparents, and so they take him as

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<v Speaker 1>their own, as their grandson. And that's where he learns

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<v Speaker 1>a lot of the values. Don Fetimine having a interesting

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<v Speaker 1>job to not also a ranch hand, but being a

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<v Speaker 1>coyote helping folks cross with his trustee Compass. And so

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<v Speaker 1>this is where we go into one of the stories

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<v Speaker 1>where in pas of your Borderland where Don Fetimine is

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<v Speaker 1>gets a call and he is trying to find a

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<v Speaker 1>lost family in the border. So we talked about coyotas

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<v Speaker 1>you know, being very complex, very complicated it, you know,

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<v Speaker 1>and for him is about helping families cross safely. And

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<v Speaker 1>so we add a lot of that challenging moral issues

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<v Speaker 1>with a puzzo hero, Ignacio getting a lot of his

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<v Speaker 1>humanity from Don't Fetamine too, and as well, we learned

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<v Speaker 1>more about the embossed belt buckle that puzza hero has

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<v Speaker 1>that has been passed down from generations going through Mexican history,

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<v Speaker 1>from the Mexican American War to the Mexican Revolution with Panchroviga.

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<v Speaker 1>And so it's very important to add that element of

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<v Speaker 1>historical representation because I believe it was very important to

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<v Speaker 1>be proud of where you come from, who you are,

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<v Speaker 1>and so on. The look for a puzz of hero

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<v Speaker 1>was inspired by my own family, Missaelos deals. It's very simple.

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<v Speaker 1>It calls back to you know, Midi Choui and Pascons,

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<v Speaker 1>you know, and midial Chui, you know, wearing his white shirts,

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<v Speaker 1>blue jeans, but buckle. Very simple, and it's something that

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<v Speaker 1>a lot of even a lot of my students connect.

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<v Speaker 1>You know, hey that you know that looks like my deal,

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<v Speaker 1>a humble hero. You know, I've gotten feedback where how

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<v Speaker 1>come El Paso hero speaks only Spanish in the books,

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<v Speaker 1>as well as why is that pessor hero white? Why

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<v Speaker 1>does he look white, you know, to his colorism, to

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<v Speaker 1>the colorism and I'm in, which is something that I've

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<v Speaker 1>I've never noted. All the artists and myself, we do

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<v Speaker 1>El Pesso Hero regardless of what color, and so at

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<v Speaker 1>Pesto Hero has been in different cues of skin color.

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<v Speaker 1>You know. It an perso hero speaking only Spanish is

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<v Speaker 1>something that as long as I'm the writer, that's not

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<v Speaker 1>going to change, you know. And it's something that I

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<v Speaker 1>feel that it's very important to be proud of your

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<v Speaker 1>your native language, and it's important for that language diversity.

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<v Speaker 1>I love that they really want to make the hero

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<v Speaker 1>of their own, which is perfect. It's amazing. I love

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<v Speaker 1>the sense of ownership with the character. It's great, you know,

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<v Speaker 1>even you know, with you know, being asked to a

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<v Speaker 1>puzzle here represent more native roots, you know, some of

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<v Speaker 1>the anti colonial some aspects as well, you know, where

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<v Speaker 1>puzzle here needs to send up more for Chicano rights

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<v Speaker 1>or you know, even the word Latins being used, the

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<v Speaker 1>controversy with the word being and so these dialogues are

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<v Speaker 1>really great, you know, and are important important to have,

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<v Speaker 1>and for myself, I listen and I acknowledge and I

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<v Speaker 1>share my thoughts of that. This character that was created

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<v Speaker 1>was create through my lens, you know, and I definitely

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<v Speaker 1>invite anybody to create their own up Peaz of Hero story,

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<v Speaker 1>to create their own version of Pedes of Hero. The

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<v Speaker 1>content is heavy, you know, it's it's the reflection of

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<v Speaker 1>the border. And one of the most challenging parts was

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<v Speaker 1>the story and border land where we're talking about unaccompanied

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<v Speaker 1>minors and detention facilities and for me myself, having being

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<v Speaker 1>with my students and you know, going to the border,

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<v Speaker 1>having those tough conversations with people that have lived through it,

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<v Speaker 1>and that's what makes it genuine. That's what makes that

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<v Speaker 1>pest of Hero genuine, is those those border stories are

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<v Speaker 1>coming from the heart, coming from genuine experiences, not just

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<v Speaker 1>you know, Google maps or Google researching. All these stories

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<v Speaker 1>come from the heart. The stories of a puzzle hero

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<v Speaker 1>are multi layered.

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<v Speaker 3>You know.

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<v Speaker 1>I grew up watching noveles with Malita and my and

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<v Speaker 1>my mom until this day, you know, watch novels and

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<v Speaker 1>Telemundo and Canalasteca, and so that's the core of the story.

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<v Speaker 1>It's a novella to my new readers, It's a Mexican

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<v Speaker 1>soap opera of a boy trying to figure out who

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<v Speaker 1>he is and where he's going to go. So if

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<v Speaker 1>you like Gnada Lobos.

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<v Speaker 4>Pries Sily Lemondo.

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<v Speaker 1>We're breaking bad. If you like watching Logan and Cicario

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<v Speaker 1>read a puzza hero. The only pushback that we ever

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<v Speaker 1>gotten was when we did the alternative cover for Puzzy

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<v Speaker 1>Voter Stories where this was summer twenty fifteen in candidate

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<v Speaker 1>Trump announce his first evential tendency, and you know, we

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<v Speaker 1>felt that we needed to speak against that negative speech.

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<v Speaker 1>We needed to stand up as a community, and myself,

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<v Speaker 1>as a writer artist, I needed to use my resources,

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<v Speaker 1>my tool to stand up. And so I spoke to

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<v Speaker 1>my artist Gemma, and I'm like, hey, Gemma, you know

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<v Speaker 1>I need you to make this cover and we're going

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<v Speaker 1>to make you knowmage to Jack Kirby, Jack Kirby's Captain America,

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<v Speaker 1>punching out of Hitler, you know, fighting against that racism,

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<v Speaker 1>that negativity, that extreme ideology, and not knowing the amount

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<v Speaker 1>of authoritarian tendencies that we were fighting against. A lot

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<v Speaker 1>of the alternative news blogs picked it up and really

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<v Speaker 1>ran with it. At the same time, we had had

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<v Speaker 1>some emails from one of Jack Kirby's friends saying, how

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<v Speaker 1>how you know Jack would have loved it? You know,

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<v Speaker 1>and and Jack was a huge soldier against fascism, and

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<v Speaker 1>so we felt it was very uplifting email. I developed

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<v Speaker 1>Real Bravo Comics, which is my small press, we'll see,

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<v Speaker 1>and I felt that if I really wanted to tell

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<v Speaker 1>the story that needed to be told and needed to

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<v Speaker 1>be told you seeing my small press, me and myself

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<v Speaker 1>having hundred percent creative control within the writing. And so

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<v Speaker 1>I've never had any yearning to look for somebody more

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<v Speaker 1>established to pick up a puzzle hero because I really

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<v Speaker 1>wanted to make sure the story was told in a

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<v Speaker 1>very genuine way. We have the backing of our fans

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<v Speaker 1>to continue telling of puzzle hero stories. I really don't

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<v Speaker 1>gain any financial gains per se. You know, It's more

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<v Speaker 1>whatever goes in goes out into a pest of hero.

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<v Speaker 1>I've been blessed and lucky that whatever I've gotten from

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<v Speaker 1>the posta hero, I'm able to return it back to

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<v Speaker 1>the readers as more Pesto hero stories. You know, the

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<v Speaker 1>future can hold so many surprises, so many twists and turns,

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<v Speaker 1>and you just have to be open for whatever comes,

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<v Speaker 1>you know, I'm still an educator, so I'm not leaving

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<v Speaker 1>that profession anytime soon. You know, there's a lot of

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<v Speaker 1>students that need me, and they need a puzz of hero.

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<v Speaker 1>Our history and our culture is so rich, and we

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<v Speaker 1>need so many storytellers to share our personal lives and

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<v Speaker 1>our stories, you know, and so I just feel this

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<v Speaker 1>great honor and duty to continue ten more years to

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<v Speaker 1>share and tell these stories of Ignacio Riveta, tell the

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<v Speaker 1>stories of Elpeza Hero.

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<v Speaker 2>That was Hector Rodriguez, the creator of Elpeso Hero. This July,

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<v Speaker 2>he's celebrating ten years of telling Elpeso Hero's stories and

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<v Speaker 2>his journeys along the border. This episode was produced by

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<v Speaker 2>Renaldo Leanos Junior, edited by Andrea Lopez Crusado, and mixed

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<v Speaker 2>by Gabriel Abayez and Liasha Damren. The Latino USA team

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<v Speaker 2>includes Marta Martinez, Mike Sargent, Julia Ta Martinelli, Victoria Estrada,

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<v Speaker 2>Gini montalbo Alejandra Salasad and Juli Rocha, with help from

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<v Speaker 2>Raoul Berets. Our supervising senior engineer is Stephanielpoe. Our assistant

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<v Speaker 2>senior engineers Julia Caruso. Our digital editor is Louis Luna.

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<v Speaker 2>Our New York Women's Foundation Ignite fellow is Mari es Kinka.

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<v Speaker 2>Our intern is Oscarvellon. Our theme music was composed by

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<v Speaker 2>Seger Rubinos. If you like the music you heard on

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<v Speaker 2>this episode, stop by Lettinousa dot org and check out

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<v Speaker 2>our weekly Spotify playlist. I'm your host and executive producer

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<v Speaker 2>Maria io Josa. Join us again on our next episode,

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<v Speaker 2>and in the meantime look for us on your social

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<v Speaker 2>media and alos waco ii E.

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<v Speaker 3>Latino USA is made possible in part by the Annie

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<v Speaker 3>Casey Foundation. Creates a brighter future for the nation's children

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<v Speaker 3>by strengthening families, building greater economic opportunity, and transforming communities.

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<v Speaker 3>The Heising Simons Foundation unlocking knowledge, opportunity and possibilities. More

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<v Speaker 3>at hsfoundation dot org and funding for Latino USA is

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<v Speaker 3>Coverage of a culture of health is made possible in

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<v Speaker 3>part by a grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

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<v Speaker 2>Perfect I think it sounded good, Speak now or forever

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<v Speaker 2>holds your please?

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<v Speaker 1>Now, Everything's good, Kentucky.

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<v Speaker 2>I'm MARIEO Hoosa Next time on Leatin New USA. Immigration

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<v Speaker 2>policies under President Biden six months into his administration, what's

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<v Speaker 2>changed and what hasn't.

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<v Speaker 4>From the beginning, public health experts and even the CDC's

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<v Speaker 4>own internal experts have said that there was no real

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<v Speaker 4>public health justification for the policy.

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<v Speaker 2>That's next time on Latin New USA.