Letter to Juana Alicia

Dear Juana Alicia,

          Before I begin I would just like to say how beautiful and inspiring your art is. I had been exposed to your art before, but I wasn't aware of the full extent of your art or your political activism. Enrollment in a Chicana art class this quarter is where I became more familiar with all of your different art pieces and community involvement.

          When I look at some of your different murals I am amazed and I think about all the time and work put into these art pieces. I don't consider myself an artist because I don't have that specific talent in creating murals like you do. However, your work is more than talent because it also inspires others to think about the issues you are drawing attention to. I especially think about how you began creating this art.

          I think your murals are really important because not only do they represent our culture but they also bring awareness to important causes, like farmworkers' rights. Although some other people were living through similar issues during this time period not everyone was bringing attention to inequalities. Murals like Las Lechugueras are really nice and interesting to look at but they made me think about what these women working on the farms were experiencing. This consciousness can create a change and improve the working conditions for these people. I also thought it was really cool that you were involved in painting the women's building in San Francisco. Although I haven't seen the building in person it looks amazing and I believe it's really important to appreciate and honor these women. One question I have for you is, what can we do to continue bringing awareness to the injustices in out communities?

Thank you,
Cristina