Elsa Fraire

My name is Elsa Fraire, I'm a 3rd year Philosophy and Political Science double major. I am originally from Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico but have lived most of my life in Lennox, California (a tiny unincorporated city right by LAX).

I commute from Lennox and the fact that it is an unincorporated city is one of the main reasons I became interested in politics and community organizing, because I wanted to know why it was that a working class, majority Latino population like ours had little to no access to our local government.

I took this class because I want to learn about more about the Chicana artists that have inspired me and learn about more Chicana artists I haven't heard about. I am also interested in the way art is used for social and political activism and challenging norms and stereotypes. 

I really enjoy documentary and street photography. I also draw, paint and recently became interested in filmmaking. Many of my friends back home and I always felt like we had to travel outside of home to East LA/ downtown area to find a place that was more supportive of the arts, so about a year ago we formed a collective of artists interested in using art to start conversations about the issues we see ignored in our community, and to also highlight the positive. I hope to attend graduate school and eventually open up a community space/arts center in Lennox.

La Virgen de Guadalupe has always had a space in my family's home. I always noticed my parent's, especially my moms, love and devotion for her, but I was never too familiar with her story until now.