LOS ANGELES (KABC) — Artists across the U.S. are responding to what they are witnessing and living in immigrant communities through song, poetry, or illustration.
On July 7, when armed federal agents staged in and around MacArthur Park, Union del Barrio was quickly on the ground and posted images in real time, including this video.
Latina Artist Claudia Ramos could not help but notice the moment a woman is captured standing near the crosswalk, wearing a red vest and a black purse draped over her shoulder.
“That looks like my mom or my grandma, and it’s so sad and scary too,” Ramos said. “I wonder if she’s scared?” she asked. “Where is she going?”
Ramos felt the urgency to do something. She made an illustration, making the woman the central focus.
“I was just mad, but also scared,” she said. Her hand was shaking. The caption reads, “This is America.”
When she published it on Instagram, she accompanied the post with the Childish Gambino song the illustration references.
Instagram: @claudiaramosdesigns
“Showing this is America right now. This is what’s happening here,” said Ramos. “That this is not normal.”
Ramos said she was reminded of the country she and her parents immigrated from, seeking safety.
“My parents used to tell me stories and also watch videos of what was the war that was going on in El Salvador,” Ramos said.
On a sunny summer morning, she welcomed us into her parents’ home and lush garden, describing it as a sanctuary they worked hard to own and nurture.
“We left our life, our family to come here and learn a new language,” said Ramos.
After nearly 20 years in corporate, she took a leap of faith and launched the Latinx stationery brand Hola Mijas Bonitas, a collection of cheerful Latina characters, inspired by women who reflect the diversity and beauty of Latina women, like her daughter, who is Filipina and Salvadoran.
“I wanted to create an Asian Latina, and from there it led me to create an Afro-Latina,” said Ramos.
“Mija” is a term of endearment and diminutive which means “my daughter” in Spanish.
Lately, Ramos has felt an obligation to draw the emotions the “mijas” express differently.
“Having to see with ICE kidnapping our people, it’s been really sad and very scary.”
She launched a collection that highlights the words that real children wrote. The “mijas” hold protest signs that read: “Kids Need Their Parents” or “Resist.”
“We are upset about this. We’re sad. I even had some of them crying,” said Ramos. “Because that’s what a lot of us are feeling,” adding, “I can’t be quiet. My brand is representing our community and how can I not say anything?”
Artist Claudia Ramos holds up a journal featuring the protest collection of her Latinx stationery brand Hola Mijas Bonitas.
Mike Cervantes
When Ramos and her family first arrived from El Salvador, they lived near MacArthur Park. Her parents grieved their son’s death shortly after immigrating and fought to build a life in the U.S.
“My parents’ story is a lot of people’s stories,” Ramos said.
We stopped at the corner of 7th Street and Alvarado, the same place where the woman Ramos drew stood just over a week ago.
“Being here, it just makes it more impactful. I’m actually breathing it and feeling it, seeing the streetlight and everything,” she said.
Ramos also notices a complicated reality; the contrast between her sanctuary at home and life outside of it.
“We were talking about how it looks like such a safe space, but there’s a lot of things happening outside. There’s people suffering, there’s people being kidnapped. There’s people that are missing.”
Ramos is donating part of the proceeds from her new Mijas Protest Collection to CHIRLA. She also created free coloring pages to help children and adults process what they are experiencing. People can see her work and learn more on her website holamijasbonitas.shop
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