Texas Latinas Fight Back for Their Health and Families

Being a woman in Texas, and across the country, is a battle. We are getting attacked on all sides. Everyone seems to know what is best for us to do with our bodies. Our decisions and our health isn’t respected, valued or supported. Enough is enough. Women are fighting back. Latinas are fighting back, especially in Texas.

The Rio-Grande Valley is one of the poorest areas of our country. Prior to 2011, the women of this region depended on state-funded clinics for healthcare and family planning services. This isn’t just contraceptives, but cancer screenings, pap smears, and more. And then everything changed. 2011 was also the year that the state legislature passed one of the most destructive budgets in state history. [x]

This budget punished Texas clinics by defunding all who were affiliated with abortion providers, even if they didn’t provide abortions. Many other states are also doing the same. The number of women receiving services in the Rio-Grande Valley was reduced by 75% after the cuts. [x]

What ACTUALLY happens when states cut back and defund public clinics simply for being associated with abortion providers? What are the real consequences of these actions? Who is actually affected? Does defunding clinics eliminate abortions? No. Instead of moving forward and bettering the lives of others, we are stepping back in time. Where there is a demand, someone will supply it, even if that means lives are at risk. What these cuts did was hand women hangers, the same hangers that took so many lives in the past. What these cuts do is separate families, create fear, and increase health issues especially because the incidence of cervical cancer in Texas is 19% higher than the national average [x]. Families in Texas, and across the United States, are already dealing with immigration issues, poverty wages, exploitation, food desserts, and these cuts aren’t making lives any easier. Take a moment to remember that not everyone has access to health services during the same time many are rejoicing over the implementation of the Affordable Care Act. Do something about it!

Workers lose their jobs due to cuts.
After the cuts, Paula Saldaña lost her job as a community educator for a Planned Parenthood clinic in Brownsville, Texas. She continues to give workshops on reproductive health as a volunteer. In the video below, Paula shares her experiences out in Texas and the frustration she feels about the cuts.

Families are torn apart
Adriana found herself crossing the border back and forth to receive health services in Mexico, until the violence at the border increased. Her family has been split up due to deportations. She suffers with health issues, and the uncertainty of not being able to take proper care of herself as she raises her two grand-kids. Not being able to take proper care of herself leaves her family in a very vulnerable place; especially because Adriana is the sole provider for her family in the United States. Adriana shares her experiences below.

In late 2012 and early 2013, the Center for Reproductive Rights and the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health documented the impact of state funding cuts to family planning services on women in Texas and created a human rights report. The report and information about this partnership can be found at Nuestro Texas. The report draws from the stories of women in Texas to show how funding cuts to women’s preventive services are more than failed policies—they are violations of their human rights.

Read the Nuestro Texas report here
Like Nuestro Texas on Facebook
Follow Nuestro Texas on Twitter

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Yo Te Apoyo: Spaces Free of Judgement

A few days ago my sister told me she didn’t really like her curly hair. I stared at this little replica of me. It felt like I was looking into a mirror. Little me also didn’t like her curly hair. All the pretty girls have straight hair. I saw all the wrong things staring back at me in the mirror.

For days, I thought about the conversation her and I had. How can I create a space in which my sister and I feel happy and empowered with who we are? What things can I do, say and have that will make her feel secure in herself, both on the outside and inside? Where beauty isn’t the only focus? What do little ones need to feel at peace and in control of their future and their bodies when everything around them tells them they’re worthless?

I thought about the ways in which we sometimes don’t support the decisions those around us make. How inferior we make each other feel. How we judge one on another for the things we do or don’t do. As if there was a “normal” or “correct” way to be. As if there was a specific way to live our lives.

Here in New York I can’t walk down the street without seeing ads that say young mothers, and their families, will grow up and amount to nothing. Messages that tell us, “You’re worthless and deserve what is happening to you because you did things the “wrong way””. Messages that tell the little ones what horrible lives they will live and what horrible parents they have.

Pointless messages because no matter what decision we make, we seem to always lose and are belittled because of them. Sex is bad. Abortion is bad. Parenting at your age is bad. Using contraceptives is bad. Everything is bad. Our existence is bad. All decisions we make will be judged.

But, guess what, we’re not going anywhere.

On the other hand, I hope to work with warriors that will take matters into their own hands. Warriors that will be happy with who they are. Warriors that will be at peace with the decisions they make for themselves and their families. Warriors that will look into the mirror and not let these messages affect what they believe to be true about themselves. At least, that’s where I hope to be alongside my family and people in my community. I hope to live and create spaces in which decisions, including abortion and parenting, are respected and supported. Spaces in which my sister can feel confident in herself and understand that there’s more to life and herself than just beauty.

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Spaces like that are being built. We are hosting a webinar training with 3 sessions aimed to serve young mothers. This training is open to all young mothers and are completely free. Session 1 already took place. Session 2 is happening on Nov 15 6pm EST which will talk about why it is important to organize young mothers and why young motherhood happens. Session 3 is happening on Dec 13 also at 6pm EST and it takes a closer look on what advocacy means and how you can use your experiences to push others into action. If you’re a young mother, register and let others know: http://tinyurl.com/MomELola

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Trainings Coming To You!

Latinas are taking over! Both online and specifically in Florida. There are two very awesome trainings available right now. Check both out, see if you’re eligible and register. Make sure to help us spread the word!

THIS IS A CALL TO ALL YOUNG MOTHERS
check out this awesome community mobilizing and advocacy webinar training! Completely accessible from home if you have a phone and computer with internet access. We believe in supporting young mothers and providing them with the tools to be leaders in their community.
Register here: http://tinyurl.com/MomELola

MIAMI, FLORIDA ACTIVISTS!
Our LOLA Training is coming to you! From October 18th-20th. Register for our three day Latin@s Organizing for Leadership and Advocacy training to receive the tools necessary to be a leader in your community. We will be covering your stay and travel.
Spread the word and register here: http://tinyurl.com/LOLAFL

If you have any questions please email Angy@LatinaInstitute.org or call us at 212-422-2553

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Top 5 Things I’ve Learned While Working With Young Mothers

When I first starting working with young mothers I found myself trying to validate my ally-ness. If anyone asked me why I was involved, or if I had children of my own, instead of simply saying “no”, I would feel the need to defend my involvement.

I would often respond with:
“No I don’t have any children, but my mother was a young mother”
or
“No but I have many friends who are young parents”

I asked myself, “as an undocumented immigrant, what do I want from allies?” Then it hit me, I can be an ally without an explanation or defending my involvement. “I’m not a racist, my friend is black” isn’t cool so why would “I don’t have children but my friend is a young mom” be considered okay? I started reminding myself that I can be an ally, just because. I can be an ally because I believe in the importance of young mother’s voices being heard without tokenizing those around me. I can be an ally because our liberations are tied together. I can be an ally because no one is free, while others are oppressed.

Even though being an ally can be tricky. We should all be willing to learn and be called out. We are allies to each other. Here are some things I’ve learned throughout my involvement with young mothers:

1. It’s so much easier to sit back and judge young families. Young mothers already face a bunch of judgement everywhere. Don’t judge. Educate yourself.

2. Always step back and look at the bigger picture. This isn’t about you, remember?

3. Families are different. Don’t assume every family is compiled of a mother, father and one child.

4. Always engage the children and think of their needs/wants.

5. Be an ally just because. Don’t try to prove something to others or to yourself. Believing in the people you’re working with and the cause you’re working towards is sufficient.

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Nada ni Nadie Derrotara a Las Poderosas de Texas

Hace más de una semana, tuvimos nuestro Día Nacional de Acción para la reforma de inmigración y salud. Nuestro grupo en Texas tubo un evento y esta es la experiencia de una de las líderes.

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Red de Abogacía de Latinas de Texas
“Apoyando la eliminación de la prohibición de los 5 años y que las opciones de servicios de salud para los aspirantes a ciudadanos sean mejoradas”

2 de Mayo del 2013 – Día Nacional de Acción – Gracias al departamento de Relaciones Políticas de la Red de Abogacía de Latinas de Texas pudimos contactar a las dos Directoras Regionales del Sureste de Texas de los Senadores Ted Cruz y John Cornyn. Hablamos con Ana García (Southwest Texas Regional Director & Community Outreach Advisor – Senator John Cornyn) y Casandra Garcia (Southwest Texas Regional Director – Senator Ted Cruz).

Fue una maravillosa experiencia puesto que estas dos directoras estuvieron muy impactadas al recibir cerca de 300 cartas de peticiones en donde se les pide el apoyo para la eliminación de la prohibición de los 5 años. Tambien pedimos que las opciones de servicios de salud para los aspirantes a ciudadanos sean mejoradas.

9 líderes conversamos con cada una de las directoras regionales por separado. El Senador Cruz aún no tiene oficina aquí en el Valle de Texas de Rio Grande entonces hablamos con Casandra Garcia en un restaurante. Una de nuestras líderes que vino a las visitas compartió con las directoras parte de su experiencia de ser deportada con su esposo a México. Por esto le secuestraron a su esposo y finalmente falleció. Las directoras quedaron muy impresionadas con su historia y prometieron apoyar la reforma migratoria y la salud de nuestras comunidades.

Fue un evento muy lindo y seguirmos luchando por la salud, dignidad y justicia de nuestra communidad!

Vives en Texas y quieres unirte a nosotros? Llama a la Coordinadora de la RAL de Texas Lucy C. Félix al (956) 579-1371 ó al correo electrónico: lucy@latinainstitute.org.

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I have potential even if I’m a young mother

By: Leydi Bautista

My experience during National Advocacy Weekend was excellent! For is the first time I was invited to something to important. It was an honor to be with so many women and men who shared their stories and fight for the same goal as me.

After the training, I wish to educate myself more about how to contact my Senators and Congress members. I also want to educate everyone on what the real needs in my community are.

I attended NAW without any fear and received so much information. It was so helpful because it will help me train myself to speak properly and to control my nerves.

Thank you National Latina institute for this opportunity to share with everyone. I realized that I have a lot of potential even if I am a women, young mother or student. I’m an unafraid immigrant!

Here in New York we will be having a open house for other young mothers like me, please come and get more information. Your voice matters!

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More reflections of our 2013 National Advocacy Weekend

• Read Christina’s reflection here. National Advocacy Weekend 2013: The Women United Will Never be Defeated
• Read Johnna Dominguez’s reflection here. Reflections on Solidarity, Privilege and National Advocacy Weekend
• Check out our NLIRH National Advocacy Weekend video

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National Advocacy Weekend 2013: The Women United Will Never be Defeated

We mobilized over 50 activists from all around the country for our 2013 National Advocacy Weekend which took place from March 15-March 19 in Washington DC. Below is a video that highlights our experiences at NAW 2013.

Here is a reflection from one of the NAW participants:

I’m Christina from Boston, Massachusetts. I want to start off and say Thank You to everyone at the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health for giving me the opportunity to attend the 2013 National Advocacy Weekend for the first time. Thank you for allowing me to have a first-hand account on what real lobbying is like.

Prior to lobbying on March 18, 2013 for Immigrant Women’s Healthcare, Immigration Reform and Affordable Abortion Access, I had only participated in drop off visits. I never fully experienced lobbying for a cause that is dear to me. I felt very excited to be there, even if at times my energy was a bit off. I want to thank everyone in the Massachusetts and New York lobbying group as well. They helped me speak to the Senators and helped me feel less nervous.

Photo taken by Selena Torrado

The rally prior to lobbying impacted me too. I’ve been to a march, but not a rally. I loved the way all the organizations fighting for immigrant women’s healthcare access and equal rights were helping each other.

During National Advocacy Weekend, I got to meet so many passionate and strong men and women from across the country who are fighting for reproductive rights, immigrant rights and LGBTQ’s rights. I was the only person from Massachusetts and the Texas group took me under their wing. I’m very grateful for being in an environment which taught me that I can do things even if it takes time.

During National Advocacy Weekend, Laura Esquivel, NLIRH board member, shared her story with us. It hit close to home. She spoke about attending community college and that there were people along the way to help her finish.

The Camino Media Academy, where we participated in mock interviews helped me get a taste of how the media works and how to deliver my message better. I also remember the Intercultural Productions workshop that taught me that you can create your own film via a smart phone. Lucy Felix’s presentation on how to start a group in your state helped a lot. Even though it was in Spanish, I could understand it and translate it. I loved the wall of victory we created as a community.

Wall of Victory at NAW

The victory I shared was that I’m learning how to balance health with my other responsibilities. I have been going back and forth on how to balance my Celiac Disease with my passion for reproductive rights for a while. But, now I know that I can combine both when it comes to the food and environmental injustice we face. All women regardless of income, disability, age, race, gender, orientation, religion, should be able to have good quality food and a holistic nutrition. We should all be able to control our bodies, minds, and spirits.

Again, I want to thank you to everyone and of course to NLIRH for allowing me to be part of my first NAW weekend :)!

Si Se Puede!

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Have you heard about Gloria Malone?

Gloria Malone is a young mother

Gloria’s school counselor refused to speak to her when she became pregnant in her sophomore year in high school. Not only was she left without support at her school, but she also faced criticism within her community. Her daughter is now 6 years old.

Gloria is currently a student at Baruch College, proving to the non-believers that young mothers can make a difference. Her participation in our Young Moms training and our Young Mothers Briefing in Washington, D.C. fed her passion to become an advocate for young mothers. She strives to let other young mothers know that they are not alone and are more than a statistic. When asked why she got involved with NLIRH’s Young Moms, she said, “I want to be part of the change.”

Training with the young mothers.

NLIRH is the only national Latina health and reproductive justice organization representing an increasingly diverse and growing Latina population in this country. With the generous donations we received last year, throughout 2012 we were able to:

• Train 10 young mothers on issues that affect Latinas and reproductive health.
• Mobilized a group of young mothers to attend a briefing in Washington D.C. where they spoke to policymakers, hill staffers, advocates and allies about their experiences and the ways in which they can support young mothers.

NLIRH is committed to continuing its work with and on behalf of young mothers by providing more trainings and support. Through our work we hope to continue to grow and create change within our communities and the lives of our members. Please show that you too are part of the change and believe in the work that we do by making a tax deductible donation today.

Thank you in advance for your generosity and we wish you a Poderosa 2013!

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Young Mothers are Warriors in their Communities

Leydi Bautista – young mother of two

My mother decided to have me at the age of 20 without any support from my “father” or our family. She was a young mother, living in poor conditions in Colombia, who barely made enough money to support herself, much less raise a child. Despite all this, she was able to provide for me and for my siblings as they came. However, I oftentimes imagine how different things would have been if my mother had a support system pre, during, and post pregnancy. I wonder how many more young mothers are out there without anyone to turn to or anyone who shares their experiences and can lend a shoulder to lean on. Which is why I’m so excited for the work the young mother’s group in New York is going to do.

Young mothers during their first training

The first time this group of young mothers set foot into the office they were shy and hesitant to open up about the hardships they’ve faced as young mothers. Their babies sat on our office floor, too scared to ask for snacks or even a juice box. With time, the mothers got to know each other better, they shared their fears of not becoming someone, of hating baby throw up, of deciding not to have an abortion even though they knew it would be difficult from here on after. Many gatherings that led to a briefing in Washington DC where these mothers stressed the importance of investing in them. They walked around DC with a sense of ownership; owning their stories, their experiences, their struggles, their goals, hopes and aspirations for the future that awaits them and their babies too.

Poderosa young mothers in DC

Marymar, one of the young mothers who went to DC shared her experience with us:

It was a fun experience and I would love to do more things like that. I felt motivated. I want to continue being vocal about the issues young mother’s face and to get more girls to do this. Even though there are people that don’t think about our future, we have to do it! We have to do everything we can to make sure others work with us and help us out. I want my kids to look up to me and to be proud of me. I’m doing all this so they can be happy. I want my daughter to one day say, “that’s my mother!” and that she’ll follow in my footsteps and help others. All I want to do is be somebody in life and everyone will see that I made it even though they didn’t believe I could. I will make it, that is a promise.

For these moms, the journey is not over though, it has just begun. As we continue to grow together and learn from each we hope to see real change in our community. These young moms are determined to obtain the resources they need to help their families or to create paths that are not there for them the way my mother did. From having access to child care, scholarships, food and shelter, comprehensive sex education to parent only parks, they will continue to fight for it all. But they won’t be alone.

Perlita and her baby boy

One thing is certain; they are not fighting for themselves but for their kid(s). Their kids are the reason they are able to get out of bed sometimes, why some of them are still enrolled in college even though it is so difficult to find child care. Their kids are the reason why they’re standing up to the injustices and inequalities they face every day. Because some day, things will change, and their little ones will be there to witness it and know their mothers fought for this. Without realizing it, these moms have already become someone in life. They are warriors and creators of their own destinies.

If you are also a young mom in New York and you’d like to get involved with us, connect with us here. Also, check out this video of the young mothers in DC.

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Our Voice Matters: Registering and Educating Voters in Texas

Soy poderosa, and my voice matters. That’s the final push from now until Election Day. However, there is more to activism than just voting, and that’s evident in the work being done in Texas led by several poderosas from our Latina Advocacy Network (LAN).

From September 24 to 29 they held various events in Texas, starting with a health fair. It took place in an activist’s home, and over 35 people attended and 9 registered to vote. Can you imagine the energy in the room and the desire to make a difference? Participants learned how critical it is to ensure their voices are heard, whether it is through voting or through speaking with friends or family members about the importance of voting.

After discussing the importance of voting, everyone enjoyed one another’s company by playing lotería, or bingo, and eating a home-cooked meal. These are the moments that matter the most, being able to connect with activist on a personal level and share stories. It’s also fun (duh)! Voting is not a sole person’s decision, or one voice being heard. That person will be voting for thousands who are not being listened to. How can one vote without knowing the issues affecting the community they are representing?

One of the Texas LAN leaders, Lucy Felix (who was featured on our Poderosa profiles), participated in a White House briefing on Wednesday the 25th of September to talk about the work they are doing around the Rio Grande Valley. This was her experience:

The White House briefing was an unforgettable experience! As part of the panel I spoke about the importance of promotoras and all the work being done in the Valley. It was as if all the stories of the women I’ve worked with were united in one, and their challenges and success were expressed through me. For me, it is an honor to be able to speak about how PODEROSAS we are and how privileged I am to work with them! There are no words to express how much potential and desire for change there is every time we get together and successfully execute an event in which we educate others and grow more as leaders. Seeing all these women transform into even bigger fighters that want to create a better society and change many of the broken systems is the best gift God has ever given me! I also want to thank the Latina Institute for allowing us to participate in such amazing events that really highlight how extraordinary all these women are.
Lucy

Lucy Felix, wearing our Poderosa shirt, at the White House briefing.

And finally, to finish off the week, the Texas LAN held two more community gatherings in which dozens of people participated and registered to vote as well. It’s not enough for politicians to simply say nice things on TV — there are people like Lucy on the ground, making sure that our communities have the information they need to make an informed choice  in the voting booth. The Texas LAN will continue to hold more events until Election Day — contact us to get involved!

Regardless of our identities, our voices matter and we have the power to influence those around us. With our actions and stories we are able to change minds and hearts. Texas is pushing hard to not only educate the community, but to lift the voices of Latinas everywhere.

Are you interested in taking part of the Soy Poderosa and my voice matters campaign? There may be an event in your state! Contact us!

Best,
The Community Mobilization Team

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