Four more Latina leaders from the RGV added to the Chicana Borderlands Voices project

LA FERIA, Texas – Four more Latina leaders from the Rio Grande Valley have been featured in the award-winning Chicana Borderlands Voices series.

Mapping Chicana/Mexicana Voices in the Borderlands is an oral history project that highlights the contributions of women’s organizing in South Texas and Southern Arizona.

The four new entries from the Valley are Maria Ester Salinas of Mission, Ramona Casas from Alamo, Amparo Bazan Elsa, and Gloria Santillan Casas from La Feria. They were chosen because of their contributions to Chicana/Mexicana history and community advocacy. They were interviewed for an oral history program and provided digital archives of their community organizing prowess.

“This project examines the active participation of Mexican/Chicana women in politics. By centering the experiences of Mexican/Chicana women, our working group highlights the historical contributions of women’s grassroots organizing in the Rio Grande Valley of South Texas and Southern Arizona in Tucson. These women’s oral histories teach us about their experiences in mobilizing and sustaining communities from the late 1960s to 2010s,” the Chicana Borderlands Voices explains.

The three leaders of the project are Dr. Michelle Téllez, with the Department of Mexican American Studies at the University of Arizona, Dr. Jennifer R. Nájera, with the Department of Ethic Studies at the University of California, Riverside, and Dr. Cristina Salinas, with the Department of History at UT-Arlington.

The project is supported by the Crossing Latinidades Humanities Research Initiative based at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Crossing Latinidades is funded by the Mellon Foundation.

Biographies:

Maria Ester Salinas

Environmental Activist from Mission, Texas.

Maria Ester Salinas has lived in Mission, Texas for much of her life and considers herself a Tejana. Inspired by her parents to pursue her education, Salinas became an art teacher and has been involved with the Texas Citrus Fiesta. She went to Texas Women’s University, where she was a track and volleyball captain. Nevertheless, she recounts facing racism throughout her education. Salinas grew passionate about environmental justice and individual wellness in relation to environmental toxins after several family and friends were diagnosed with cancer. She is involved with her church as well and uses her spirituality as an opportunity to educate the community about health.

Ramona Casas

Community Organizer with ARISE Adelante in Alamo, Texas.

Originally from Jalisco, Mexico, Ramona Casas migrated to the Texas with her husband and young daughter. She began her community involvement volunteering at her daughter’s school and, later, at her local parish in Las Milpas. With the help of her mentor and friend, Sister Gerrie from Hermanas de la Misericordia, Casas began a nonprofit organization, A Resource In Serving Equality: ARISE. ARISE provides information and guidance on life and development skills in the Las Milpas community. Casas took on a leadership role to raise awareness about health, education, environmental justice, immigration rights, and more. Casas thrives as a promotora, educating the communities about the importance of life goals and political awareness.

Amparo Bazan

Political organizer from Delta Area of Elsa, Texas.

Amparo Bazan grew up in the Rio Grande Valley and currently lives in Elsa, Texas. Her commitment to service began as a youth volunteer at her church. As an adult, Bazan’s political work began when her husband first ran for public office. She served as an election worker and transported people to the polls. Proper election procedure was important to Bazan, and there were instances when she faced challenges to her adherence to election rules. Bazan is a mother and grandmother, and has continued volunteer work at her church throughout her life. She continues to transport people to the polls.

Gloria Santillan Casas

School board trustee from La Feria, Texas

Gloria Santillan Casas has lived in La Feria, Texas, since 1977. Her public service career began as an outreach worker in Brownsville and she became involved in politics by block walking for first Latino county judge candidate Ray Ramon. She went on to become a school board trustee for La Feria ISD, educating Latinos in her community about the political process and how it can benefit them. She has served as a board member on the Texas Association of School Boards, and has represented Texas on TASB’s behalf in Washington. Casas is proud that she has helped to bring programs like GearUp to La Feria ISD.

Previous leaders featured from the Rio Grande Valley include Alma Canales, Juanita Valdez Cox, Rebecca Flores, Medalin Garcia, Petra Guerra, Sylvia Handy, Selina Hayes, Filomena Leo, Lali Moreno, Dina Nuñez, Sister Norma Pimentel, Esperanza Salinas, Ofelia De los Santos.

Editor’s Note: Click here to learn more about the project and hear the oral histories of other Latina leaders from the Rio Grande Valley.

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