Brownsville: Border City

The ocean that is by Brownsville Texas is the south padre island and the boca chica beach.
The water is beautiful and I always remember my mom loves to go to south padre island for their seafood and enjoy the ocean waves that relax her. She would take me and siblings there quite a lot to spend quality time with her or my dad.
The boca chica beach is very beautiful too I remember doing volunteer work cleaning the beach due to a severe problem of people littering the beach. However, a lot of people join together to pick up everything so the sea animals are living in good conditions. Due to a lot of trash being in the ocean waters it caused a lot of sea animals to die.
Since Elon Musk starbase is built right next to the ocean of boca chica beach and is polluting the water with chemicals etc. People in the town worship his work as others think he’s doing a bad job taking over as many local downtown shops are being tore down as these business have been there for a long time and come from Mexico. With new buildings and making the prices of living in Brownsville expensive which causes a lot of people without homes etc.
Images below are the first is South Padre Island taken by my mother and second image is the Boca Chica beach taken by The Guardian

The murals in Brownsville Texas this one mural is really controversial to talk about.This one activist in Brownsville Texas who decided to graffiti a Brownsville Texas mural that was funded by SpaceX. It said “Gentrified stop SpaceX.” The Activist name is Bekah Hinojosa. She is an organizer of Rio Grande Valley’s local Sierra Club Chapter and Another Gulf is Possible. She was arrested for a graffiti misdemeanor, a cite-and-release offense.The Brownsville Mayor Trey Mendez decided this arrest after they saw a facebook post of it.
Bekah Hinojosa is in “anti-SpaceX”, news articles and the comments said that they accuse Mendez for doxing Hinojosa. In an attempt for her to be targeted in public. Even her attorney said that her arrest was not necessary. They even investigated that the Brownsville PD did this to people who have graffiti offenses and arrested them in their own homes. People didn’t like the Brownsville Texas mural since it didn’t represent them at all even though Mendez did favored it alot than the rest of the murals they had.
I think that Bekah Hinojosa shouldn’t have gone through all of that. There is gentrification in Brownsville Texas due to Elon Musk SpaceX base being built right next to an ocean. The mural itself didn’t represent the community that lives there. I understand this mural is funded, but it’s funded by a person who raises the prices for homes in Brownsville Texas knowing their financial situations that leaves them with no choices. Photograph images are by the news KVEO-TV

The shops downtown and restaurants are family owned there’s this one restaurant I really loved as a little kid. My dad would always bring us there to eat some burgers that didn’t cost as much. The burgers were freshly made the place is called Rutledge Hamburgers. It has been there since 1924.
Another place I really love going is called El Hueso de Fraile my older sister would take me there before I left to Kalamazoo college. I really love the atmosphere of that place because it’s very relaxing and the food is amazing. The walls are covered with beautiful artworks and has any band play there or anyone that knows how play any type of music. If you stop by there you should try the coffee it’s delicious.
Lastly I love everything about Downtown Brownsville, it's place that brings back memories of my younger self. I use to be in the parades dancing to charros days music or the Christmas parade it also made my mom follow me with her phone taking photos/videos of me nonstop.
Images are searched up in google

Culture generally consists of sundry long-standing traditions that have been passed from elders to the younger generations. The culture that is celebrated and practiced is Mexican culture.
There are so many wonderful things that happen in my culture like charros days. A festive day is a week-long celebration of friendship between the citizens of Brownsville, Texas, and Matamoros. The people show up dressed in traditional attire and men wear cowboy-themed costumes.
While the ladies can wear a colorful dress or a shirt as well colorful with a pair of jeans and cowboy boots. The food is so amazing there are various foods like tamales, sopes, tacos, nachos, chicken, meat, etc. The beverages usually are water, sodas, mostly traditional agua frescas.
Dia de los Mu***os is practiced in Mexican culture.e make an altar for our loved one that passed away, having a lit up candle, salt, a cross, and the items you remember that they loved. It happens every year in November. However most of my family members leave their altar all year round so their guests can give their respects. This keeps their memory alive of them from setting up an altar for a deceased loved one.

The Community that lives in this border city consisted of people from Mexico so everyone got along pretty well. It may have evolved through societal and religious influences. Each community, cultural group, or ethnic group has its values, notions, and ways of living. Every culture raises people in varied ways based on their culture, which leads to people viewing other cultures differently. From different languages, food, traditions, and beliefs.
Brownsville is known to have a Hispanic community. It is shown in the music and the food that is served in Brownsville, even the celebrations. Also to be known to have a lot of festive celebrations that we celebrated throughout the years.
I also want to recognize how the community helps out one another in many ways. By participating in non profit organizations that help the community. The non profit organizations are Proyecto Juan Diego.
Images by my mother and the food is cooked by her and my dad

Matamoros is where my Dad was born. I always visit my family there with him when we cross the border. living in Mexico was so difficult that not a lot of people had enough necessities to live. Consequently, the government in Mexico is so corrupt that the communities were led to poverty. During this time I was born and my parents said it was best to live near the border so we can see our whole family in Mexico.
I appreciate Matamoros. The place has amazing food and a lot of my family lives there that really values my time being there. Most of the stuff I get there is made by the people of Matamoros that sell clothing, accessories, etc.
Matamoros came to be around the year 1824 after the Mexican American war; it was later conquered by U.S. troops in 1846. It is known for the Mexican war of independence mostly. Sadly it is unsafe to live in Matamoros. Matamoros Tamaulipas State, Mexico learn more about Matamoros Tamaulipas | state, Mexico | Britannica
Images are searched on google

I also asked some people from the RGV what home is to them and a couple of questions they recorded themselves with beautiful answers. Asking them questions about what is home to them since it's not a place. It’s more of a feeling.
Home to me is being able to celebrate my Mexican culture traditions with people who have a better understanding of them. I was raised in a very traditional Mexican family. Wearing clothes that are known to be traditional. In the following paragraph I will talking more about the interviews being recorded.
The interviewers are my older sister then the second clip is my little brother and lastly is my little sister's friends. If you like to post a picture of home and you're from the RGV you can in the comments below. Enjoy this video of the interviewers who took the time to be part of my project. https://youtu.be/8QkqDjrnE2k
Also a page where you can help the communities in the RGV is called

Home Interviews about what home is to them

Photograph images by Selena Chaves of Downtown Brownsville

Downtown Brownsville is historic with the old buildings that have been there for years. A lot of parades happen in Downtown Brownsville such as charros day parade, dia de los mu***os parade, and christmas parade. I know that Downtown Brownsville historic buildings have been there for so long some of the people think it's better to have new buildings.
The buildings are locally owned and have been passed down to generations of family local businesses. These businesses I will later talk about in another post. They are great local shops that have great tasting food or sell unique items that don’t cost as much. Unlike other places that seem to be way more expensive when it comes to their downtown shops.
I really appreciate the historic buildings since up here in Kalamazoo Downtown the buildings are really not my taste. The buildings are new but have a very business-like feel to them.
you can learn more about
Brownsville - Downtown, TX (downtowntx.org)

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Image by KSAT 12 abc news

The borders in Brownsville Texas were established in 1918. The walls of the border are 10 feet high, passing near places of interest such as the university of Rio Grande Valley and even Downtown Brownsville, which is right next to the border crossing. The wall was constructed to prevent illegal immigration, as is stated many times on news headlines. That’s not the case when you meet the community that lives in Brownsville Texas.
The wall has been a problem for many families that I know whose children have to cross the wall alone to go to school because restrictions prevent their parents from crossing with them. Another issue is when families are split across the border and they are not allowed to cross to see each other due to certain restrictions. So the wall not only is a physical barrier for these families, but an emotional one as well.
I think many of the people that have crossed are the most hardworking people I have ever met. They dedicate themselves to having a better life for their children. Giving their children a chance of getting a better education in the States than back in Mexico. Much of this family struggle due to the border has been documented by the Texas Historical Commision, as seen here: Brownsville Beckons: Discover Bicultural History on the Border | THC.Texas.gov - Texas Historical Commission and https://express.adobe.com/page/QqCSyH6ZxiUdV/?fbclid=IwAR0cs7Eh QrczE-BZ92Igf_A4r6at2ccXqgyR9cyJ54cD4GB0b4Zrz6UqhY.

express.adobe.com

Hello my name is Dayana Angelina Drews attending Kalamazoo College in Michigan and I present to you my final project for my Public Art and Its Publics Class that my professor Christine Hahn teaches. This Final Project is dedicated to my parents who crossed the Matamorros border for a better life in Brownsville Texas. Also my siblings who made living in this border city memorable. No puedo agradecerte lo suficiente, eres la razón por la que estoy haciendo mis estudios aquí, así que dedico cada pequeño logro que he hecho hasta ahora, incluso este proyecto final. I would also like for people to learn more about this border city that I can never forget. This place is my home. Not a lot of people know about Brownsville Texas up here in Michigan as my classmates ask me where Brownsville is. I always say it's right at the bottom of Texas and next to Mexico.