Border Wall Activism: LUPE Co-Hosts a Screening of Ay Mariposa

Witnessing the border wall as you drive near the South Texas Border, is an everyday way of life. The border wall is more than just a physical barrier that separates us from our neighbors to the South, Mexico. But it is a political statement that reminds us of the oppression the US Government has imposed on people of color. Since the Trump administration took office, they’ve continued building additional miles of a structure that would not only invade the natural habitat of species but that would trample through people’s home and their back yards, with total disrespect of their private property.

Zulema Hernandez, center, and her daughter Juventina Herrera participate in the Rio Grande Valley Climate March at the National Butterfly Center in Mission, Texas, on March 3, 2019: photo by Carolyn Van Houten

In late 2018, contracts were awarded to continue the construction of the border wall in the Rio Grande Valley. The wall is not only invading public but private land and our LUPE members are not giving up. Zulema Hernandez, 77, a long time United Farmworks (UFW) and LUPE member has devoted part of her activism to fighting the construction of the border wall. Her tenure as an activist and community organizer has given her the experience to inspire new generations of activist, like her children and grandchildren. Zulema’s work and that of two other women are showcased in the film Ay Mariposa. The film aims to incentivize the community to take action against the Border Wall and prompt members of Congress to look at the issues through a different lens. The film depicts the activism around the construction of the border wall in South Texas and how Zulema's journey as an immigrant is interconnected with the lives of butterflies.  Over the years, Luzema has taken what she learned LUPE as an activist at LUPE to share with her family.

“Ay Mariposa!” was screened at the Historic Cine el Rey on Tuesday, Abril 22  in collaborations with organizations like Sierra Club, Defenders of Wild Life, Texas Civil Rights Project, UTRGV Mexican American Studies and UTRGV Environmental Studies Program.

Members of the community were invited to part-take in the discourse that took place after a panel conversation with filmmakers and Border Wall activists.