Margarita Cabrera
“Uplift represents the uplifting of communities, spirits, and cultures. Related to this IPS and the border, the text over the puente de las americas will reference an inspiring and uplifting metaphor, but will also reference the border fence as another type of detention mechanism that should be lifted. There is also a local LIFT Latino Immigrant Families Together fund set by the Hispanic Federation providing assistance to immigrants, which is known and exists nicely within the phrase as well.
"ni una mas" is a local phrase that draws attention to the many feminicidios in Mexico but specifically Ciudad Juarez. There is a black cross inside a pink rectangle painted through out the city to honor individual female victims -feminicidios. The translation is "not one more" and it refers to not one more murdered woman. In my phrase I honor the call for justice for women but also men as I have included the X creating a gender neutral stance. This way we honor and join the local border community's struggle experiencing different types of de-centering neo-liberal immigrant systems and recognized the inter-connectedness that exists between various dehumanizing and impunitive -violent structures affecting our border immigrant communities both men and women inside and outside detentions and on both sides of the border.”
BIO
Margarita Cabrera's work centers on social-political community issues including cultural identity, migration, violence, inclusivity, labor, and empowerment. Cabrera creates sculptures made out of mediums ranging from steel, copper, wood, ceramics, and fabric. She has worked on a number of collaborative projects at the intersection of contemporary art practices, indigenous Mexican folk art and craft traditions, and US-Mexico relations. In addition to studying and preserving endangered culturaland craft traditions, these projects have served as active investigations into the creation of just working conditions and the protection of immigrant rights.