FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contacts: Dr. Sarah Zenaida Gould, Executive Director, MACRI
sgould@somosmacri.org | 210-810-4093
San Antonio, TX – March 7, 2024 – This Saturday, March 9, 2024, the public is invited to Dress for Success San Antonio, located at 600 N. Frio, to dedicate and bless a new mural titled “Las Esperanzas y Justicias de la Ave Negra.” Created by San Anto Cultural Arts, with lead artist Rosalinda Alvarez Turuda and assistant Adrian Alvarez, the mural commemorates the life and legacy of Mexican American civil rights trailblazer Jovita Idar.
Located just steps from where Jovita Idar lived and worked on Perez Street (now known as Robert B. Green Way), the mural is the Mexican American Civil Rights Institute’s (MACRI) first commissioned public art piece. Launched during MACRI’s 3-day Jovita Idar Quarter Launch Celebration in September 2023, the mural serves as a tribute to Idar’s lifelong advocacy for the rights of Mexican Americans, women, and children.
The dedication ceremony will commence at 10:00 am, with the formal proceedings starting at 10:30 am. Attendees will be treated to entertainment by Mariachi Las Altenas, an all-female mariachi group. The blessing will be led by Rev. Dr. Elizabeth Lopez, a descendant of Jovita Idar.
MACRI extends its gratitude to the San Antonio Area Foundation for critical funding that made the mural commission possible. Additionally, MACRI thanks Dress for Success San Antonio’s generousity in allowing the mural to adorn their building.
This mural is a visual reminder of Jovita Idar’s enduring legacy and her contributions to the advancement of civil rights in Texas and beyond.
Following the mural dedication and blessing, the City of San Antonio will embark on a series of public meetings to consider an application from Councilwoman Teri Castillo and MACRI for the honorary designation of the Robert B. Green Way (formerly Perez St.) as Jovita Idar Memorial Way. The honorary street designation will further highlight Jovita’s life and legacy in the historic Westside of San Antonio.
Event Details:
Date: Saturday, March 9, 2024
Time: Festivities begin at 10:00 am; Ceremony starts at 10:30 am
Location: Dress for Success San Antonio, 600 N. Frio St., San Antonio, TX 78205
About MACRI:
Mexican American History of Civil Rights, is the only national organization dedicated to collecting and sharing Mexican American civil rights history. For more information, visit somosmacri.org.
About Dress for Success San Antonio:
Dress for Success San Antonio targets the needs of at-risk women by promoting economic security and self-sufficiency to break the chains of generational poverty through job preparation, employment retention and career development programs.
About San Anto Cultural Arts:
San Anto Cultural Arts is a community-based organization whose mission is to foster human and community development through community-based arts.
About Jovita Idar:
Jovita Idar (1885-1946) was a pioneering Mexican American journalist, educator, and activist who fought for civil rights, suffrage, and social justice for marginalized communities in Texas during the early 20th century.