Young Artists on What Keeps Them Going During These Times

INGLEWOOD, California — When I decided I wanted to be a writer and filmmaker, I knew I would struggle with money, but I was okay with that. As a woman and a Latina, I knew I would have to work 10 times harder to succeed in an industry that wasn’t built to include me. I knew it was going to require extra hustle, which I was prepared for. However, what I wasn’t prepared for was how difficult it would be to continue creating when our own communities and our cultures are constantly being targeted and attacked by the very institutions that are supposed to protect us. 

I know I’m not alone. Artists of color across the nation, especially Latinos, are feeling the anxiety. How do we keep pursuing a career in the arts, which is already hard enough, when the current government is racially profiling, abusing, kidnapping, and killing people from our Latino communities? How do we focus on our craft when families are being torn apart in broad daylight? How dare we continue to dream and create when this administration wants us all gone? 

Recently, I’ve found myself stuck in the unhealthy habit of doom-scrolling on my phone and have become increasingly disheartened and discouraged by all of the evil things happening in our country. And then, instead of working on writing the script of my next short film or making progress on the book I’m writing, the dreadful thought of “what’s the point?” begins to circulate in my head. 

In an effort to make sense of and find solace in our current reality, I decided to speak to three other Latine creatives from my Southern California community about how they are surviving and thriving during this second Trump administration. What they had to say not only comforted me, but gave me hope. 

That’s right. Allow yourself to have fun without feeling guilty. When awful things are happening around us, it is very easy to isolate yourself and disengage. This is what I’ve been doing recently as I stay in bed for hours, not responding to messages, not attending events, and not answering phone calls. However, it is important to remember that you are not alone.

“What keeps me going is having things to look forward to like my short film, web series, and feature film,” Stephanie Osuna-Hernandez, a first-generation Latina writer/director from Inglewood, says. 

As she reflected on the development of her career during this current administration, Osuna-Hernandez feels supported by her creative peers. 

“I know that all of those projects are going to involve my people,” she notes.

Rather than retreating into despair, Osuna-Hernandez has made it her mission to keep creating with people of color who she can have fun with. 

As she continues to raise funds to produce season 2 of her web series ”And They Were Roommates” — a show about two roommates navigating friendship, relationships, and self-love in Los Angeles —  Osuna-Hernandez offers this advice:  “Do the projects that fulfill your soul. Don’t put too much pressure on yourself and the work. Don’t think that it is going to save the world or save your community. Do it because you love it, and everything will fall into place.” 

In the art of drag, there’s a maxim that everything can and should always be bigger and bolder. Bigger hair, bolder makeup, bigger heels, and bolder personalities. It is because of this maximalist attitude that fashion designer and drag queen, Godoy, refuses to dim their light. 

As the child of Mexican immigrant parents, Godoy has always found ways to merge their culture into their drag performances and fashion designs. Even during this current political climate, Godoy emphasizes, “I haven’t dimmed my light at all because I feel like that’s what they want us to do. They want us to revert inward and be scared. I fight back by not shutting up and not being silenced.” 

As Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids continue to impact Black and Brown communities — including their hometown of Inglewood — Godoy has made it their responsibility to keep speaking up, unapologetically embracing their Mexican culture in their performances. 

Godoy is also very vocal on their social media platforms, constantly sharing updates on ICE raids and developments.

“I am heavily motivated by proving people wrong. So the fact that they’re trying to shut us up and not let us succeed, it lights a fire under my ass to prove them all wrong,” Godoy says.

Sometimes being told to “keep going” is not enough. Because how do you keep going when you already feel burnt out? Josslyn Glenn, an Afrolatina transgender producer, writer, and spokesperson, suggests approaching it from a different angle. 

When her abuela was in her final days and suffering from dementia, Glenn would sit down with her and interview her about her life. Exasperated, Glenn’s mom and tía would tell her, “I don’t see the point. She doesn’t remember anything.” 

But Glenn didn’t see it that way: “No, she remembers everything. You just have to ask in a different way. Ask different questions, and she’ll take you down different avenues. Maybe you’re asking the same questions, and she’s rendering the same responses. She’s not a machine. She’s not a robot. She remembers more than you think.” 

Although Glenn was a young college student when she was figuring out ways to connect with her grandma and her roots, she already knew she had to think outside the box. 

“When it comes to art in a time of despair and revolution, I think it’s just a matter of accessing your art from a different angle,” Glenn shares. 

What does that look like? If you’re a writer, it might mean planning a writer’s retreat for yourself out in nature so you can recharge and focus. If you’re a filmmaker, it might mean picking up a camera and recording everything you find beautiful for a day.

We’re all in this together. Don’t give up.

Jessica Garcia (she/they), aka Jesse, is a Queer Latina writer and director from Inglewood, CA. In 2024, Jesse wrote and directed her first short film, “Quinceañera,” which was accepted into the Palm Springs LGBTQ+ Film Festival, San Francisco’s Latino Film Festival, and more. Recently, Jesse directed a music video for Queer Latine Alt-Indie band Pardon Me Sir, which has reached over 800,000 people across social media.

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Nuria Net edited this edition of The Latino Newsletter. Julio Ricardo Varela published it.

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