LINEA NEGRA yasminhernandez

Thanks for stopping by the Linea Negra blog!  This was created as a safe space to discuss issues surrounding pregnancy, birthing, babies, women, mothers, fathers, families, communities, our needs, our struggles and our triumphs.

I am a visual artist who mostly deals with social justice and spiritual themes in my work.  Recently my art has been shaped by personal themes and struggles.  Actually these are not as personal as one might think, since many persons seem to be living parallel experiences.  Becoming a new mom in recent years has coincided with the downturn in the economy and the impact that has had on so many. It has also coincided with an increase of illness in my family.  Cancer has claimed several close relatives, including my own brother and two of my baby’s grandparents.  Losses such as these usually bring us to a place where we begin to evaluate the current conditions we exist in.  We consider how to bring about more peace, satisfaction and fulfillment in our day to day—for ourselves, for our families, our communities, the world.

The midwife-assisted home birth of my first son was the catalyst for developing this project, Linea Negra, exploring the liberation of birthing, babies, mothers, fathers and families.  I say liberation because it is imperative to understand the political implications and conditions that shape our daily experiences and either hinder or support our ability to achieve said liberation.

This blog will take you on a journey through personal narratives, others’ testimonials, articles, political rants, statistics, citations, poetry and art.  Some will be humorous, others depressing or enraging.  Most will be inspiring. They will reveal much of the struggles we encounter, how these struggles have become institutionalized and systematic, and our individual and collective attempts to rise above.  They will reveal the struggles, the losses, the resistance, the triumphs and the process in between.  Most of all they will invite you to participate in dialogues about all these issues.

For a more formal statement on the Linea Negra project see the About page.

Thanks for blessing this blog with your presence. I hope you will return to read future posts and share in the dialogue.

Yasmin Hernandez