Santa Ana, CA
Public Art Project
Las Poderosas, empowers the stories of Las Promotoras de Latino Health Access, a group of community health advocates who took on the urgent work of reducing the spread of COVID-19 by advocating for the health of their ostracized community in one of California's most rapidly gentrifying cities — one with crippling, historical health and wealth inequities. Las Promotoras, provides greater visibility and accessibility to the amazing efforts of everyday women who, although not not trained as medical professionals, nevertheless fought for the survival of their communities with incredible heart and determination.
We celebrate these first responders as PODEROSAS (powerful women) asserting them as heroes in American history.
Mapping Las Poderosas
Las Poderosas lives beyond the monument—extending into a digital story map developed through the 18th Street Arts Center Creative Corps. This platform connects the work to a larger network of artists across California, tracing stories of resilience, care, and collective memory across geographies. Explore how these narratives unfold across place and community.
The broader “Poderosas” project includes, 63 oral histories, a digital archive, a brass sculpture and monument located at Latino Health Access headquarters in Downtown, Santa Ana, CA. and a publication with photo portraits, that composes the collection of PODEROSAS
Created by Alicia Rojas, this public art project is funded through a fellowship awarded by 18th Street Arts Center-Creative Corps, a pilot initiative of the California Arts Council, and an awarded grant by the National Association of Latino Arts and Cultures (NALAC). This project is also supported by Grand Central Art Center (GCAC), Latino Health Access (LHA), the Office of Orange County Supervisor Vicente Sarmiento, Second District and the City of Santa Ana.