Tacos of Texas

In the season opener of Tacos of Texas, we step into two home kitchens and the women who run them. Denise Segura is a not so traditional Abuela from San Antonio. We’ll also make tacos with an immigrant mom who asked us not to use her name for safety reasons.  We talk about home cooking and what it means to keep feeding their families, one taco a time.

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The full transcript of this episode of Tacos of Texas is available on the KUT & KUTX Studio website. The transcript is also available as subtitles or captions on some podcast apps.

Speaker 1 [00:00:00] And I said, what for? And she said, again. And I gave it to her, and I told her. And my daughter turned around. She was talking, and in less than five minutes, I had immigration on one side.

Mando Rayo [00:00:13] What’s up, Taco World? I’m Taco Journalist Mando Rayo, and welcome to the Tacos of Texas podcast, El Seis, produced by Identity Productions in partnership with KUT and KUTX Studios. And we’re back exploring taco culture in Texas through the eyes of the people in the Lone Star State. So grab a fresh tortilla and a guacate and get ready for some muy tasty taco conversations. Sabor. In the season opener of Tacos of Texas we step into two home kitchens and the women who run them. Denise Segura is a not so traditional abuela from San Antonio and will also make tacos with an immigrant mom who asked us not to use her name for safety reasons. We talk about home cooking and what it means to keep feeding their families one taco at a time. Que onda, mi gente? Mando rayo here, El Taco Journalist. So this year, we created the studio in my home. What better way to welcome people to a studio than just my living room, my kitchen table. And shout out to Rene Chavez, who actually gave us this idea, just to explore and see what regular people are cooking at home. So you don’t have to be a chef, own a restaurant. You don’t to be taquero. It could be somebody that’s your favorite uncle. Your tío, your tía, your abuela, cousin, what have you. And we’re wanting to find some families, some moms, and some abuelas to see what they’re cooking for their families. In fact, I reached out to my friend, Patricia Sanchez. I was like, hey, I’m looking for an abuela. I’d love to get somebody from San Antonio. But people, they were like, oh, my abuela might be interested, or I know somebody. And then once we kind of got to talking about like. Really confirming the details. All the abuelas were like, y no, es que no I can’t because you know, my house isn’t big enough. Or, you know like, no, me tengo que alistar and oh no, it’s too embarrassing. But finally we were able to connect with somebody that was maybe a not so traditional abuela. We went into her home, you now, she cooked for us. You know, I think part of the reason why we wanted to bring those stories together is to showcase that, you know, you don’t have to be a chef, you don’t have to a taquero, or have a business or a restaurant, but it’s those people that are cooking for us and the reasons why they’re cooking for use. And you know when your abuela does it for you or your abuelita, those tacos taste even better. And for the second interview in this episode, we also had some issues trying to find a family, or really like a mom, dad. Has been impacted by our current immigration system. And there are different reasons why people cook from home. And one of them is for security and safety. And so we were able to find a mom, but for safety reasons, we’re not sharing their names. So the idea is like, well, what are you cooking at home? You know, how you’re getting by? How do you make income by staying at home and what got you to that place that you’re scared to go outside? So in this episode, we really cover the reasons why we’re making tacos in La Casa. One for the opportunity to share with our loved ones, and then some of those other reasons that are harder to share. So I hope you can tune in and listen to both of these stories. And note to our listeners, one of the interviews is in Spanish, but I will provide context and translation. After a few sections, so keep listening.

Speaker 3 [00:04:15] You

Mando Rayo [00:04:23] It’s taco time, and now here’s a word from our sponsor. If there are two things all Austinites love, it’s tacos and our parks. This city has nearly 400 beloved parks, trails, and green spaces, and they need our support. Today’s episode is sponsored by Austin Parks Foundation. APF has been working for more than 30 years to make sure our parks are clean, safe, and accessible for all Austinite. Mira look. Learn more about APF’s mission and make a gift to support our parks at AustinParks.org. Denise Segura is a not so traditional abuela. She loves to travel, dance, and cook for her family. We’re about to meet Denise at her home in San Antonio.

Speaker 4 [00:05:14] I can make tacos. Yeah. Okay, I will start heating the oil up. And I did make my frijoles this morning. So as you know, we got in from Europe this morning and I made the beans earlier today so we can have some chorizo con frijol.

Mando Rayo [00:05:35] All right, perfect.

Speaker 4 [00:05:36] So I move that out of the way. I don’t like russet potatoes. I use the red potatoes or golden potatoes so I don t peel the skin.

Mando Rayo [00:05:47] Oh, yeah, yeah. No, that sounds good, too.

Speaker 4 [00:05:50] And then I try to actually use stuff for my garden. I have Chile Poblano. I have eggplant. I have tomato, cherry tomatoes, big boy tomatoes. I have bell pepper, zucchini, cucumbers, and I have yellow squash. I have strawberries, and then I have herbs within that. I have some dill, basil, oregano,

Mando Rayo [00:06:16] Wow, you don’t even have to go to the grocery store.

Speaker 4 [00:06:19] You see, I haven’t been here for two weeks. I feel that cooking and making tacos for my, well, cooking in general, it’s a way of me showing my family how much I love them. So I think that is something that I want to carry on. And that’s all the time. I mean, for the holidays, they know grandma’s not gonna be buying nothing store but it’s gonna be homemade. And my grandkids love it.

Mando Rayo [00:06:49] Yeah, I know you talk a lot about, you know, bringing the family together. Why do you think that’s important, you know, especially today where it’s like maybe a faster pace of life?

Speaker 4 [00:07:01] Is, but you know, one thing that I can say for my parents, my parents always instilled, we ate breakfast together, we had dinner all the time together. My parents were old school, so whatever they made, they made and we didn’t get to say, no, we’re not gonna eat. Because if we didn’t eat it.

Mando Rayo [00:07:24] Yeah, you gotta eat it, right?

Speaker 4 [00:07:27] It was the kitchen’s close and we always ate at the same time dinner no matter what you knew you had to come in Yeah, so I think that’s something that’s lost now as you said, it’s fast-paced. Everybody’s doing different things But we still like to be together. It’s just knowing that we’re all together We’re one unit so That I want to keep instilling that because we’re only we have. I like that tradition of being a family. So I’m throwing in the potatoes right now. I’m going to salt and pepper them because they need to have some flavor. And I will cook this until they get a little bit brown. Then I will actually put the lid on so they can steam a little and cook a little faster. We’ll remove that, make the chorizo, and then put that in. I love chorizo to us. Chorizo is comfort food, right? I mean, every time… It was chorizo con huevo.

Mando Rayo [00:08:29] I mean, that’s a staple. I grew up with chorizo con huevo, papas con huevos, chorizo, con refried beans. I mean it’s all part of it.

Speaker 4 [00:08:38] I know like my husband’s grandma when she was alive every time we went to go visit there was always beans, refried beans. It had to be refried and a comal always on because we were going to make it a quick tortilla and she made the best tortillas. Oh the best tortilla. What I can start doing is start making the salsa. So I’ll get another sarten and at least so I will brown up. My garlic and my chiles, un diente de ajo y tres chiles del arbol, and then I have some acilantro.

Mando Rayo [00:09:20] Charlie, you’re toasting them all together.

Speaker 4 [00:09:23] It just gives it, it brings out the flavor, especially on the garlic, especially on the chile de arbol. And I like that roasted-ness also on the actual chile serrano. Everybody has their own thing, but this abuelita will only do it the way I know how. Perfect. So I just think cooking for my family just brings us together. And there’s always some cheese man. That’s going to be going around and I think that’s one way of knowing what’s going on with everybody is coming together and just cooking and I can tell you everybody will come in and put their hands in and help out. Yeah, okay. Normally I will have my granddaughter up on a little stool and she’s going and now does she make and she thinks she’s making the best tortillas and whoa, but I will actually cook it for her.

Mando Rayo [00:10:20] Just to light up.

Speaker 4 [00:10:21] Okay.

Mando Rayo [00:10:23] All right, I can really, you know, not only smell, but like I can feel it in my eyes. You know, like, it’s funny because my kids say this thing to me where when I’m cooking and they’re like, oh, that’s cooking because you know everybody, their eyes start watering, their nose start running, so like, you know you can have a good spicy salsa.

Speaker 3 [00:10:49] Ha ha ha.

Speaker 4 [00:10:51] And my kids will know, oh, Grammy’s making Mexican food because they, I guess you can smell.

Mando Rayo [00:10:57] Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Speaker 4 [00:10:59] And they know. So in my molcajete, I put some actual salt, and I will just smash this up because that’s going to incorporate everything. And this is a chile de arbol, which, to be honest, I don’t know if it gives it such a different flavor, but that is what my grandparents used, and that’s what I will continue to use.

Mando Rayo [00:11:30] Yeah, I love the arbol and I’m a good mulcahete, you know.

Speaker 4 [00:11:37] I wanna take my mother’s, because she has a deep one, but I will do with what I have. It just grinds everything up, and one thing with the molcajete, you never wash it, you just brush everything off, so it still has like spices in there. But the chile just has a different texture than putting it in a blender. I feel that it’s better. For me, just that work of having to do something instead of just making it in that blender, per se. Now, I did cheat, so don’t think that I’m not modernized completely because I did use the blender to multiply a little bit of the tomatoes. So then I’m putting also some cilantro because Mexican food without cilantro is not Mexican food. And I do have this also in my garden because I use it a lot.

Mando Rayo [00:12:43] That’s looking good, all blending together really nice. I mean, I should taste it.

Speaker 4 [00:12:51] Okay, let’s see first.

Mando Rayo [00:12:54] That’s good. Oh, it’s smoky. It’s spicy. It has a bite, but it’s not like

Speaker 4 [00:12:59] That’s not true, man.

Mando Rayo [00:13:00] It’s not too much because they’re like three chiles de arbol, de serrano, cilantro, ajoy and the tomatoes. It’s nice, super well balanced too. Oh yeah, so do you see yourself as a typical abuela?

Speaker 4 [00:13:26] I think I’m an abuela of our generation. I’m not, my abuelita was always out in, she was always at home. I’m NOT an at-home Grammy. Okay. I’m out and about. I still feel that the 50s is the new 30.

Mando Rayo [00:13:46] And you have quite the social life, don’t you? I sure do. So I was just gonna…

Speaker 4 [00:13:49] So I was just gonna say, this Grammy is not just at home. I am an educated grandma. I work, but I work because I want to, we love to travel. So do I see myself as a typical grandma? No. I love to get dressed. I’m always in my heels. I have to have makeup on.

Mando Rayo [00:14:12] What about dancing?

Speaker 4 [00:14:14] I, we love to dance.

Mando Rayo [00:14:16] Yeah. Well, I think there’s something in the water of like people in San Antonio, because, you know, we come every now and then for stories, and I have friends here, and we go out, and then you see all these, you know people like in the older generation, they’re still out there. They’re dancing, they’re going out. What do you think?

Speaker 4 [00:14:36] We just don’t want to give up that youth, I think. But this Grammy loves to still think she was like Generation X. I’m Generation X where I love the old music. I love, now don’t get me wrong, my husband is in a time warp because I tell him, you’re in that old rock and roll, not this. I’m diversified. Right. So what I did with the chorizo in the back so we can make chorizo con frijoles, I took the frijole that I cooked earlier today and I cooked the chorizos first, left all the grease from the ajo that I had made for the chile and I’m just putting it in. It just gives it this comfort food taste. There it goes. Let me lower this. So let me actually bring the. I’m gonna throw back the papas in here so they can actually get the color of the chorizo again I didn’t take out the grease Yeah, we’re just gonna let them

Mando Rayo [00:15:44] Leave the flavor in, right? Yes. Ha ha ha.

Speaker 4 [00:15:47] Now it’s not so greasy as I told you the apple chorizo is real good. Okay. So it’s not greasy and as you can see there’s not a lot of gristle because it’s just that flavor and for me this is comfort right here.

Mando Rayo [00:16:02] Do you have any rules for your kitchen?

Speaker 4 [00:16:06] No, not per se. Well, if you mess it up, you better clean it. I don’t like for you to come in and have something, and then you’re just gonna leave it in the seat, because no, as I said, maybe my grandmother would have done it, but not this one. I’m not gonna be cleaning after everybody. So then what I will do, is once I mix everything together, I will put it in all together.

Mando Rayo [00:16:44] So you put the eggs with the papas.

Speaker 4 [00:16:47] And the chorizo. And again, I didn’t take the no, but none of the grease out. So I’m going to move my chorizo con frijol and I’ll put it on the trapito. And then I’ll just wait for this. And then after that, while this is waiting, by the time this is going, then I will start with my tortillas. Okay.

Mando Rayo [00:17:14] So, do you think a tortilla has to be perfectly round?

Speaker 4 [00:17:16] No, and it’s not going to be perfectly round. And if somebody tells you yes, they lie. They lie to you.

Mando Rayo [00:17:25] I see that you also have Mexican hands. You know what I call that? When you’re able to flip a tortilla without burning yourself.

Speaker 4 [00:17:35] But I’m gonna tell you, sometimes I do use my knife. Uh-huh, see. And then as that’s cooking, I will start getting my other. And I do different sizes. Hey, look, see?

Mando Rayo [00:17:50] That’s good, yeah, it’s rising.

Speaker 4 [00:17:53] Um…

Mando Rayo [00:17:54] You know what they say, if a tortilla can rise, so can you.

Speaker 4 [00:17:58] Ah, look at that!

Mando Rayo [00:18:00] And then I see that they’re, you know, tostaditas.

Speaker 4 [00:18:04] Yeah.

Mando Rayo [00:18:05] You gotta have the brown. Yes, I do. Wait, wait. Is that brown? Is that Freddy Fender?

Speaker 3 [00:18:09] Ah! Ha ha ha ha!

Mando Rayo [00:18:13] You know, you know.

Speaker 4 [00:18:17] Because then we see the Virgen de Guadalajara.

Mando Rayo [00:18:19] See, the virgen or sometimes juanga, I don’t know. Yes. Ha, ha, ha.

Speaker 4 [00:18:27] That means they’re looking after me. Yes. Mmm. Mmm. So good.

Mando Rayo [00:18:34] Yeah, it’s great. And the tortillas are just fresh flour tortillas.

Speaker 4 [00:18:40] Is that?

Mando Rayo [00:18:41] Yeah, it’s like eating at home.

Speaker 4 [00:18:45] Oh, thank you.

Mando Rayo [00:18:47] You haven’t had like a…

Speaker 4 [00:18:50] A home cook meal.

Mando Rayo [00:18:50] A home-cooked meal for a long time? Oh, it’s just like so comforting, so good. So, Denise, tell me what drives you, or what do you get out of cooking for your family?

Speaker 4 [00:19:05] Cooking for my family is the way that I show them that I love them. It might not be, I don’t need to have anything monetary-like, but them knowing that I took the time to do it shows that I loved them, and they know that. They know that I take the time be in the kitchen, because I’m always in the kitchen when everybody’s here. I’m in the always in kitchen, so they love that. They love that it’s homemade. I’m not. Purchasing it somewhere in a store, it’s grandma showing my love through my cooking, and just making sure that they know the heritage of where they came from. Being a Mexican-American is tough in this time and age, but what we can do is show them love is through food.

Mando Rayo [00:19:58] Love is in food, and love is in your home, and you can feel it.

Speaker 4 [00:20:03] Thank you. Yeah. Yeah.

Mando Rayo [00:20:04] Yeah, and I…

Speaker 4 [00:20:04] I’m saying, in my home, you feel, it’s always welcoming. I can just, I don’t care who you are, just come on in. I can feed you. It’s something warm, something nourishing, and that’s.

Mando Rayo [00:20:19] Yeah, yeah, and do you feel like, I don’t know, lucky that you’re able to bring that joy here? Because you just mentioned, you know, life is tough out there.

Speaker 4 [00:20:30] It is, and if I can just show a little piece that I’m continuing traditions that have been given to me and passing them on and showing that I care for someone through cooking, because it’s not easy. It’s not just come in and do and put things together. It’s the motion of going through that whole process. I feel it’s very important. And I think my family really respects that because they know.

Mando Rayo [00:21:01] Yeah, I know. Yeah, they don’t take it for granted

Speaker 4 [00:21:03] They don’t and they love it and they know this is where our life is, it revolves around being in the kitchen. My home wasn’t like this, it was a small little opening to get to that and I told my husband, no, as our kids are getting older and our family is growing, I need it open because I need to be able to see and hear what’s going on because conversations are happening as we’re doing this and Now, you don’t see a lot of families coming together and eating. And one of the house rules that we have, besides if you make the mess, you clean it up, is that when we’re all together around the table, there’s no cell phone.

Speaker 3 [00:21:48] Hmm

Speaker 4 [00:21:49] We don’t have the TV on because we need to know what’s going on. Unless the Spurs game is on, but, right?

Speaker 3 [00:21:56] Yeah, yeah, yeah

Speaker 4 [00:21:57] No, but we just all sit around the table and we talk what’s going on, what’s happening, who’s doing what, what was a cheese may that happened, you know, it’s just being here in the house.

Mando Rayo [00:22:12] And she’s been a good way.

Speaker 4 [00:22:13] And cheese them in a good way. And cheese me in a a good a way. And it’s so funny, we have next door, we had a new family move in. And I remember I told my husband, okay, so I’m gonna make them a cake, just to welcome them in. And they’re, luckily enough, they’re Mexicanos. So she was all, the wife.

Mando Rayo [00:22:32] You made them a cake? Well, yeah.

Speaker 4 [00:22:34] Just to welcome to our neighborhood. I need a couple of next door. And the lady was so appreciative again, but it’s me making something and just saying welcome. Yeah. Because that’s just who we are.

Mando Rayo [00:22:50] Right, right, yeah.

Speaker 4 [00:22:50] And then we’re appreciative in there. It’s like family now. So, but again, cooking, it’s all about the cooking. It’s, and I feel as I tell people that know me, don’t buy me a gift, make me something. Because if you make it, I know that you took the time to do it and you thought about me in the process, not just picking it up somewhere and then giving it to me. That’s, it comes from the heart, but not really from your heart and from your soul. And this, as a grandma, is what I want my kids to always remember. That legacy, Wielita was always there. She always cooked for us, made everything homemade.

Mando Rayo [00:23:29] Yeah, beautiful and super tasty

Speaker 4 [00:23:33] Thank you.

Mando Rayo [00:23:34] So all they, so the biggest compliment they can do is just say mass. Mass.

Speaker 4 [00:23:42] And believe me, right now it’s small, but when I’m cooking for the family, we’re making a lot.

Mando Rayo [00:23:48] Okay, well on that note…

Speaker 4 [00:23:50] Mas.

Mando Rayo [00:23:54] Denise, thank you so much for inviting us into your home. It’s been a pleasure. And I love just watching you cook and observe and having, you know, we don’t say breaking bread. We said breaking a little tortilla. Yes. Verdad?

Speaker 4 [00:24:09] Where it’s always at, either flour or corn, but homemade. And my husband says, you don’t have to do it. You work so much. And I said, no, it’s me giving a little bit of myself in what we eat.

Mando Rayo [00:24:23] Beautiful, beautiful.

Speaker 4 [00:24:24] Thank you. Awesome, thank you.

Mando Rayo [00:24:29] Now we’re leaving San Antonio and headed back to Austin to visit with an immigrant mom that is cooking at home for different reasons. Heads up, this interview is in Espanol. Gracias por… Aquí estamos en su casa, vamos a… ¿Qué vamos a comer?

Speaker 1 [00:24:49] Gracias por venir. Vamos a comer un chile a la mexicana, un huevo a la Mexicana.

Mando Rayo [00:24:53] Well, la Mexicana, andelelele.

Speaker 1 [00:24:55] And some tortillas that I’m going to make for you.

Mando Rayo [00:24:57] Well, let’s see, show me how it starts.

Speaker 1 [00:25:00] Vamos a picar el chile y el tomate y la cebolla.

Mando Rayo [00:25:09] And tell me a little bit about your family, how many girls do you have?

Speaker 1 [00:25:12] Yo tengo cinco niñas y tengo dos niños.

Mando Rayo [00:25:17] Siete.

Speaker 1 [00:25:18] Seven, seven babies.

Mando Rayo [00:25:19] Well, it has to be a lot of tacos, right?

Speaker 1 [00:25:22] Yes, a lot of tacos, of course.

Mando Rayo [00:25:25] When you’re cooking for the kids, what do you think?

Speaker 1 [00:25:31] Ah, pues todo el tiempo les cocino y pienso pues es la obligación de una madre, hacerles comida, entonces, pues sí, lo disfruto, todo el tiempo ando cocinando para ellos.

Mando Rayo [00:25:48] And what are the foods that you ask for the most?

Speaker 1 [00:25:52] Les gusta mucho el mole.

Mando Rayo [00:25:54] El mole? El mole con arroz.

Speaker 1 [00:25:57] El pozole y el espagueti.

Mando Rayo [00:26:00] And the Spaniards.

Speaker 1 [00:26:02] Me piden más el espagueti también. Si, cocinamos aqui

Mando Rayo [00:26:10] And now they’re out of school.

Speaker 1 [00:26:12] They’re all out of school now, thank God. They’re on vacation here. But there we are, on vacation. They ask me to go to the river a lot, but as the situation is…

Mando Rayo [00:26:26] Yes, not so safe, right? ¿Y cómo se siente ahorita?

Speaker 1 [00:26:32] Ah, pues con mucho miedo, traumada. Sí. Salí muy traumada de ese lugar, entonces. Pues sí, mucho miedo.

Mando Rayo [00:26:40] See you.

Speaker 1 [00:26:41] I’m very scared right now because of what’s happening.

Mando Rayo [00:26:44] And what precautions do you take to feel safer? To go shopping, to go to the store?

Speaker 1 [00:26:57] Uh, me voy caminando, aquí tengo leche y biserquitas, entonces me voy caminado yo.

Mando Rayo [00:27:02] Thank you.

Speaker 1 [00:27:03] Gracias a Dios, lo tengo aquí cerquitas. Por eso me mudé más para acá, para tener algo cerca. Let’s make a dough. Let’s see. A dough.

Mando Rayo [00:27:13] Tortillas.

Speaker 1 [00:27:14] Las tortillas.

Mando Rayo [00:27:16] How old are you in Austin?

Speaker 1 [00:27:19] I’ve been in Austin for 26 years. My mom brought me here when I was 7.

Mando Rayo [00:27:27] Seven years.

Speaker 1 [00:27:30] My mom says we’re from San Luis Potosí, Mexico.

Mando Rayo [00:27:32] Okay. Las enchiladas. Las enchilladas.

Speaker 1 [00:27:37] Las enchiladas rojas.

Mando Rayo [00:27:40] And then he’s going to prepare the Mexican salad.

Speaker 1 [00:27:45] Un huevito a la menta.

Mando Rayo [00:27:46] Let’s see, how do you prepare it?

Speaker 1 [00:27:48] Uh, los, uh, doro primero el tomate y el chile, y la cebolla, y luego ya le echa el huevito.

Mando Rayo [00:27:56] ¿Sabes por qué le dicen a la mexicana?

Speaker 1 [00:27:59] Por los colores. Los colores de la bandera mexicana, ¿verdad? Mexicana, sí.

Mando Rayo [00:28:03] Thank you. When I first stepped into her home, I felt comfortable. I felt like I’ve been there before. In fact, it reminded me a lot of growing up and just kind of like those simple things that we had, not a big home, but lots of kids running around and lots of love. And of course, the olores of the cooking and the tortillas kind of going back and forth. And of course, she made huevos a la Mexicana for us. I’m like, man, you’re speaking my love language right there. I don’t, you know. And then, of course she was making right there on the spot fresh tortillas de maíz. The sazon and then also like you know how sometimes when you cook with jalapenos or with serranos you know it makes you chiar you know, it makes your your eyes water and so I got that and love to see what she’s doing and how she’s doin it and it was really nice to see how her older daughter helps her out but also all the other children you know she has a newborn baby and they’re all helping out and really kind of that’s a very traditional way of growing up in a Latino household so I love seeing that and you know now we’re gonna get to taste you know one of my favorite breakfasts is huevos a la mexicana tacos de huevos ala mexicana on corn tortillas now we are going into how she was detained by ICE by just going to the store on her birthday with her Let’s see, let’s see. Let’s eat.

Speaker 1 [00:29:44] Let’s go to the first bite if you like it.

Mando Rayo [00:29:47] Is it hot? No, it’s not that hot, but it looks delicious.

Speaker 1 [00:29:53] Oh, I don’t know what to do.

Mando Rayo [00:30:01] Yes, it’s delicious. The tortillas turned out well.

Speaker 1 [00:30:06] Suavecita, verdad? Suave cita, si?

Mando Rayo [00:30:11] The egg and the tortillas are soft, and then we close it.

Speaker 1 [00:30:16] Imagine that!

Mando Rayo [00:30:30] When you see them eating, what do you give them?

Speaker 1 [00:30:37] Mucha alegría, es una satisfacción que le doy de comer a todos mis hijos, yo también no pensé tener tantos así.

Speaker 5 [00:30:48] Mm-hmm.

Speaker 1 [00:30:48] But when they finish their meal, you can imagine that they are already full, they are full, thank God. And they eat everything, thank you God. They eat everything. Yes, right? Yes, everything. Because you can’t imagine if they like McDonald’s only.

Mando Rayo [00:31:08] Nah, nah. Yes, and then when they arrested her for immigration, right? Yes. And when she was inside, what was she thinking when she had been arrested?

Speaker 1 [00:31:25] When I was arrested, I was locked up for a week. Because I couldn’t believe where I was. There were more than 50 people in a cell. So I was stuck for a whole week. I said, I’m here.

Speaker 5 [00:31:44] Awesome.

Speaker 1 [00:31:46] I didn’t owe anything to them, nothing, I mean, they caught me only in a parking lot, without dueing anything.

Speaker 5 [00:31:53] See you.

Speaker 1 [00:31:54] They didn’t see anything, so I locked myself in for a week and they were looking for me and they found me, obviously. And then it was difficult. It was very difficult because at three weeks I found out that I was pregnant.

Mando Rayo [00:32:12] I was pregnant.

Speaker 1 [00:32:14] Adentro, ajá, y pues más, o sea, más difíciles. Pensaba muchas cosas que no hay. Y te dan mucho miedo allí. Hasta los securities también, te dicen muchas cosas. Porque mira, que mucha gente ya no va, o sea ya no regresa por acá, que ya está deportada, entonces los trata en mano.

Mando Rayo [00:32:35] That’s what’s on my mind. The day they arrested her, can you explain how it all happened?

Speaker 1 [00:32:43] Ah, sí. Ese día fue un 29 de abril del año pasado. Entonces tuve una cita de mi hija que tiene cinco, ya cumplió sus seis años. Me la llevé y mi hermana me marcó y me dijo que me iba a llevar a almorzar por el día de mi cumpleaños y le dije, sí está bien. Entonces yo me bajé en el bus, a leche y empecé a comprar un pastel y una carne pas de rena. In the afternoon, with my children, obviously. As we always celebrate a birthday, my sister called me and said she was already outside. I called my daughter and told her, let’s go eat with your aunt. She said yes, let’s. Then my daughter arrived at the HIV and my daughter was already out when I left. And his aunt knows that the parking lot is invalid. So my daughter told me, there’s my aunt over there. So we went up, but I didn’t see the police. I went up and said, my sister, let the police go. And now we’re leaving. I said, yes, that’s fine. So the police turned around because they were in front of us in the parking lots. They turned around and put the lights on my sister.

Speaker 5 [00:33:56] Mm-hmm.

Speaker 1 [00:33:59] And since I was just getting on the bus, I wasn’t nervous, I mean, I don’t owe anything. So he asked for his license, my sister gave it to him, he went there and checked. And he said, I’m just going to give you a warning. And then he went back again and came back and said, I want to see your ID. And I said, but why me? If I didn’t do anything, if you want, I’ll get off and go by bus, and I just got on.

Mando Rayo [00:34:24] Say, say, say.

Speaker 1 [00:34:25] And then he said, no, I need your ID.

Mando Rayo [00:34:28] And I let him… He was a police officer from Austin?

Speaker 1 [00:34:30] But I am a state trooper.

Mando Rayo [00:34:32] One state trooper. Okay.

Speaker 1 [00:34:35] And he said, I still need to tell you, but for what? And then he told me again, and I gave it to him. And my daughter turned around. She said, mommy is making a call. And I started crying because I’m sick with anxiety, so she gave me an anxiety attack. And my son said, oh, he’s talking. And in less than five minutes, I had immigration on the one hand. And he told them, no, we have to take you. And I said, why not? I didn’t do anything wrong. I said do you go down for the good ones or the bad ones? So I said I have a case, but since they didn’t take me in that case, since I don’t have anything fixed, I was just starting to fix it. And they wanted the A number. And I gave them the A, and then the immigration officer told my sister Oz that we are going to put a monitor on her feet. And my sister said, no, she can go tomorrow. He said, no, you have to go now. You leave today or in two days. I said yes or no. And that’s when they took me to the downtown station. And then they put me in a room. An officer took me out of a room to read my obligations that I had to do and everything. So he put me back in and then he took me back out. And he showed me a girl that wasn’t me. He said this is you. I told him it wasn’t me. Then, according to the wrongdoing, they told me to get married to be taken to detention.

Mando Rayo [00:36:11] Hmm

Speaker 1 [00:36:11] You make it, why don’t they?

Mando Rayo [00:36:13] Where did they take you?

Speaker 1 [00:36:15] In San Antonio.

Mando Rayo [00:36:17] In San Antonio.

Speaker 1 [00:36:18] Que me acuerde si fue en San Andrés

Mando Rayo [00:36:20] Yes, yes, yes. And how did you feel during that time, not seeing your children, being there, and for how long were you there?

Speaker 1 [00:36:31] Dure dos meses.

Mando Rayo [00:36:31] Dos meses. Sí, porque…

Speaker 1 [00:36:32] Yes, because they weren’t giving the courts very quickly because they had a lot of people. Yes. So I waited a month and a half for them to give me the first court. Mm-hmm, mm-hmm. And, thank God, I got the lawyers. So the lawyer told me, Well, you have to think of a plan A and a plan B because of the current situation. Yes. And I felt more bad because, well, with my children out here, I said, Yes.

Speaker 5 [00:37:00] Hey

Speaker 1 [00:37:01] It’s very difficult and my mom helped me and my sister too.

Mando Rayo [00:37:05] Yes, they help with the children. And how does it feel when you’re inside when you can’t see your children?

Speaker 1 [00:37:11] I was desperate, very desperate because there was so much noise and they were fighting each other.

Mando Rayo [00:37:20] And then they let her out, she had the help of a lawyer.

Speaker 1 [00:37:29] Until the judge made fun of me, because he started laughing when I went to court. He said, just for a parking lot. And the judge started making fun of him. And he said, no, we’ll look at you for the other court. He was very rude. Yes, rude, very rude, yes.

Mando Rayo [00:37:47] Yes, I don’t know why they do that.

Speaker 1 [00:37:50] See

Mando Rayo [00:37:51] And then it also has a monitor.

Speaker 1 [00:37:55] And monitor them.

Mando Rayo [00:37:56] And so, yeah.

Speaker 1 [00:37:57] Yes, in June 26th I will be one year old.

Mando Rayo [00:38:00] ¡Un año!

Speaker 1 [00:38:00] Que lo tengo.

Mando Rayo [00:38:01] ¿Cómo se siente tenerlo aquí en su casa y tenerlo en Sofía?

Speaker 1 [00:38:11] It’s very difficult. And since it’s time for alberca, my children tell me, no, you can put me on the monitor, because it’s going to get damaged. It’s something traumatic for me too.

Mando Rayo [00:38:25] Mm-hmm.

Speaker 1 [00:38:26] That I can’t enjoy with them either.

Mando Rayo [00:38:28] Sí, sí. Y ellos lo ven y qué le preguntan.

Speaker 1 [00:38:33] That they will send me to Mexico when they take it away from me. And I tell them, no, no. That won’t happen, if God wants it to.

Mando Rayo [00:38:40] And then right now, how does it feel with everything that happened to you? How do you feel about your safety and your stress?

Speaker 1 [00:38:53] It has been very difficult, very difficult. My anxiety has caught up with me, very bad. I have panic attacks of anxiety when I look at a police officer. I mean, I was traumatized. I can’t look at the police officer because I get nervous.

Mando Rayo [00:39:05] What precautions do you take? Well, you have to go to the grocery store or to the store to buy food. What precautions are you taking?

Speaker 1 [00:39:16] The walk or the bus. I know that because I’m afraid of driving with other people.

Mando Rayo [00:39:23] Because that’s where they stop it.

Speaker 1 [00:39:26] If they stop another person, they will ask me the same thing. So I walk and use the bus.

Mando Rayo [00:39:32] What questions do your children ask you about when you’re going to be free from this case? Well, the kids don’t know, right?

Speaker 1 [00:39:44] Mm-hmm.

Mando Rayo [00:39:44] But the biggest ones.

Speaker 1 [00:39:46] Yes, they have asked me when they are going to take it away from me. When is the… I mean, next month I have an hearing. My lawyer asked for a video call, but they denied it. So my daughter is worried, and my 12-year-old son, what could happen? We look at the news and see how it is. Right now it’s very difficult for them to catch anyone. So right now I’m more panicked. I’m panicked because I have to present myself. So, a lot of fear.

Mando Rayo [00:40:18] And do you have a plan if something happens again?

Speaker 1 [00:40:26] Well, yes, my family would help me, but I don’t know Mexico, I don´t have anyone in Mexico.

Mando Rayo [00:40:32] ¿Por qué llegó? ¿Cuándo?

Speaker 1 [00:40:33] I was seven years old, and I don’t have a family in Mexico.

Mando Rayo [00:40:38] You don’t have a family.

Speaker 1 [00:40:39] All the best!

Mando Rayo [00:40:39] How old are you in Austin? 26. 26 years.

Speaker 1 [00:40:44] Is your life here? My life is here.

Mando Rayo [00:40:48] Thank you for talking to us and why it’s important to tell your story.

Speaker 1 [00:40:56] It’s very important for the community to know that you have to be careful and very concerned about what is happening. Be very careful because it’s very difficult to be inside and out. You go out with a lot of fear, a lot, a ton of fear. And for what is going to happen later… It’s more fear that they give me.

Mando Rayo [00:41:28] But here he is in his apartment.

Speaker 1 [00:41:30] Okay, stop.

Mando Rayo [00:41:31] I’m Susninha.

Speaker 1 [00:41:32] Gracias, adiós.

Mando Rayo [00:41:33] Thanks.

Speaker 1 [00:41:34] Yes. Enjoying them.

Mando Rayo [00:41:36] Right? Enjoy it right now. Between family. And well, with a good touch of the food. Thank you. Well, one more question. If someone can help you, how can they help you? Me? Yes. You or a person who is in your situation?

Speaker 1 [00:42:02] Well, mentally, it’s like having someone to talk to, to express oneself, because it’s very difficult to be alone. I mean, having someone who understands you, because there are a lot of people who don’t understand you. So, and having support from family, family or friends. Mm-hmm. Well.

Mando Rayo [00:42:27] Thank you very much.

Speaker 1 [00:42:28] Gracias a usted por venir. Aquí estamos.

Mando Rayo [00:42:32] Yes, thank you. Finish the tacos. Finish the taco. Hahaha. Imagine it’s your birthday and you want to celebrate it with your family, you bring your daughter along, you go into HEB and you come out and you know you get into the car. You’re not even the driver and you get stopped by a state trooper who asks for your identification. She hands it over and within five minutes an ICE agent arrives and it wasn’t just like okay Here’s a ticket. In fact, she shared that because the state troopers work so close with ICE agents, they get there at a moment’s notice. And really that’s what happened. And when the ICE agent arrived and asked for documentation, she shared it. She’s had a case with American Gateways and the ICE agents wasn’t having it. He was like, you know, you have to come with me now. I don’t know if you’re gonna get out today or in two days or in 2 months. And you know, just her response, her daughter, she was buying a cake. Her daughter was with her in the back seat and with her sister too. And she didn’t know what to do. So they took her and in fact, she was held for two months. And I asked her how she felt when she was there. She just felt like, just, you know very scared and she was in a cell with 50 people, 50 other women. She was just felt so desperate. She didn’t know what to do. And finally she was released two months later. We have to understand what people are going through and how they’re impacted by all these immigration raids. And the reasons why now she’s staying at home. She’s cooking at home, she makes sure that she has a family network. Her mom and her sisters and her siblings and cousins. The small community, in fact, how she makes money is by selling plates for their other family members. And she also shared how she’s trying to keep herself safe by having other family member go to the store. She definitely does not get into cars. She walks everywhere and takes the bus because she feels like in a car, you’re more likely to get stopped by ICE agents or state troopers. And so she’s not going outside because of this fear. And when we walked in, she had a monitor. So basically those monitors when you’re under house arrest, it’s those things that kind of keep you locked in into a situation and something physical on your ankle where you can’t even like, even her children, they’re like, when are you gonna take that off? When can you be free? They can’t event go to a swimming pool because she can’t damage it or being wet because… They’ll call and try to find out where she is because of that monitor. And, you know, I also did ask her like, what kind of keeps you going or what kind support do you need? And, at the end of the day, she said, look, it’s hard to do this on your own. So find somebody that you can talk to, find an ally, find somebody that can hear your story, but as well as find a community that can help you. And I think hopefully she’s been able to get that, not only through her family and extended network. But as well as through American Gateways, who has been helping her a lot. Tacos de la casa. They’re warm, they’re nurturing. They’re something that you can do with your whole family, and as well as something that you can to keep yourself safe. And those are the stories that we heard today. In San Antonio we visited with the abuela, the young abuela I would say, Denise Segura. She talked about taking care of your family, taking care your grandkids, how everybody has a role and what she gets out of it, and the joy. Right, the joy that we experience as family. And we also visited with an immigrant mom and she opened her home, cooked for us, we had a chat and we talked about her experience just going to the grocery store and just getting picked up and being detained for two months in front of her daughter. She got out thanks to American Gateways, but at the same time she’s living in fear and part of that taco de la casa feel is like, hey, you know what, I’m going to keep myself and my family safe. And there’s certain things that I’m gonna do to keep safe because for immigrants here in Texas, it is not safe. And so we wanted to share those two types of stories with you to show like, you know, what food can do, what we can do to help you through good times and through hard times. And so, you know, with that, I just want to Thank our guests for being on the podcast and sharing their stories. This has been the Tacos of Texas podcast developed and produced by Identity Productions. If you enjoyed today’s episode and are craving more taco content, go to our website at www.identity.productions, or follow us on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and YouTube at Identity Production and United Tacos Of America. This is your host, Mando el Taco Journalist Rayo. Vamos a los tacos. In the next Proximo, Tacos of Texas, Taco a Taco with Gina Hinojosa. Let’s sit down with the Texas Democratic nominee for governor Gina Hinajosa to talk about the meaning behind No Te Dejes, some of her favorite tacos and why she’s decided to fight for the future of Texas by running against Greg Abbott.

Louisa Van Assche  [00:48:43] The Tacos of Texas podcast is presented by Identity Productions in partnership with KUT and KUTX Studios. Our host and producer is Mando, El Taco journalist, Rayo. Our audio is mixed by Nicholas Worden. Our video production is taken care of by Dennis Burnett. Our wonderful interns are Quetzal and Diego Rayo, and our story and line producer is me, Luisa Min Van Asse. Music was created by Peligrosa in Austin, Texas. And King Benny Productions, located in the Quinto Barrio of Houston. Special thanks to American Gateways, as well as Patricia Sanchez and René Chávez for their invaluable support on this episode.

Mando Rayo [00:49:28] You can find Tacos of Texas on KUT.org or wherever you get your podcast.

This transcript was transcribed by AI, and lightly edited by a human. Accuracy may vary. This text may be revised in the future.