Henry Barajas, Storyteller

Henry Barajas is a Latinx author from Tucson. He spoke about his pathway as a storyteller. He is best known for his graphic memoir about his great-grandfather titled La Voz De M.A.Y.O. Tata Rambo. It is based on the oral history of Ramon Jaurigue, an orphan and WWII veteran who co-founded the Mexican, American, Yaqui, and Others (M.A.Y.O.) organization, which successfully lobbied the Tucson City Council to improve living and working conditions for members of the Pascua Yaqui tribe—paving the way to their federal recognition. Meanwhile, Ramon’s home life suffered as his focus was pulled from his family to the wider community, and from domesticity to the adrenaline of the campaign.

Henry Barajas has been writing, lettering, editing, and publishing comics for ten years. Recently, he scripted and lettered a short story for Image Comics’ Where We Live Benefit Anthology—100% of the proceeds were donated to Route 91 Strong, a non-profit organization.

He was a deejay for KXCI, the online editor of the Tucson Weekly, former Arizona Daily Star writer/news assistant, and was nominated for the Shel Dorf Blogger of the Year award for his work at The Beat. Currently, he’s the Operations Director for Top Cow Productions in Los Angeles, CA.

He is about to launch the first part of a 4 part Latinx fantasy series called Helm Greycastle on April 28^th. Barajas took combined his passion for fantasy novels and books and created an alternate universe where the Aztec Empire defeated the Spanish Conquistadors.

Recorded and produced by Amanda Shauger.