Barrio Jungle

Location: El Paso and San Jacinto Sts.

Mural Dimension: Entire Building

Lead Artist: Cindy Magallanez

Blessing and dedication date: October 11th, 1997

Mural Description: Barrio Jungle muralist Cindy Magallanez said, “Some people call our neighborhood a jungle.  Well, I’m going to give them a beautiful jungle.”  Cindy, who grew up and was raising her 5 children in the Alazan-Apache Housing Projects, created this mural as a gift to the barrio where she grew up.  Unfortunately, Cindy was only able to complete half of the mural due to death threats she received from a recently released inmate.  The man had been convicted for murdering Cindy’s husband years earlier and was seeking revenge on her and her young children.  Cindy fled the city and barrio that she loved dearly.  The mural, complete with lion, tiger, whale, mermaid, giraffe, and other spirited creatures, was completed as a collective venture by community youth and adult residents.  The colorful mural was featured in a music video by Tejano musical group, La Diferenzia.