Each year, we come together to honor that spirit of resilience at our Border Heroes Award Celebration, where we recognize inspiring advocates from our community who work tirelessly to create a safer, more welcoming environment for immigrants across our region.
Dr. David Dorado Romo is a historian, author, translator, musician, and lifelong fronterizo whose work has profoundly reshaped how we understand the U.S.–Mexico border. Born and raised in El Paso/Juárez, he has dedicated his career to telling the stories of the borderlands with honesty, depth, and corazón. His landmark book “Ringside Seat to a Revolution: An Underground Cultural History of El Paso and Juárez, 1893–1923” uncovered hidden narratives of resistance, migration, and cultural exchange, earning praise from Howard Zinn as “people’s history at its best.” Nearly two decades later, Romo brought his passion for accessible storytelling to younger generations with “Borderlands and the Mexican American Story”, a book that reframes U.S. history through Indigenous and Mexican American voices while encouraging readers to think critically about the past.
Beyond his scholarship, Dr. Romo is deeply engaged in community activism. He has worked to protect historic neighborhoods like Duranguito and Segundo Barrio from erasure, insisting that preserving cultural memory is inseparable from preserving physical space. His essays and public history projects continue to challenge stereotypes and reveal uncomfortable truths, such as the history of border sanitation practices that influenced Nazi Germany’s racial policies, while affirming the dignity and resilience of border communities.
His work reveals painful truths while affirming the dignity of border communities, reminding us that remembering is essential to healing. For his advocacy, activism, and corazón, we celebrate Dr. Romo as our Border Hero of the Year.
Paola Ramos is an Emmy-award-winning journalist, author, and advocate whose work amplifies immigrant voices and shines a light on the U.S./Mexico border. The daughter of Cuban and Mexican parents, she grew up between Spain and the United States, a transnational background that shapes her commitment to bridging cultures. A graduate of Barnard College and Harvard’s Kennedy School, she worked in the Obama White House before turning to journalism.
As a correspondent for Vice News and contributor to Telemundo and MSNBC, Ramos has reported with courage on immigration, identity, and justice. Her books Finding Latin-X and Defectors expand these conversations, reframing narratives about Latinos in America. In 2025, she and her father, Jorge Ramos, launched The Moment, a podcast from iHeartMedia’s My Cultura and Radio Ambulante Studios, where the father-daughter duo engages leaders, artists, and activists in candid conversations about politics, identity, and Latino life in the U.S.
We honor Paola Ramos as our Border Hero Storyteller for her powerful commitment to truth, dignity, and the immigrant experience.
Jo Anne Bernal has dedicated her life to justice, public service, and the people of El Paso. A proud fronteriza and graduate of the University of Texas School of Law, she made history as the first woman and Latina to serve as El Paso County Attorney. Over more than a decade in office, she expanded protections for victims of domestic violence, defended the rights of immigrants and LGBTQ+ residents, and brought essential legal services to underserved parts of the county. Known for her courage and integrity, Bernal stood firm against policies that sought to marginalize vulnerable communities and provided steady leadership during moments of crisis, from the COVID pandemic to waves of migration at the border.
Ms. Bernal has received numerous awards for her work in the community and her professional achievements. Included in those awards are: 2009 Outstanding Lawyer of the year by the MexicanAmerican Bar Association; 2012 “La mujer Obrera Award”; 2015 “Trailblazer Award” from the Women’s Bar Association; 2015 McDonald’s “Hispanos Triunfadores Award; in 2017 she received the “Albert Armendariz Jr. Lifetime Achievement Award” from the Mexican-American Bar Association, and in October she received the 2017 Women of Distinction Award by the Texas Association of Mexican-American Chambers of Commerce (TAMACC).
We honor Jo Anne Bernal with the Border Hero Legacy Award for her trailblazing service, her defense of dignity and justice, and her lasting impact on the borderlands. Her legacy will inspire generations to come.
Pauline Hovey is a writer, volunteer, and dedicated advocate whose compassion and storytelling have positively impacted the El Paso border community, while educating a wider audience about the reality at our border. After decades of writing and editing, Pauline moved to the Borderland to devote herself to supporting asylum seekers, volunteering with organizations like the School Sisters of St. Francis and Annunciation House. Her work extends beyond direct service: through essays, articles and reflections, she has illuminated the human stories of migration and the spirit of hospitality in the borderlands.
For the past six years, Pauline has served on our Board of Directors, offering guidance, vision, and tireless advocacy for Las Americas and our mission. As she steps down this year, we honor her as a true evangelist for our work.
We recognize her unwavering dedication, her compassion, and the countless ways she has amplified the voices of the marginalized. For all these reasons, Pauline Hovey is our Border Hero Volunteer Award recipient.
