S1: Welcome in San Diego. It's Jade Hindman on this episode of KPBS Midday Edition , Imperial Valley Youth share their stories through a new season of the podcast Voices Del Valle. This is KPBS Midday Edition. Connecting our communities through conversation. Voices Del Valle is a podcast all about what it's like growing up in California's Imperial Valley , created from the perspective of young people living there. In its new season , the podcast shares often personal stories around mental health , the experience of being homeschooled , youth incarceration , and much more. Here's a clip.
S2: Just walk away from it because there aren't people who are like you who are there to serve as their mentors. Well , no , there has to be somebody who is the first. And just because there aren't people who are more senior than you who went through the same experiences as you , it doesn't mean that you don't belong.
S3: These are stories about growing up , finding your voice , and creating something of your own , right here in the Imperial Valley.
S1: I'm joined now by some of the students voices behind that podcast. Athena moreno and Malachi Rodriguez are both seniors at Central Union High School in El Centro. Welcome to midday edition. Hi. Hi.
S2: Hi.
S1: How are you all? So , Athena , I'm going to start with you because you said hi first. Um , how how would you describe the podcast to someone who hasn't heard it yet?
S4: Honestly , I wouldn't say it's a super easy listen. Unlike other podcasts where you can just play in the background , it's a they're very moving. I would say that , um , some of them could even bring you to tears on how strong their stories are. Especially more than the system or a story that will be coming out later on this year. They're very they're powerful. There's a lot of meaning towards them. And it's , um , not your everyday podcast. Like , you really have to pay attention and listen. It's nice.
S1: Well , I can't wait to hear more about that. Malachi. This podcast has a particular sense of place the Imperial Valley. How do you think growing up there has shaped how you view the world?
S5: Um , I think growing up in the Imperial Valley just changes , like it's really different than , like a big city because you everyone here , like , knows each other. Like the city's like ten minutes away. 15 minutes away , you know , everyone. Whereas , like , in a big city , there might be people you've never seen before and they could live ten minutes away. But and especially like in the high schools , everyone know each other. It's just very different than like a big city. And I think it helped me a lot because I think like because I play sports. So I was able to play multiple sports and travel because there's not a lot of traffic in like the Imperial Valley. So I was able to play multiple sports and just do activities and kind of focus because there's less distractions like in the Valley. There's not a lot of like stuff to do. So I was just able to focus on school and like play sports and do my activities. Yeah.
S1: Yeah. Well , Athena , what about you? I mean , how has it shaped your view of the world?
S4: It's certainly like a huge difference between growing up in the Imperial Valley compared to , like , other places around , like , even California. Yeah , like how you said everybody knows everyone if you want to. I don't know if you want to start a business or something like , you could ask literally anyone and they would be like , oh , I know a guy , I could help you out there. It's like a it's a community. Since we all know each other well , we've known each other for years , like neighbors talk to each other and you could go around the in the neighborhood and be like , hey , can I have a cup of sugar? And everybody would give you a cup of sugar just because that's that's how it is here. Like , everybody knows each other. Yeah.
S1: Yeah. That is a great way to grow up with community like that for sure. Um , you know , the most recent episode is all about being homeschooled and some of the stereotypes that people have about it. What is the biggest misconception you hear about what that experience is like?
S4: Well , since I was homeschooled , every time that somebody would ask me , hey , what school did you go to? Or what school do you go to? I would always be like , like , oh man , I have to explain it again , because every single time I would always get so tired of it because I'd be like , oh , I'm homeschooled. They would be like , oh , so you just stay at home , do work and you don't have friends? Oh no.
S1: Not quite. Yeah. You really have to break it down for people.
S4: Yeah I do.
S1: Well , I mean , you are a student at Central Union High School , now a public school in El Centro. But but as you mentioned , you were homeschooled for many , many years before that. What has the transition been like for you to leave that homeschool environment?
S6: It was a little scary.
S4: At first , just because I was used to like a class of seven Max students with like 12 in my grade that I the rest I didn't even know. Um , to classrooms that would have like over the limit that you're supposed to have. And then there's just people around you and there's like traffic getting to your next class. And it's like , I think just like the people being so many of us here , like that was a lot for me , just because I wasn't used to being around that many people every single day. And then I guess also the community , it helped me. It helped me grow and be like , become friends with more people and learn about people from different backgrounds and stuff. That was that was really nice.
S1: You know , you touch on some of the reasons kids turn to home school in the episode. And one one that really stood out to me was about how it could provide a safe or a space to feel safe. Talk a bit about that.
S4: Um , like in my home school , when I was there , there was a lot of students. Um , they came from very religious backgrounds and their parents wanted to keep not not necessarily like , keep their child like , in clothes , but they don't want , like their child to be exposed to , like , profanities and stuff like that. That will usually happen in public school. So if they would like to , um , teach their kids along with those like religious , like morals and values , that was like a huge reason why they would choose homeschool or again , like how I've mentioned in the podcast as well. Um , also bullying , like if a child has disabilities or is a lot of kids with disabilities there , whether it was , um , physical or , or if they had autism and stuff like that. Hmm.
S1: Hmm. And , you know , this this season , you also feature interviews with some high profile people who grew up in the Imperial Valley , including the Chief justice of California Supreme Court , Patricia Guerrero. Malachi. You got to speak with former professional football player Cedric Thompson. As a football player yourself , what stood out to you most about what he had to say about his experiences growing up in Imperial Valley?
S5: Well , I think what stood out most is definitely his high school like , because he lived in Bombay Beach and he went to school in Kalpetta , and that's probably like more than 45 minutes , especially on a bus. It'll be longer. And he I asked him like how he would get to practices like in summer and stuff because he didn't have a car either. So he told me that he would have to stay sometimes , like at a friend's house for like multiple weeks on end or , um. Like , sometimes he'll be , like , at the park to like late at night , asking people if he can spend the night. And I think that definitely stood out the most because I've been blessed to , like , not have to worry about that. So I never thought anything like that would happen. Like , my parents have always been able to take me and like , give me a place to sleep. So I think that was very different. Hmm.
S1: Hmm. Well , let's take a listen to a clip from your conversation with Cedric Thompson.
S7: I give my life to the Valley because of , like , what it taught me and the person that is and the person that it shaped me into and how it's like , helped me to have sustainable thought processes and routines and structures.
S1: That's interesting. I mean , Malachi , what was your reaction to what he shared there? Did that resonate with you?
S5: Yeah , I think it does help because especially as a football player , life is just like a lot about routines and especially , um , him like , you know , he went professional. So that's also , um , like more routines. Like they have to do more stuff. So I think the Valley did help shape him for being ready to play college and professional. Hmm.
S1: What's interesting about the podcast is how you cover a wide range of stories and issues all about growing up , but I also see a thread of belonging in the stories you tell. Is that something you think about when choosing what types of stories you want to talk about?
S4: Yeah , definitely. Just because growing up here in the Valley , it pretty much all it's all about community and belonging. So of course our stories are going to revolve around that.
S1: And you say this podcast is about finding your voice in the Imperial Valley , where you live , where you grew up. How has working on this project helped you find your own voice? Malakai.
S5: Um , I think it helps a lot because , um , especially like Biggers , um , cities , they look down kind of like upon , like the Imperial Valley , or they just don't know us , like kind of what we say , like , doesn't really matter because we're not , like as big as them. And so I think this podcast really helped , like Doctor Techie and like central and us just get our voices out there , our opinions like our stories. And I enjoy doing it and giving my opinion for other people to listen to.
S1: And you , Athena.
S4: Honestly , yeah. Just getting our voices out there and to feel heard is one of the biggest things because as as a teenager growing up and I think a lot of people can relate. Um , like around the world that as a teenager , all we want is to be heard because we're treated as kids but expected to act like adults. But no one wants to hear about what we want to say. And I think this gives us this opportunity to put our voice out there for other people to listen to.
S1: And what do you hope people you know take away from , from this podcast.
S4: Just to learn about other people's lives , and that even though we are young , there's still a lot of stuff that we do go through. Mhm.
S1: And you know , and Malachi , one of the cool things I think about doing podcasts and like interviewing folks is that sometimes you learn about yourself when you sit around and you talk to other people. What was something that you all learned about yourselves in putting this podcast together?
S5: I learned when I was , um , doing like the interview or the podcast with Cedric Thompson. I kind of just like thought about myself and was like saying , like , I've been blessed with like a lot of things that other people don't have like that aren't just given to them that I just like. Like I'm blessed that my parents , like , gave me these things and have , like , done so much for me that I thought was just like regular. But to some people they don't have like the privilege , like Cedric Thompson. He had to , um , like find places to sleep some nights. And like me , I always had a place to sleep. So I think like it helped me , um , take things like less for granted.
S1: Athena , what about you? What did you learn about yourself in this process?
S4: Um , when I did the episode with Eugene Edwards and he was talking about how he felt very isolated , and he would like to be alone and just play his music. And he had a dream to to go big. And being from Yuma High , which is not a huge city like ours , um , it gave me a lot of inspiration that , um , if I really want to go big and if I want to get out of the valley and , you know , um , just become famous or something that I , that I could like , it gave me that inspiration. Wow.
S1: Wow. Well , it's such a great podcast and I'm glad that you all had such a rich experience putting it together. I've been speaking with Athena moreno and Malachi Rodriguez. They are some of the student journalists behind the new season of the Voices Del Valle podcast. Thanks so much for being here today , you all , and congratulations on the podcast.
S4: Thank you.
S5: Thank you.
S1: You can find new episodes of the Voices Del Valle podcast each Monday at KPBS or wherever you listen. That's our show for today. I'm your host , Jade Hindman. Thanks for tuning in to Midday Edition. Be sure to have a great day on purpose , everyone.
