Fight to Stay

“Fight to Stay” is a large-scale mural painted across two walls of the Pilsen Housing Cooperative completed in 2021. The mural was led by longtime Pilsen residents: hector Duarte & Gabriel Villa. We use a mix of imagery to depict Pilsen’s notions of home and community, the violence of gentrification and displacement, and the power of community cooperation as a response.

Embedded within the artwork is a small recreation of “Peace,” Pilsen’s first permanent outdoor mural, which was painted by artist Mario Castillo in 1968 on Halsted Street between Cullerton Avenue and 19th Street. Hector Duarte wanted to include a piece of Castillo’s work in “Fight to Stay” to acknowledge the community’s Mexican history.