About

The Forgotten Southward Migration

Before the Aztecs built the great city of Tenochtitlan in present-day Mexico City, their ancestors migrated southward from their motherland known as Aztlán. Historians believe that Aztlán was a vast territory that encompassed much of the present day Southern United States and Northern Mexico. The early southbound migration and settlement in the Valley of Mexico resulted in one of the most vibrant cultural and commercial metropolises in the history of humanity.

Five centuries later, the rich history of Mesoamerica has been reduced to a modern narrative of poverty, violence, and desperate migration. Though this website does not seek to downplay these very real problems, the largely negative media coverage overshadows many positive developments in Latin America and its relationship with the United States. In just a few short years, North America is likely to look very different as a result of significant investment flowing in both directions, the growing Hispanic population in the U.S., and record numbers of U.S.-born people moving south. Though these changes will undoubtedly result in increased challenges and growing pains on both sides of the border, TejaNext believes that the changes have the potential to benefit the entire hemisphere, fairly distribute prosperity, and reduce poverty. This website’s primary goal is to provide guidance on how to navigate the changing cross-border landscape.

Inspired by the original southward migration, TejaNext Media (formerly called Camino Aztlán) is an information highway connecting two societies. In addition to publishing regular content about issues ranging from the new U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement to recommendations for sustainable travel, TejaNext will serve as a platform to connect like-minded entrepreneurs, producers, artisans, and advocates on both sides of the border.

Aztlán and the Modern Chicano Movement

TejaNext Media was originally known as Camino Aztlán. “Aztlán” means “The Place of the Heron” in the Nahuatl language. The concept was invigorated by the Chicano Movement after the writer and activist Alberto Baltazar Urista Heredia read his poem “El Plan Espiritual de Aztlán” in 1969. The Chicano Movement has used the concept of Aztlán to advocate for and empower marginalized Mexican Americans searching for their place in the land that was annexed by the United States during the Mexican-American War. Though Camino Aztlán is not directly affiliated with the Chicano Movement or with publications like “Aztlán” (UCLA’s Journal of Chicano Studies), this website advocates for similar causes by serving as a resource for Hispanic entrepreneurs and migrant advocacy groups and by promoting ethical alternatives to exploitative cross-border practices that have characterized the United States’ colonial history with Latin America.

A Note on the Name Change: in the course of networking with like-minded Latinx people, we realized that Aztlán can be a very loaded and controversial term within the Latino community. To read more about how a younger generation of Latinos considers the historically Chicano term to be homophobic, anti-indigenous, and anti-black, you can read more here. To avoid unnecessary controversy and confusion, we thought a slight rebrand was in order.

About the Founder and Editor

I was born and raised in Laredo, Texas, and my childhood home was just 10 minutes from the U.S.-Mexico Border. From an early age, my family and I would visit Nuevo Laredo for dining and shopping, which gave me an early appreciation for Mexico and its people. This passion only grew when I attended the University of Texas at Austin, where I double-majored in Government and Spanish Literature. This experience began a years-long education in Mexican politics, literature, culture, and the country’s intimate relationship with the United States. This education persists to this day, even while I have focused full time on a career in civil litigation in Houston, Texas. I launched Camino Aztlán (now called TejaNext Media) as an outlet to share the insights I have learned throughout my career, education, and travels, and to connect with like-minded people interested in cross-border business and lifestyle.

In addition to full fluency in Spanish, I also speak Portuguese. I have over 7 years of experience in a wide range of litigation areas, including personal injury, insurance, transportation, real estate, and general commercial disputes. I am also a licensed United States Customs Broker.