Contigo Wellness to Unveil Tú Importas Mural in Pilsen for Back-to-School Mental Health Equity & Accessibility

Public art initiative will affirm students, immigrant families and the Pilsen community with a visible message: You Matter, and provide mental health tips.

CHICAGO, IL, UNITED STATES, August 11, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Contigo Wellness will unveil a new Tú Importas Healing Mural on Saturday, August 22, 2026, at 10:00 a.m. at 1617 West Cullerton Street in Chicago’s historic Pilsen community.

The Chicago installation is part of the broader Tú Importas Healing Hubs initiative and will become the sixth Tú Importas mural across three states. The initiative uses public art, bilingual affirmations, community gatherings, and accessible wellness resources to reduce mental health stigma and create visible spaces of care.

Tú Importas, meaning You Matter, is a community-centered public art and mental health advocacy initiative created to bring culturally responsive messages of belonging, visibility, and care directly into historically marginalized neighborhoods. The Chicago mural, created in collaboration with Chicago-based visual artist and muralist Fab RP, is being unveiled during the back-to-school season to highlight the importance of student and family mental health.

For many young people, returning to school brings excitement and possibility. It can also bring anxiety, grief, financial stress, bullying, family pressures and the effects of community or racial violence. As families prepare for the new school year, many immigrant communities are also carrying heightened fear related to discrimination, family separation, community violence and uncertainty about their safety and belonging, making visible messages of care and mental health support especially important.

Contigo Wellness hopes the mural will offer a simple but lasting public message to students and families: your mental health matters, your story matters, your culture matters and tú importas.

“Too often, mental health support is something people are expected to seek behind closed doors after they are already struggling,” said Diana Anzaldúa, LCSW-S, founder and executive director of Contigo Wellness. “Tú Importas brings healing into public space. A young person walking to school, a parent heading to work or an immigrant family moving through their neighborhood can encounter a message reminding them that they are seen, valued and worthy of care.”

The mural’s location in Pilsen is especially meaningful. The historic neighborhood has been shaped by generations of Mexican, Latino, immigrant and working-class families and has a long tradition of using murals and public art to preserve culture, tell community stories and make social issues visible.

Fab RP, originally from Mexico City and now based in Chicago, is a visual artist, muralist and arts educator whose work blends Mexican culture, urban aesthetics and contemporary design. Her public art practice centers accessibility, cultural identity, visual storytelling and collaboration with community stakeholders.

Anzaldúa is a clinical social worker, trauma therapist and community mental health advocate whose work focuses on expanding culturally responsive and trauma-informed support for historically marginalized communities. Her work also includes supporting families experiencing traumatic bereavement following gun and racial violence, including through collaboration with the Bakari Foundation, and Austin Trauma Therapy Center, which provides healing experiences for families affected by violent loss.

“These experiences remind us that trauma rarely belongs to one person,” Anzaldúa said. “Violence, grief and displacement move through families and communities. Healing must also be relational and communal.”

The Chicago installation is part of the broader Tú Importas Healing Hubs initiative, which uses public art, bilingual affirmations, community gatherings and accessible wellness resources to reduce mental health stigma and create visible spaces of care.

The free public mural reveal will bring together students, families, educators, artists, mental health advocates, immigrant-serving organizations, community partners and Pilsen residents.

EVENT DETAILS

Tú Importas Chicago Mural Reveal and Back-to-School Mental Health Advocacy Event
Saturday, August 22, 2026
10:00 a.m.
1617 West Cullerton Street
Chicago, IL 60609
Free and open to the public

About Contigo Wellness

Contigo Wellness is a community-centered nonprofit organization committed to culturally responsive, trauma-informed and accessible healing resources. Through healing circles, public art, education, wellness programming and community partnerships, Contigo Wellness works toward its mission of “Healed communities for all people everywhere.”

Media Contact
Diana Anzaldúa, LCSW-S
Founder and Executive Director
Contigo Wellness
diana@contigowf.org
512-947-1100 Text only

Diana CWF
Contigo Wellness
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