In this special episode of Climate Justice, Y’all, we are joined by Juan B. Mancias. Juan is the Tribal Chairman of the Carrizo Comecrudo Tribe of Texas. Born in Dimmitt, TX, and raised in Plainview, Juan is the eldest born to a lineage of hereditary chiefs of the Carrizo Comecrudo. Juan has worked alongside the Sierra Club, protecting prairie dogs, organized marches against the Dos Republicos Coal mine, and initiated two inter-tribal organizations that are still viable and thriving today.

Currently, he is building resistance to the fossil fuel industry and border wall construction, organizing efforts to assist asylum refugees, and reclaiming and protecting his tribe’s ancestral lands. Juan considers himself a protector of the true Texas people’s lifeways. He speaks from what he knows. His work today focuses on decolonizing both tribal people and others.