This is a full circle moment. I started trying to get into the children’s book world around 2007/2008. Back then there were very few resources about Black folks or people of color in the biz that I knew of. And The Brown Bookshelf is one of the earliest resources I found! It was raft in a sea of formalities, stereotypes, nepotism, and plain old racism. Thank god for The Brown Bookshelf! Fast forward 15 or 16 years later and I’m featured as one of this year’s 28 storytellers! I am so honored.!!! BIG shout out to Nikki Shannon Smith for the props!
Read what I wrote here and check out some of the other creators. You have no idea how hard it is for these folks to get to where they are.
Dig this? Check out this podcast I was a guest on – Early Risers (Minneapolis Public Radio)
Its been three years since I did one of these for Black History Month! From 2016-2023 I drew and painted so many people, places, and groups from Black history that we dont hear enough about. And here’s one more:
The Freedom House Ambulance service was founded in 1967 in Pittsburg, PA by Phil Hallen (former ambulance driver) and Dr Peter Safar (Pioneering Dr @ Univ of Pittsburgh) in the Hill District of Pittsburgh, a predominantly Black neighborhood. EMT, Paramedics, and modern ambulances in the US owe a great deal to the Black men and women of Freedom House Ambulance. Around this time there were no ambulances for most working class folks in big cities, you called the police and they threw you in the back of a cop car or a police wagon. Being that there was rampant police brutality, profiling, harassment, and murder at the hands of police there was a contentious relationship when it came to emergency medical service. The majority of officers had no medical training and Black folks were at their wim when it came to being “sick enough” to warrant emergency medical services. As a result so many died from treatable things.
Enter Freedom House, a community based organization that got funding to not only create a hood based ambulance service, but to hire Black men; many of which were unemployed, did not graduate college, or had been in the system. Pioneering Dr Safar and several others gave them 12 months of medical training learning anatomy, physiology, resuscitation, etc. In addition to hundreds of hours in classroom settings , they spent time in the emergency and operating rooms, as well as the morgue before hitting the streets. And when they hit the streets they responded to six thousand calls in the first year or 16 emergency calls daily. Coming from the neighborhoods they were serving they understood when people were having a medical emergency relating to overdose, sickle cell anemia, diabetes, etc. In fact they were among the first paramedics to pioneer techniques using narcan for overdose, electric shock for heart attacks, intubating patients, CPR, and IV‘s. They were a mobile emergency hospital because they stabilized patients, saving thousands of lives.
Fast forward to the mid 70s, word got around that wealthier more white neighborhoods were not receiving the same level of expertise; the mayor and white establishment got jealous; and they intentionally pulled funding and support for the program. The city began randomly testing Freedom House medics, ruling out anyone who had been locked up, and using them to train white EMT’s who got better promotions. Eventually everyone was pushed out and only a select few were able to find employment with the city. But their work went on to help save lives nationwide and is still being used today.
Sources: WQED Pittsburg, Film: Heroes on Call, Wikipedia, and Sage Journals
Xóchihad a tough day. It was the weekend of the super show but she couldn’t do all the fun stuff she normally did like eat cotton candy, have a cyber fighter battle with her cousins on their Nintendo switches, or eat extra spicy nachos during the hopping contest. Her job today was to study, polish tio Ramon’s car and make sure nobody went to the wrong space from the club. Luckily Star and Miguel brought comics, with the newest Alien Quinceñera she still got to have some fun.
Context: I love reading but I didn’t always love it. Rather than illustrate that pain, I wanted to paint a picture of a candid moment of three ordinary kids sitting together reading comics for fun on a lowrider at a show. During the summer of 2025 me and my family went to our first lowrider show together as a family.
What is this? This is a short story. They are a way for me to sharpen my skills, to play, and to stretch out by trying new ideas for stories. In 2010 they started off as a way to practice the format of picture books but I’m interested in other formats now too. My name is Robert Liu-Trujillo and my most recent book is Fresh Juice/ Jugo Frescopublished by Lee & Low Books.
Check out some of my past short stories worth checking out:
What are these? These are vinyl stickers I make for my own creative expression and enjoyment. I sell them at fairs, festivals, and online. People get them for themselves, loved ones, friends, colleagues, students, and teams.
Dig this? Check out this post featuring me setting up my table to sell things like this HERE
In 2012 or so I found this facebook page that highlighted the careers and achievements of African Americans in animation. I did not understand just how large of a role they had played and continue to play because it is not highlighted enough. So that is where the character came from, I was thinking of a futuristic animated character. This week I wanted to practice and decided to redraw this character so thats what I did. On the left is 2013 version, and on the right is the version I completed today. I like seein the artistic growth and wonder how I will learn how to improve it even more in the future.
What’s this? This is from a long series of character drawings, paintings, and doodles to stay loose. My name is Robert Liu-Trujillo. I’m an author/illustrator from the Bay Area and my most recent picture book is “Fresh Juice/ Jugo Fresco” published by Lee & Low. Get it at your local public library or independent bookstore.
Just made some new branding. Not a huge shift but a subtle foot forward. I usually do this every two years but last year was whew!! So here we are with a new digital portrait. You’ll start seeing it here and there.
Here are some other ones from the past you can see:
I saw this film last year in a fully packed room of librarians, authors, teachers, and activists and I’m still processing it. What I hope you get from watching the trailer is a sense of the depth of what authoritarian actors are going to in order to stop the flow of information, understanding, and empathy. It is not about what is age appropriate , it is about removing public access to knowledge.
Side note: I have had two books I’ve worked on as an illustrator banned and I know dozens of fellow authors or illustrators who’ve experienced the same and it relates directly to this documentary film.
Rather than analysis of the current situation in Minneapolis re: ICE white narcissist terrorism (raids, bomb threats, kidnapping, hunting, murder) I made this as a reminder to myself and anyone else who needs to hear it. Look out for and stand up for your neighbor. They’re counting on regular people like me and you to look the other way, mumble something about it not being our problem, be cynical, fall apart, cower, or do nothing but if its one thing that has come out of all these cities facing the latest capitalistic white boy tantrums its that “the people (of all types)” can and will prevail when we work together. Love and resistance.
Dig this? Check out all this artwork you can download and share to give ICE the middle finger or to uplift our spirits.
Happy New Year! Busting out some new new for 2026. Here’s a character of a girl dad and his daughter dancing 🙂
What’s this? This is from a long series of character drawings, paintings, and doodles to stay loose. My name is Robert Liu-Trujillo. I’m an author/illustrator from the Bay Area and my most recent picture book is “Fresh Juice/ Jugo Fresco” published by Lee & Low. Get it at your local public library or independent bookstore.
Here is a new short comic about some of what I do when I’m getting ready to be an exhibitor at an event. I will make the art, recreate it via prints, stickers, or other ways. Then I pack it up and drive or fly to the event before talking to lots and lots of people. Then I head back home and do it again.
Whats this? I’ve had fits and starts with comics since 2007. In 2016 I started working on an epic graphic novel and it was too much, I couldn’t finish. So I took a break and began doing mini comics in 2021 (shorter more manageable stories) so I could do the most important part; finish them. This is a continuation of that. My accountability partner is my cousin and artist; Zhanne Easter.
