Edgardo Miranda-Rodriguez

I think Edgardo was able to open some eyes of people who were not familiar with how the world of comic art was so multicultural," he said. "It’s not just guys in capes but socially relevant content and a great story to tell.

La Borinqueña, also known as Marisol Rios De La Luz, is an Afro-Boricua woman with a Chinese-Dominican best friend, modeling the unity Miranda-Rodriguez hoped Latinxs would aspire to. Just as important to the story is that Marisol lives in Brooklyn, and is a community activist and environmental studies student at Columbia University. Miranda-Rodriguez notes that in tackling such 'villains' as voter rights, climate change and police accountability, it is Marisol's activist and academic identity that could be potentially more powerful than her superhero self: "She doesn’t fight crime, per se. She’s a symbol of hope." On March 4, 2017, Miranda-Rodriguez embarked on a national [comic] book tour, starting in Philadelphia.

In 2016, Miranda-Rodriguez debuted his original comic book character for Marvel, Abuela Estella. He and Darryl McDaniels wrote the story for Guardians of Infinity No. 3, where the Puerto Rican grandma introduces a Taino-inspired origin for the tree-like alien, Groot. Also in 2016, Miranda-Rodriguez provided album cover art for The Hamilton Mixtape, a reimagining of the songs from the Tony-winning Best Musical, Hamilton.

Based on the positive response he received for the character of Abuela Estella he created for Marvel, Miranda-Rodriguez recognized a cultural void in the comic book universe and was inspired to create a main character to provide "a stronger presence for the Puerto Rican and Latino community." This inspiration came as Miranda-Rodriguez was approached by the organizers of the National Puerto Rican Day Parade. They wanted to honor him for his work with Marvel and DMC. Seeing the Parade as a unique platform, Miranda-Rodriguez proposed an original comic book to be introduced at the 2016 Puerto Rican Day Parade in NYC. With the name La Borinqueña taken from the Puerto Rican national anthem, Miranda-Rodriguez sought to integrate the history and indigenous traditions of Puerto Rico with the modern day sensibilities demanded by the multiple crises facing its people.

Darryl Makes Comics is an independent comic book imprint launched in 2014 by Darryl McDaniels - comic book fan, and one-third of the hip-hop group, Run-D.M.C. McDaniels brought Edgardo Miranda-Rodriguez in to serve as Editor-in-Chief, and Atlantic Records executive Rigo "Riggs" Morales as Senior Editor.

In 2013, Miranda-Rodriguez convened other comic book artists to create depictions of the cultural history of East Harlem, known better as El Barrio. Their work was presented in an app commissioned by the Caribbean Cultural Center African Diaspora Institute (CCADI) to preserve the history of the community. The app debuted with the opening of CCADI's new location in 2015. Called, Mi Querido Barrio (Spanish for 'my beloved neighborhood'), the app presented Miranda-Rodriguez and the other artists' work as markers in a virtual tour of the community.

In 1992, I met Iris Morales, a community organizer in East Harlem who had been a leader in the Young Lords, the 1970's Puerto-Rican political movement. She was a lawyer and I was in awe...That year I helped organize the first conference produced by the Latin American Student Organization at Colgate. It was a Young Lords Party reunion. Morales was slated to be my keynote speaker, but after a family emergency she suggested I ask Luis Garden Acosta, who ran the El Puente community center in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, to speak in her place.

At his Colgate graduation, Miranda-Rodriguez was awarded the Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Award, for the senior having enriched the student of color community. Soon after the ceremony, he made his way to Williamsburg, Brooklyn to work for Garden Acosta. El Puente was founded in the spirit of liberation theology and rooted in the legacy of the Young Lords. In this environment, Miranda-Rodriguez was able to nurture his artivism. He curated culturally and socially conscious works, producing and promoting events such as El Puente's poetry slams in the early 1990s, some of which featured the yet-to-be-discovered poet & playwright, Tony-winner Lemon Andersen. Miranda-Rodriguez sought to motivate young people's interest and passion for personal activism and community leadership by integrating hip-hop culture in the classroom, bringing in artists as guest speakers, to include Crazy Legs, Rosie Perez, Q-Tip, Tony Touch and Bobbito Garcia.

Though Colgate University seemed far removed from the South Bronx, Miranda-Rodriguez experienced discrimination and racism, experiences that served to spark his passion and purpose. "I started college in 1989 and became a campus activist." Miranda-Rodriguez was active in the Latin American Student Organization and the Office of Undergraduate Studies program, mentoring students, organizing events, and creating community. One event in particular, would shape his personal and professional trajectory.

The imprint's first series was titled, "DMC". DMC#1 was a nearly 100-page graphic novel set in 1980s New York City, featuring the superhero, DMC, battling for justice in an alternate universe. Miranda-Rodriguez is the editor and creator, developing the 13-year old Puerto Rican, LAK6 (real name Leticia Lebron), introduced in DMC #1.5.

Edgardo Miranda-Rodriguez (born June 21, 1970) is a writer at Marvel Entertainment, Editor-in-Chief at Darryl Makes Comics LLC, Art Director/Owner at Somos Arte and Studio Edgardo creative services, and creator of La Borinqueña, a new and original comic book character that has grown into a cultural phenomenon and a nationally recognized symbol of Puerto Rican patriotism, social justice, and equality for all.

Miranda-Rodriguez experienced the effects of poverty and racism as a Puerto Rican in New York City in the 1970s and 1980s. However, he had a loving family in his mother and siblings, with whom he could endure these times. In her efforts to help him find an outlet, his mother sparked a creative impulse. This love of comics spurred his interest in the visual arts, which he pursued in and out of school. In his early teen years, Miranda-Rodriguez and his family lived for a time in Puerto Rico. This was a brief, but inspiring period for Miranda-Rodriguez, when his creative talents were encouraged, and where his connection to Puerto Rico deepened.