Montoya is a co-founder with Carlos Francisco Jackson of Taller Arte de Nuevo Amanecer (TANA), a print studio, exhibition and teaching space in Woodland, California.
Montoya holds the view that the artist's role in the community remains unchanged despite technological advancements and the prevalence of social media.
[13] Por el Pueblo acknowledges Malaquías Montoya's role as a founding figure and leader within the Chicano Arts Movement, examining how his impact persists through present-day activist artists.
Similar to Montoya in his early years, contemporary artists still face marginalization from the mainstream due to their identities and their commitment to speaking truth to power.
Beyond highlighting Montoya's work and ongoing influence, Por el Pueblo underscores the efforts of current artists who are amplifying the voices of marginalized communities, with a particular focus on queer individuals and Chicanas.
[14] Adaline Kent Award from the San Francisco Art Institute (1997) Special Congressional Recognition, Awarded by Congressman Mike Thompson in recognition of outstanding and invaluable service to the community, Woodland, California (2005) Malaquias Montoya by Terezita Romo, University of Minnesota Press, MN, 2009.
[17] He became part of the Mexican American Student Confederation (MASC) and produced leaflets and posters to empower the community and raise awareness about the cause.
[19] In his UFW poster, he represented the farmworker families as advocating for their rights to frame the discourse on the struggle of marginalized communities.
[20] His involvement in the TWLF provided an invaluable perspective on mobilization such as learning about “coalition politics” which conveyed that collaboration between groups with overlapping interests could be a powerful force to enact change.
In this wide array of posters, he used the terms “Huelga” (strike) to emphasize the resistance and would use "Unidos" to suggest a form of solidarity between various disenfranchised groups.
His time at Berkeley shaped him as an artist as he began to merge politics with aesthetics with the intention of participating in activism at the local and international level.