In a year like no other, immigrant women of all walks of life reflect on the ever-changing meaning of home and belonging.
Opening (00:00-01:58)
Hello! Welcome to the podcast Real People. Real Lives. Women Immigrants of New York, a storytelling project from New Women New Yorkers.
Real People. Real Lives highlights a diverse picture of immigrant women living in the city. It elevates these narratives, moving beyond statistics and political rhetoric.
In the Summer and Fall of 2020, we interviewed immigrant women from all walks of life. They were selected through an open call or reached out directly, to ensure the participation of women from different backgrounds, and affected by the pandemic in various ways.
The participants talked about their immigrant experience within the backdrop of a year like no other – marked by the pandemic, Black Lives Matter and the presidential election. Each story you will hear is a unique mix of determination, hope, challenges, and victories – small and big.
Today, meet Zoraya, an advocate for domestic violence survivors from Ecuador. She left medical school back home to pursue the American Dream. Her path to independence has not been an easy one, though. To make ends meet, she worked in factories, sold food and was a shoe shiner, while preparing herself for a better future.
She also endured a violent marriage. In 2014, Zoraya was physically attacked by her former sister-in-law and had to be hospitalized. Yet she found the inner strength to keep going. After a journey of healing, she has become a role model for all women who experience domestic abuse.
Coming to the US (01:57-03:45)
When I came here, May 28 1999, I said: I work so hard just five years to start the construction of my house in Ecuador for me and my son, a nice car and maybe save money and then go back. This is the typical dream for most of the Ecuadorians. At the time, as a single mother, trying to find the US dream. After 3 months, I put my new goal, it was bring [sic] my son here. The American dream is not for me, no house, no car, anything, I just want my son here because I saw like the big city, I’d like, my son can learn English, my son can have more opportunities.
I came here when he was maybe 5, 6 months, so you understand now, the house, the car and everything, they go for another way, but my son was more important. I came alone, after two years I brought my son. In the morning I dedicated to my son, and in the afternoon I found a job . It was really hard, but I always found a solution to be really close to him, to be involved
Trying to make it (03:50-07:22)
Sunday night at 12 o’clock I arrived in NYC, in the next day, 5 o’clock in the morning my friend say: you know what, you need to work. In my country I went to study medicine. Then I came here and the next day I went to work in a factory. I remember, at 38th Avenue in Manhattan. Twenty years ago there were a lot of factories around there. A huge factory, with maybe 300 people. I remember the boss… He said: you don’t have 18, 19, I remember, and I said: please I need…Because the first thing they told me was “you need to pay the rent, bills, you need to go to work”. The second day, I come again, I come back and he said: listen, if you don’t learn quickly, I give one week. In the third day I told him: I studied in my country, I can help in the office. With my little understanding of English I helped the latino community in the factory because a lot of people they don’t understand anything.
Then I’m jumping to construction. A little more money, but in this field you need different licenses, different certifications. It was more easy [sic] to find a job because of connections, but still, for me “you are too short”, “you are too young”… I said, “No, please give me a chance”. One day, I found a shoeshine job in Wall Street. When I saw, when I feel [sic] around the building, beautiful Wall Street. I said: one day definitely can work from her. Then I had my business alone. In the cooking industry, independent, I worked for a long time with that business.
My big door too is when I received my documents. I know the difference, when I didn’t have documents, when I have documents. My life changed a lot. To receive every week, every two weeks, a paycheck from your job, it’s huge, that changes your life. Before, like, everyday, you know, I survive. Sometimes I didn’t have money to take the train.
Everything, all experiences, you know, they make me really strong. One time, someone told me: “Oh your English is terrible”. We don’t need to judge people”. We need to push them”. I never stop learning. I never stop studying. I took a lot of certifications and one of my goals is maybe one I can go back to college, then I can find a job, I can open my organization. Years ago, you know, this was my dream.
From survivor to advocate (07:26-09:33)
I’m survivor for domestic violence. I was in the hospital after some issue with my sister-in-law. At that time I opened my eyes, and said: ok, it’s not fair, it’s not fair for me and for my kids. With the trauma, in 2014, I knocked a lot of doors in different nonprofit organizations. I started with a process, everything, studying, school. At that time I was still not documented. I said: ok, this is my time right now. So little by little, I take my opportunities real serious, because always I’m thinking about my kids too. I try to put my little baby steps in my professional life. Right now I work part-time in a nonprofit organization and my position is domestic violence specialist.
This is why my advocacy I put really high. With my experience, other women they can understand: hey, if she can do it with four boys, why am I not doing it? This is one of my goals, to share how I manage all my situations, emotionally, financially. It’s not only me, the kids too. It’s not like: “oh, ok, I’m the super hero”. For me, the most important is to try to have a connection with different people. Because of at the time with the trauma, I wanted to find people who I can trust.
One of my goals like a woman, an immigrant, is that I love to empower women, I love to share my experience. Part of my certification is a mentor, it’s huge when some women or men or teenager, they call me and say: “please help me, do you like to be my mentor?” For me, is a pleasure and to be mentor for is big, to be an example for another people, who can knock at my door. Also they push me: ok, what’s my next step?
Last year, I opened it. It was my big dream, about advocacy for DV, domestic violence survivors. It’s not like DV exists only in the poor community or DV exists in the middle class community, no, this is anywhere. My goal is to find a partnership for Women for Success. I like to take care, how they talking with them. I always had inside of me, leadership, a passion to advocate and not like here, last experience at the time I feel more power, huge powerful, this is I have my blessing inside of me is not like okay today I have this accident, tomorrow I can do this, I am talking about me, I’m a leader. My passion was to be a doctor, in a medical way. I think in the same way, to help people, now more with connections. I know again with humble [sic] I motivate a lot of women, I know I inspire a lot of women and men, the most important is I inspire myself.
In my mind, as an immigrant, nothing is impossible, everything is possible for us, everything comes in the right time, with the right people. When I see my journey, I remember, I say WOW. It’s my dream, it’s American Dream. First, to be healthy right now with this situation. Second, still be focused with my small business and advocacy to support women. Then start with college is my another dream because I know, for sure, this is more opportunities. In September I’m starting college
Life in the pandemic (14:10-15:56)
New York City, you know, is not the same. I’m always trying to find, how can I survive? Bring food for the house… I never stop I don’t like to stuck, to be focused in only one thing because you don’t know what happens tomorrow. It’s difficult but at the same time again I put fifty-fifty, it’s positive and negative at the same time. Last year I tried to find a job, and the job came in the middle of the pandemic. It’s a blessing.
My kids, they are in college, the other one they are in middle school, eight grade, and another one is in fifth grade the younger one [sic]. Everybody, they are all online, 100% online, I am next to them, we are working in the same room, we respect our space, we work in the same room, I have my office space. Sometimes is not easy sometimes “I need a break”
Opportunities for all (16:02-19:27)
It’s important to be educated, to be involved. I work with the community. Sometimes, these political [sic], in the high level, right now I feel like that they don’t care, they don’t see, in their hands they have potential people who can change. I’m not talking about only latinos, we have a multicultural country specially in New York City. We want opportunities, because, a lot of people, they are ready, I can tell you, I can share with you some experiences. DACA [Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals], we have a lot of children, they are professional already and why you know is not fair they give opportunity to these children, these children they live here, they study they work they pay they collage, some kids don’t qualify for opportunities. DACA, my understanding with my experience, they have only work permit and social security number. Why they don’t open the door to go and apply for green card? They are professionals, they are with masters degree…You know it’s not fair, it’s not fair, what happened?
Immigrants, please don’t stop. New York City I tell you is my home and we have a lot of opportunities. Just need to understand, Nobody can’t stop us, everything depends on 100% our mentality, how we are thinking, our goals. Please don’t lose any time or opportunity if you find. This is my message. Everything depends on us, we are here for every woman, we are here to share, to support each other with my experience. I’m here, I’m still surviving, I’m still living and nothing is impossible. We always need to be positive.
Closing
Thank you so much for tuning in to our podcast today. This week’s episode was produced and scripted by Bruna Shapira and Arielle Kandel. Editing is by Natalia Rolim. My name is Daniela Golombeski and I’m thrilled to be your host.
For more information about Real People. Real Lives. and the transcript of this episode, head to nywomenimmigrants.org. Next week, you’ll meet Leyla, a journalist from Egypt.
. See you next week!