My Time as a Puerto Rican in NYC

By Cristina Ramírez

It came with a price, but I will never regret the decision of leaving Puerto Rico for a bit. I am happy to have lived with my great uncle during the last three years of his life. I will never forget the people I met in New York City, but I’ll also never forget the many struggles that came with that life.

Having a master’s degree in Writing for the Mass Media, the third year I spent working as a front desk agent in San Juan was already eating me up inside. I couldn’t make peace with the fact that that was it for me just because I decided not to leave Puerto Rico and that the decision meant facing a horrible job market. So that was a breaking point for me; I looked for jobs in Hospitality and landed a manager role in the same hotel chain I was already working for.

At first, I was hired as a hotel management intern, which meant my initial salary was $15 an hour. On the plus side, I had my uncle, who allowed me to stay with him. I decided that unless I wanted to stay for good or found a job that paid well, I wasn’t going to look for my own place.

This decision marked my whole experience in NYC.

Because living with my uncle was the safest and most convenient choice, I stayed in Hamilton Heights, Manhattan for three years. I don’t know how other Latinos, or people from the Caribbean, or anyone else who leaves their country unwillingly sees it, but me? I think quality of life is a very loose term.

While a whole new world was opening up to me, it always seemed that Uptown Manhattan’s neighborhoods were frozen in time. I saw firsthand how Hispanics from the Caribbean or Latin America still lived in inequality, oppression, regular violence, and gender violence, regardless of having left their countries in exchange for a better life. The men in my neighborhood saw a woman by themselves and immediately felt entitled to say something, to make her feel uncomfortable because she wore lighter clothing in warmer weather.

When you saw children out on the street, you only saw their mothers, no father figure nearby. The men who did have their kids with them weren’t really ever watching them, but mostly hung out in the street corner all day. The children were rarely ever told to behave or to be careful when playing outside. Most of the cars in my neighborhood were expensive, yet the people who were driving them spent the entire day standing on a sidewalk.

Since I took advantage of all the downtime I had during the pandemic, I was able to change course and start working in what I majored in. I worked as a news writer, then a communications associate, and finally as a campaign manager. These last two roles were focused on politics, and I got to work with people who wanted NYC families to truly feel like staying in New York was the best choice for their kids.

Experience as a Campaign Manager

As Campaign Manager for Danyela Souza Egorov, I did my research on her district’s neighborhoods, especially the Lower East Side. I saw a couple of Newyoricans while campaigning there, and then found out almost 23,000 people of Puerto Rican descent live there!

Needless to say, I loved campaigning there, meeting the people, listening to their concerns and priorities, and being able to connect so quickly with strangers purely because of our shared heritage.

I did notice that the Lower East Side and Chinatown were very worn down, and even though they are being gentrified, I noticed a lot of similarities with Hamilton Heights. The social issues were very much the same with the only difference being that LES and Chinatown residents did recognize that education and protecting small businesses needed to be prioritized. Even though many lived in poverty, they knew that Danyela’s focus on better schools and public safety could change outcomes for them as a working class, and their children, whose futures are currently being shaped in inefficient district schools.

Even though we didn’t get to implement the changes we wanted to see, and even though the constituents I met will continue to struggle financially, I know that most of them will be okay. And I can tell that from my own experience.

Vales Mean Everything

Coming from a lower middle-class family myself, I can definitely vouch for the fact that values, discipline, and education matter, and can help you get far regardless of how much money you make. The parents I met in the LES do seek out their local churches and community centers with the purpose of teaching civic values to their children. The parents I met in Chinatown continue to fight for the Gifted and Talented Program and always remind their children about the importance of education. Regardless of who wins City Council, State, or Congress, these families will teach their children lessons they’ll always remember.

For that same reason, when I was offered a job in one of the companies who have a key role in helping Puerto Rico, I didn’t think twice about accepting it. Many people questioned my decision to leave NYC, especially with the never-ending instability of the Island. But just like the families I met in Lower Manhattan this year, I knew I’d be okay no matter what.

I learned that in the end, it’s not about where you live, or what your income is. You need to feel supported and yes, educated enough, to know you can take on any challenge life throws your way.

So I know the communities I met won’t stop fighting until they make the changes they want to see in New York, and the same goes for me in my fight to help Puerto Rico.