Hello

I am a transgender, Indigenous, Latina woman. I immigrated to the United States at the age of 13. Since then, I have worked in restaurants and factories.

I began my transition as a transgender woman at the age of 18 and began living as a trans woman at the age of 26.

When I began my transition, it was the most challenging part of my life because the workforce was closed to me, and because of this, I had to resort to sex work to survive. Due to these circumstances, in 2010, I suffered police violence, was imprisoned incommunicado for four days, and was on the verge of being deported.

Since then, My Struggle began. I began to empower myself and learn about my rights. I suffered a lot! Since I was looking for work, I had extensive experience as a chef at a well-known restaurant at the time (Boat House, located in Central Park, New York), but no one would hire me because I was a transgender woman. This forced me to do sex work. It was a nightmare, but I had to survive and endure. However, I didn't give up and kept fighting for my dreams. In that moment of despair, I joined an organization (Make the Road New York Queens), where I volunteered and was an active member for over 12 years, and where I was also the organization's queen for two years.

During my two-year tenure, I empowered myself and had the opportunity to take a trip in August 2018, during which I visited the Cibola County Correctional Center in New Mexico. There, I met around 30 transgender sisters who had no support from anyone, neither their families nor their friends. They were deprived of their freedom and forgotten behind those bars.

Many of them shared their experiences from an early childhood on the streets. Many of them were raped and forced into sex work, even by their own families. Their childhoods were stolen. It was very sad to see all of that; it broke my heart, and from then on, I said, "I have to do something to support my sisters." So, I returned to New York and began sending pantries, personal hygiene stuff, and money for phone calls, keeping in touch with the girls through
letters.

Then many of the sisters were released, and that's when the most challenging part began: finding a place to receive them. Many of the girls lived in my house for more than six months, and more of our sisters presented delicate health conditions.

And, of course, the work of connecting them with support began, including medical services, lawyers for
representation in their immigration cases, and name changes, as well as a safe place to live.

Thus, Hope TGNC Latinx was born in August 2018. Finally, in July 2024, our nonprofit organization was legalized to support our trans immigrant sisters. This struggle has been arduous for us, as we lack the resources and funds to support all of this. It's been done with our own funds or with the help of the community itself. We've been
empowering our community and our sisters by participating in marches, protests, and conferences. We continue the
struggle.