Maria's Exodus: A Narrative

Today I want to share Maria's story of struggles and triumphs as an immigrant.

Maria was born in Barranquilla, Colombia. She was the youngest of seven children which consisted of four girls and three boys. Her father was a sailor and her mother was a homemaker. Since Barranquilla is located at the coast of Colombia, there were many merchants, fishermen, and sailors. During the late 60s, violence and corruption erupted in the country. Tragically, Maria's sister and nephew were kidnapped during this time never to be seen again. The family believed that they were captured by one of the many groups that had been selling organs in the black market.

At the age of seventeen, Maria's parents decided to move to Venezuela in search for a better life. Maria's older siblings decided to stay because they did not want to leave their children and jobs behind. They applied for a "border visa" and took the nine hour bus trip to Venezuela. They settled in Maracaibo, Venezuela which is located just a few hours from the border. The family adjusted very quickly; Maria found a job as a maid and her father became a merchant. Nonetheless, her parents became increasingly homesick and were lacking the energy they once had. After five years of working in Venezuela, they decided it was time to go back home. Maria made the difficult decision to stay in order to be able to send money to her elderly parents. She stayed in Maracaibo for another four years before moving to Caracas, the capital.

At the time, Caracas was the epicenter of the world (or at least that's how it appeared to her) and it was a known fact that people were making twice as much money in Caracas than they were making in any other part of the country. Maria went to Caracas in search for a better pay and that is exactly what she found. She started working as a live-in maid and nanny to a Venezuelan attorney and his family. When this family relocated, she started to work for a Jewish surgeon and his family as a live-in nanny. Although the pay was good, she had dreams of going into another line of work that would provide her with a more stable job. She started to work during the day as a nanny and in the evenings she attended Beauty School.

(second from the left) Maria at 1978 Christmas Party, Sandro's Salon

When she obtained her certificate from Beauty School, she started working at a salon as a helper—washing hair and sweeping the floor. After gaining some experience and establishing her own clientele, she moved on to work as a stylist in Barberia La Pescara in Caracas, Venezuela. She was making very good money and this allowed her to send money frequently to her parents back home.

While working at the salon, she met a handsome young Dominican fellow who worked as a shoemaker nearby. In the early 80s, there was an influx of Dominican immigrants coming to Venezuela. They were looked down upon by the locals who considered them loud and vulgar. Maria was no exception, she ignored the man for over a year when she encountered him on her way to work even when he would send a friendly "good morning" her way. Eventually, she decided to reply to his greetings and gradually started to accept his invitations for coffee. It would be another two years before they would marry and soon thereafter have two daughters. Things were finally going well for Maria at the time.

Then on February 18, 1983 something occurred that changes things forever; this particular day is still known in Venezuela as Black Friday. Up until this point and for over 20 years, the exchange rate to U.S. dollars was fixed to 4.30. The bolivar, the local currency, was one of the most valuable currencies in the world at the time. When Maria sent money to her parents in Colombia, it went a long way because the Venezuelan currency had a much greater value than the Colombian one. But on Black Friday, the government of then president Luis Herrera Campins, devalued the local currency by 100% and imposed exchange controls.

Maria in Barberia Pescara, 1981

The effects were felt instantly by the people in Venezuela, including Maria. Many of the immigrants that had flocked to Venezuela a decade ago were now desperately trying to apply for U.S. visas. Maria soon followed suit and applied for a U.S. visa to provide a better life for her family. During the course of five years, her visa was denied multiple times before finally getting an approval in 1988. Maria and her family traveled to the United States in a chilly November morning in 1988. With just a couple of hundreds of dollars to her name, she left behind her job and friends to find a better life for her family.

Maria and her family lived in a rented room on Tremont Avenue in the Bronx for a few months before getting their own apartment. Within two weeks of her arriving to the U.S., she found a job in Caribe Salon in Washington Heights where she established her clientele. Only a few weeks later a client gave her a lottery ticket in lieu of a tip. This proved to be a winning ticket and she won $2,500. She used this money to get an apartment in Washington Heights and to rent a space to open up her own beauty salon.

Maria would go on to eventually own four salons and have two more children in the United States. She was forced to sell the salons when she had an accident that required knee surgery. Notwithstanding, she continues to work on a part-time basis and has no plans of retiring any time soon.

Maria's life as an immigrant is one of many barriers and heartaches. It is also a story of determination, achievement, and a bit of luck. I am overwhelmingly proud to call this hard working woman my mother.