\u201cD\u00eda de Muertos,\u201d Gina, who uses they\/them pronouns, exclaims as they pull out an embroidery hoop. In the center of the hoop is a half-stitched red heart, framed by layers of gold string. Sequins catch rays of light that dance along the rim.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n
D\u00eda de Muertos, or Day of the Dead, commemorates the departed and welcomes the return of their spirits, according to the Smithsonian. Although rooted in Mexican and Central American cultures, D\u00eda de Muertos has become widely celebrated by Latinos in the U.S.<\/p>\r\n
Gina, who came to the U.S. as an asylum-seeker in 2022, used to stitch in Ecuador, their home country. But now, Gina\u2019s passion for art lives in Philadelphia\u2014teaching art therapy classes to newly-arrived children.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n
\u201cIn my place of origin, I was arrested, not only for my sexuality, but I was also a victim of sexual violence,\u201d Gina says.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n
In 2023, the U.S. Department of State identified sexual violence as a \u201csignificant human rights issue\u201d in Ecuador. No laws explicitly criminalize \u201ccorrective rape\u201d of LGBTQI+ individuals.<\/p>\r\n
On the morning of November 7, 2022, Gina boarded a plane from Ecuador to Nicaragua. It was a Sunday\u2014which meant Gina could leave unnoticed. \u201cMy flight was at 2:00 a.m.,\u201d they explain. The oldest of three children, they didn\u2019t tell their brother, sister, or mother.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n
From Nicaragua, Gina made the next leg of the journey to Mexico by walking and hitch-hiking with other immigrants. \u201cI only have $20 in my pocket,\u201d Gina says.<\/p>\r\n
\u201cI came to the United States in December 2022,\u201d they explain. Once at the border in Texas, detention center staff took Gina\u2019s fingerprints to run them through what officials told Gina was a criminal check. Staff separated groups by gender; Gina was detained with the rest of the women.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n
\u201cTwo weeks,\u201d Gina says as they struggle to remember how long they were detained for. Keeping track of time in the detention center is a near impossible task. \u201cIt\u2019s so difficult because all the lights are on all the time,\u201d Gina explains. \u201cAll the time you feel cold.\u201d<\/p>\r\n
Gina says that they were given food twice a day, in the mornings and evenings. \u201cWe were eating only apples, or water, or chips\u2014a little box of chips\u2014nothing more,\u201d they say.<\/p>\r\n
Eventually, Gina says they were transported from the detention center to a community-based organization in Texas. They had no information about the next leg of the trip. \u201cI don\u2019t really have family here,\u201d Gina says. \u201cI don\u2019t have a plan when I crossed the border.\u201d<\/p>\r\n
The only U.S.-based contact Gina had was a man in Queens, New York. He was older than Gina but had studied at Gina\u2019s alma mater, University of La Rioja. At every juncture of the journey, he would send Gina incessant messages: \u201cAre you coming?,\u201d \u201cAre you on your way?,\u201d Gina recalls.<\/p>\r\n
It was in the community-based organization that Gina heard of a bus going to Philadelphia. \u201cI think, you know, \u2018Wow, this is really next to New York and I can walk,\u2019\u201d Gina says.<\/p>\r\n
\u201cThere was definitely a feeling in Texas that they wanted us out of there.\u201d<\/p>\r\n
The bus that Gina ultimately boarded was part of Texas Governor Greg Abbott\u2019s Transportation Program. The program has bussed over 3,400 migrants to Philadelphia since November 2022, according to the Governor\u2019s Office.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n
It took three days for the bus to reach Philadelphia. During the ride, Gina explains the man sitting next to them was pushed against them, and later began touching Gina. Gina felt powerless to speak up.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n
Stops for food were not allowed either. \u201cWe don\u2019t have time to eat food,\u201d Gina recalls. \u201cI had a really bad experience.\u201d<\/p>\r\n
Once in Philadelphia, Gina was received by local non-profits. Philadelphia\u2019s churches also stepped in, says Manuel Portillo, Director of Community Engagement at The Welcoming Center. \u201cThey partner with public health to try to provide support to these people that come in buses,\u201d he says. \u201cThose were the people\u2014the grassroots organizations\u2014that really did the work.\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cThey gave us food, clothing, and a place to spend the night,\u201d Gina says.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n
But even after Gina began to settle in Philadelphia, the man from Queens continued to send Gina messages: \u201cGet to New York. Get to New York. You’re not here yet.\u201d He wanted Gina to perform sexual favors for him.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n
Gina decided to trick him. \u201cI have Covid, I can\u2019t do contact with anybody,\u201d Gina recalls texting the man. His messages stopped.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n
Messages from Ecuador, however, continue. \u201cIt\u2019s really hard because the people who hurt me, they want to find me,\u201d Gina explains.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n
Gina receives text messages from their friends in Ecuador: \u201cThe father of Gina, dead,\u201d the messages read. Gina knows it\u2019s a lie\u2014a calculated attempt to get Gina to return to Ecuador.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n
But returning to Ecuador isn\u2019t an option for Gina. \u201cI miss my mom,\u201d they say. \u201cSometimes I text my mom and say, \u2018Hi mom, I\u2019m fine.\u2019 But my mom doesn\u2019t know who I work on, who I am. She only knows I\u2019m here in the United States.\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cI\u2019m really lucky living here in Philly,\u201d Gina says. \u201cI don\u2019t have family here but I have many friends, my community, and they support me.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\r\n
\u201cThey believe in me and my talents,\u201d Gina says as they tuck the embroidery hoop for D\u00eda de Muertos into their backpack.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n
\u201cI\u2019m wearing La Catrina,\u201d a tall skeleton figure that has become a symbol of D\u00eda de Muertos, Gina explains as they hold up their phone. Her screen displays an Instagram account that reads, \u201clacalacaflaphilly.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\r\n
Lacalaca Philly, which organizes Philadelphia\u2019s Day of the Dead celebrations, was first spearheaded by a Mexican immigrant merchant, says Magda Martinez, Chief Operating Office of the Welcoming Center.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n
\u201cFirst year we did it, we had $300,\u201d she says. \u201cNow they get over 1,500 people every year.\u201d<\/p>\r\n
\u201cIn every community, there\u2019s what I call a bridge person\u2014a person who somehow bridges their community with multiple communities,\u201d Martinez says. For Martinez, the bridge person was the merchant who brought Spanish-speaking communities together to celebrate rebirth through D\u00eda de Muertos.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\r\n
Now, Gina bridges communities through their work at Juntos\u2014which translates to \u201ctogether\u201d in English\u2014one of the non-profits Portillo says was instrumental in supporting the immigrants who were bussed to Philadelphia. \u201cI\u2019m collaborating with different organizations, making mural arts,\u201d Gina says.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n
\u201cI\u2019m still afraid that the people who hurt me will find me,\u201d Gina says. \u201cBut I also really want to live, and now I have my community\u2014and they need me.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\r\n
\u201cThat motivates me to get up every morning and fight for what I believe in.\u201d<\/p>\r\n
<\/p>\r\n
<\/p>\r\n
<\/p>\r\n
Sources:\u00a0<\/p>\r\n
Gina, Juntos Ambassador Magda Martinez, Chief Operating Office, The Welcoming Center Manuel Portillo, Director of Community Engagement, The Welcoming Center\u00a0 https:\/\/latino.si.edu\/learn\/teaching-and-learning-resources\/day-dead-resources<\/a> https:\/\/gov.texas.gov\/news\/post\/texas-cracks-down-on-violent-venezuelan-gang-tren-de-aragua<\/a>\u00a0 https:\/\/www.state.gov\/reports\/2023-country-reports-on-human-rights-practices\/ecuador\/<\/a><\/p>\r\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" \u201cD\u00eda de Muertos,\u201d Gina, who uses they\/them pronouns, exclaims as they pull out an embroidery hoop. In the center of the hoop is a half-stitched red heart, framed by layers of gold string. Sequins catch rays of light that dance along the rim.\u00a0 D\u00eda de Muertos, or Day of the Dead, commemorates the departed and<\/p>\n