By: Beludji Narcisse, Research Associate
Unemployment played a huge role in my struggle with housing. To understand the similarities and differences between my experiences and those of the people I have met, I will dive into the story of a friend of Puerto Rican heritage, Chainary. One positive aspect of my journey as an unstably housed undocumented youth was staying at the Noank Community Support Services youth group home in Groton. I stayed for a month in the group home, a safe space for many youngsters like me who were facing housing difficulties. There, I met Chainary in March 2021. Her kindness and open personality brought positive energy to the group home. We quickly bonded over our shared circumstances, and I could not stop myself from making observations. Chainary is of Puerto Rican descent. While I was a client at the New London Homeless Hospitality Shelter, I met numerous people from Puerto Rico, especially single young men looking for jobs. To me, they too seemed like newcomers who were having difficulties settling amid a devastating pandemic. Based on my observation, I was curious to know how my experience as a homeless undocumented Haitian immigrant compared with people of Puerto Rican descent and other communities of newcomers in the state who have dealt with housing instability during the pandemic.
Recently, I sat down with Chanairy for an interview and had an insightful conversation that touched on topics such as language barriers, lack of awareness of available resources, and tenants’ rights and support. The interview lasted about thirty minutes. I posed her seventeen prepared questions to help me understand the similarities and differences between the housing experiences in my surroundings and her community. Then, I analyzed the interview script by looking at common and recurring themes. Among these themes was the importance of resilience to adversities. This resiliency towards hardship, for Chanairy, stems from her grandmother, who has known similar difficulties with housing. Chainary mentioned her grandparents many times in the interview, detailing the language barriers they faced as Puerto Rican migrants and how that posed a problem for economic security and housing. Facing linguistic blockages to resources is very common in the Haitian community and is a devastating issue in the state. Lack of access to translators often leads to huge delays in paperwork filing, whether it’s for immigration or housing assistance applications.
When we think of Puerto Rican migrant communities, the difficult aspect of navigating in a foreign place with no knowledge of English can be overlooked. Puerto Ricans speak Spanish, and there are a lot of public resources dedicated to Spanish language translators. However, being alone in the streets without a family member or friend fluent in English and Spanish can be challenging. Another potent theme I was fascinated by that emerged in our conversation was the rights of tenants. In one instance, after I asked Chanairy about the struggle of her extended family with stable housing, she referenced that the conditions in her grandmother’s apartment were not good and that her grandmother had to pay to repair the place herself to make it livable. Following further research, I found instances of tenants who have lived in neglected apartments. These tenants, particularly in Hartford County, were exploited by landlords due to language barriers and their Hispanic heritage. (Cajahuaringa, 2024).
Through these themes, I attempted to develop an understanding of how the Puerto Rican community struggles in New London County and beyond. I asked Chanairy if her grandmother faced any language barriers as a person of Puerto Rican descent. In an affirming tone, she replied yes. What was striking was how Chanairy described her grandmother’s determination to learn English to acquire employment to support her family. “Slowly, but surely, she started knowing English because she worked and had kids,” she said. Though Puerto Ricans are American citizens by birth, when it comes to language, the experience seems quite like the Haitian community. Learning English was akin to survival for my family and me when we settled in the United States. The first Haitian American Norwalk City Council, Diana Revolus, rightly pointed out that “one of the biggest challenges for Haitian asylum seekers is getting enough bilingual help” (Martinez, 2024). Access to legal aid, even when it exists, is challenging because of a lack of Haitian Creole speakers in CT refugee non-profits. According to an article from CT Public Radio on Hartford tenants, immigrant tenants often live in apartments without formal lease agreements or sign documents without knowing what they say, leaving them vulnerable to sudden evictions (Cajahuaringa, 2024). Undeniably, access to translation services can be a matter of make or break for families that are not fluent in English. When I heard Chanairy speak of her grandmother’s experience, she seemed very proud of her Hispanic roots, saying, “Her strongest area was Spanish.” At the same time, Chanairy highlighted her effort to learn English to better her family’s circumstances. That shows that for many who are acquiring English, including Haitian immigrants, it is not merely a question of assimilation; it is also an attempt to advance one’s economic situation.
In addition to the language barrier, Chanairy’s grandmother has dealt with housing difficulties due to health issues, saying “she had to come to live with her mom once, while her husband had to stay at a shelter for work.” This separation took a toll on Chanairy’s grandmother, something I can relate to because I had been separated from my mom and brother for months as a result of my homelessness. During her prime age, Chanairy highlighted her grit and perseverance to build a life for herself, describing her as “very hardworking.” “She strived to the point where she had a good living space and remodeled her apartment by herself,” she mentioned. One persistent indication in the interview was that renters often do not receive the support they need to have a nice, affordable place to live. In my opinion, the feeling of a lack of support for renters is one that many of us share throughout the United States, no matter who we are. When I asked about her parents or extended family’s housing situation living in New London County, Chanairy answered, “They don’t really care unless you have a house.”
This sentiment is certainly not specific to the City of New London. In Manchester, Connecticut, Maria Zuniga, an immigrant from Peru, alleged that her landlord ignored the deplorable conditions in her one-bedroom apartment, from toilet flooding to a cockroach infestation that affected her son’s health (Cajahuaringa, 2024). The landlord allegedly threatened to report her to immigration services (Cajahuaringa, 2024). Landlord abuse of renters is not unheard of in the state, and immigrant communities and people who lack English fluency are particularly at risk. Quintana, a housing advocate in Hartford, stressed that there is a relationship between corporate landlords and politicians that puts low-income renters at a disadvantage. It is also a nationwide sentiment that renters are not benefiting from government policies while landlords benefit from price gouging, an issue raised by the Biden administration. In Connecticut, there are no statewide policies on rent control. Landlords set whatever price they want.
Despite the challenges, Chanairy described her grandmother as a resilient and strong woman who fought for a better life. Similarly to Haitian communities in the United States, Chanairy embodied this idea of resiliency toward adversities, one that she seemed to attribute to her roots. Her manner of detailing her family’s past struggles with housing showed that she was finding much strength in her family’s journey to push forward. Chainary arrived at the group home when she was a senior in high school. After dealing with familial disagreements in her home, she headed for the shelter. Struggling with keeping a stable home while attending school took a toll on her. But she came out of her journey stronger and more determined to fend for herself. “It made me feel like giving up hope, being hopeless, feeling like I can’t do it like I’m not determined,” she said, speaking of her experience. In a resoundingly optimistic tone, she continued, “Now that I’m older, I feel like I have more capacity and capability.” Chanairy is now in trade school, and she plans to pursue a career in the healthcare industry.
Interviewing Chanairy was an amazing experience. The interview helped me to shine a light on the community of a friend whom I care about. At the same time, I could sense the similarities between the housing experiences of Puerto Rican communities, Haitian communities, and other immigrant communities in the state. Though Puerto Ricans are born U.S. citizens, Chanairy inferred that some newcomers experience the mainland United States as if they arrived in a different country. It can certainly be the case for people who leave Puerto Rico on their own and do not have family members here. For this reason, like recent Haitian immigrants, crossing the language barrier can be critical in finding resources to help in difficult situations. Because of the language barriers, Puerto Rican newcomers, like other minority groups in the state, are vulnerable to landlord exploitation when signing leases. This interview has shown me how important it is for everyone to get informed, no matter what language they speak or where they come from.
References
Cajahuaringa, M. (2024, January 29). Hartford tenants, immigrant rights group call for urgent action on housing equity. Connecticut Public. https://www.ctpublic.org/news/2024-01-25/hartford-tenants-immigrant-rights-group-call-for-urgent-action-on-housing-equity
Pizzagalli, L. (2023, September 26). Connecticut sees growing wave of asylum seekers coming from Haiti, Venezuela and Cuba. Connecticut Institute for Refugees and Immigrants. https://cirict.org/2939-2/ https://www.ctpublic.org/news/2024-04-22/haitians-in-connecticut-need-more-legal-aid-advocates-say
Martinez, E. (2024, April 23). Haitians in Connecticut need more legal aid, advocates say. Connecticut Public. https://www.ctpublic.org/news/2024-04-22/haitians-in-connecticut-need-more-legal-aid-advocates-say