VERONICA,
TENANT
LEADER
13 Years in HSV
Where are you from?
Guanajuato, Mexico.
How did you move here?
At the time I had some personal issues. I had lived in Chinatown and I needed to move out. I saw that Hillside Villa had a spot so my kids and I moved in here.
What does this community mean to you?
Chinatown is a special place to me. When I first came to the U.S. Chinatown was where I landed. I didn’t know any other place but Chinatown. I moved here since it was the first place I knew when I came here.
What do you work as?
I work as a house cleaner. I clean houses day and night. It is a very stressful job since there's always different problems. It’s a very stressful and difficult job to work in.
How has the rent increase affected you?
The rent increase has affected me emotionally. I wonder at night how I’ll be able to pay bills, am I going to get kicked out, what about my youngest son? How hard it is going to be for my son Angel to move schools in a place he is unfamiliar with. It will be difficult for us to move in a different area where I am unsure of and how expensive it will be to move away. Everything felt difficult with the rent increase.
“Our fight has shown me to connect myself with others. When I first moved here I didn’t know anyone but our fight helped me connect with more people. We can also be very powerful when all of our tenants connect with each other.”
What motivates you to fight?
My home motivated me to fight. This is a safe and comfortable area. I know a lot of tenants such as Monica, Mabel, Marina. I slowly starting to get to know more people. That helped fight. I wasn’t going to leave Hillside Villa and move into a place I’m not comfortable or familiar with.
What has this fight taught you and shown you?
Our fight has shown me to connect myself with others. When I first moved here I didn’t know anyone but our fight helped me connect with more people. We can also be very powerful when all of our tenants connect with each other.
What does faith mean to you in this fight?
In this fight faith means a lot to me. I believe in God and that we must have faith in him. In order to move forward we must not be afraid but have faith in ourselves. Faith will help us be able to move forward.
What does the Hillside Villa Tenant Association mean to you?
Hillside Villa Tenants Association means a lot to me. They have been very supportive of working with us. This organization started at Hillside Villa. There are people who help us from inside our building and outside. People outside of Hillside Villa have helped us a lot such as CCED. They help us because they want to help fight and they have experience in our situation. They helped us emotionally as well. They are always checking in on us and asking how we are. They are taking care of us making sure we are doing good.