BOGOTA:
None of them had any intention of having to part with their friends, their home, or their country. In addition, as they grew older and faced the difficulties that come with migration, they had to search for new opportunities, a new place to live, and employment that would enable them to maintain their financial security as well as their health and energy and desire to accomplish much more.
In honor of Women’s Day, the Voice of America shares the tales of six courageous, fearless, and tenacious women who have bravely moved to Bogotá from their native Venezuela. They all claim that, in spite of the nostalgia it brings, leaving their home nation gave them the chance to truly express who they are to the outside world.
Ana María Carrasquero, the “little mother” who is always looking “forward.” 56 years of age. Zulia Cabimas
The day starts for Ana María Carrasquero at seven in the morning. A 56-year-old woman, quiet, grave, and endearing, who arrived in Bogotá nearly three years ago to work as an administrator of a daily-payment building (guesthouses where guests pay by the day) in the city center, despite having had two strokes and still grieving the loss of one of her five children. in a dangerous region where the majority of Venezuelans reside: “Many cannot even at this age, but I can. I am 56 years old; I enjoy working, and I take pride in my renters’ referring to me as their “little mommy.”
And Ana María is the one in charge of everything there. He greets newcomers at the door, helps those in need, and sells his red wine, or black coffee as it is known in Colombia. He sets his thermos of the beverage on a little wooden table next to a plastic chair, where he claims to stop every day till late at night. while she hides out in a little space that houses her husband’s and her possessions along with a desk and cloakroom.
She says boldly, “What they say to you, but you get over it, but stop because we are all equal, we are all human beings.” Being a migrant at this age has not been easy at all for her because of the family she left behind and xenophobia.
A “battler” who never stops smiling.
Misleidys Chavez. Aged 57. Zulia Maracaibo.
Even though Misleidys left her home country of Venezuela a little more than a year ago and is currently struggling to make ends meet by selling arepas and smokes from a street booth in downtown Bogota, she never hides her smile while speaking. Even in the chilly Bogota mornings and during his lengthy nine-hour workdays three days a week, his smile never fades.
She is proud to be an adult lady who strives daily to get better, and you can feel, see, and hear it: “My mom is 71 years old… She taught me how to be a woman business owner. While my mother remained in Venezuela, I have moved on and am now pursuing that future.” She tells how she arrived in Bogotá with her son and another grandchild, and how she found her future there as well as working to support her daughter and five additional grandchildren: “I love it, I enjoy the weather, I appreciate the respect of the people… Venezuela is a vastly different place from here.”
This woman, who has dazzling white hair and slanted eyes, feels that elderly people have no chances now that her country has become more like the United States. He acknowledges that “the doors have been opened” for him in the Colombian capital, but he still wants to obtain the documentation necessary to become a citizen. She also claims that people have recognized her accent and have even called her “Cali.”
“It’s impossible to go back… Gesturing food to one of her granddaughters at a soup kitchen, Misleidys jokes, “I’m staying here, they should get me out of here but I’m dead.” She travels there every day with her family to have a free lunch.
The “Granny” With a history
Figarella Josefina. 74 years of age. Carabobo, Valencia
“To graduate as a human is to think, feel, and act in harmony with the world” is the legacy Josefina, a psycholinguistics expert, neurolinguistic programmer, social worker, and sexual counselor, wishes to leave behind for society. The 74-year-old mother of three and grandmother of four states, “My life’s objective… It is to be useful, with a lot of love, in every condition, referring to that passion… for the study of human behavior and for helping people.”
She worked as a counselor at a demanding school in Venezuela, but six years ago, the circumstances in her own nation forced her and her daughter to relocate to the capital of Colombia. She initially assisted around the house and took care of her grandson, but she was unable to give up her career. She willingly went to support several foundations and even started another, but it failed for lack of funding. Nevertheless, she did not want to be a burden at home, so she chose to take a paid job “as a worker,” something she “never imagined.” She sewed 200 stoles three years ago “as a pastime and not as training.” He remained up late, but after a few months he gave up. The same thing occurred when she was required to spend more than ten hours a day in front of a sewing machine in order to create motorbike jerseys.
Before being able to join the Juntos Se Puede Foundation last year, she attempted to produce and sell sweet breads. Since then, she has not only worked with the young and in team integration, community days, and with the team, but she has also gained the respect of everybody. “They call me grandma,” she adds. She has received praise from both inside and outside the foundation for being “a magnificent example for the elderly, so that they realize that age, problems, or life circumstances are not an issue.”
Despite the fact that she currently possesses a Temporary Protection Permit, which has normalized the circumstances for thousands of illegally arrived Venezuelans in the nation, she does not want to “live like a gypsy” and will return home for a few months to teach a diploma at her former school. Having trained as a Professional Digital Facilitator the previous year, she also hopes to enhance virtual consultations. But because she believes that “women are the most crucial resource for the development of a social fabric,” she intends to go back to Colombia to improve the foundation’s campaign against gender-based violence. She admits that discovering “the advantages that transculturation can have to encourage the development of human potential” has been the loveliest aspect of her immigrating. Since it’s acknowledging that, despite our differences, we are all the same everywhere.”
The Attorney Seeking to Aid Venezuelan-Colombian Individuals
Aisquel Guerrero. 62 years of age. Lara Barquisimeto
Aisquel never imagined he would find himself in the same situation as his father, who had to seek safety in Venezuela after escaping the turmoil in Colombia. After nearly seven years in Bogotá, she has now remembered, fearfully, the times as a small child when she used to listen to the Colombians who would come to her house and ask for bread.
With nostalgia and strength at the same time, he says, “For me, Colombia has been just that, a little piece of what I have to live because of what Colombians lived in Venezuela: if it touches you, if you are aware that it can touch you, you step on it every day so that the other side is beautiful.”
He has so made an effort to accomplish so, even after considering emigration. After 40 years, he saved up and searched for his father to give him the surname. Unfortunately, he discovered it “three meters underground.” To do this, though, she then relied on one of her sisters and her legal expertise.
“I was afraid because, despite the stability of our economic condition, I instinctively thought that the future would not be as stable. Regarding the social aspect, I wanted my girls to understand how to live in a democracy because they were born under a different government than mine,” admits this grandmother and mother of two daughters.
She was really reluctant to leave Venezuela because she was tired of not being able to acquire her correct documents, but her daughter’s condition served as the final “push.”
Thankfully, she acknowledges, since she was in Venezuela, a personalized gift company she started with her daughters has allowed her to lead a good and busy life in Bogotá. She was also recently employed by a foundation where she works with disadvantaged populations, practices law, and offers online counseling.
“I want to help so many Venezuelans who are Colombian by blood, I tell you from my experience as a Colombian Venezuelan within my dreams here in Colombia,” she beamingly states.
The only “commander” of the vessel Nellis Perez. 58 years of age. Barina
Nellis has a charming appearance and smile, yet she has a powerful voice and personality for a reason: “In my home, I was like that captain of the ship,” she acknowledges. a trait that not only inspired her to battle for her seven children, leave home at the age of 17, and travel alone in pursuit of a better life, but also inspired her to work as a house cleaner from house to house.
Three years ago, she arrived in Bogotá persuaded that there is hope after selling a number of items and hauling a suitcase across highways, trails, and rivers to get to the capital: “I prefer to work in what I know.” Sell my belongings on the open market.”
She went from being a domestic worker to a school janitor in Venezuela due to her numerous health issues, but she had no idea that other, more taxing jobs—such as recycling, selling red wines, caring for children, and walking eight days a week for several hours to sell the traditional hallacas from Venezuela—awaited her in Colombia. He claims that the medications he self-prescribes “go” into those revenues.
She claims she has encountered xenophobia, but she intends to stay in Colombia for a very long time since she misses her kids, who she seldom speaks to. She even has aspirations of having access to tissue surgery so that she can work more reliably.
She also likes the companionship of ladies her own age, who welcome her into their homes, provide her with food and clothing, and divert her attention with conversations, dances, and laughter: “I was an orphan many years ago, so it’s lovely to have them say, ‘May the Lord bless you.'” Imagine, getting me a couple of older women who are just as old as me would be a very pleasant thing.”
“The Princess” Who Hopes to Work in a Professional Setting
Sobeida, Prada. 62 years of age. Zulia and Maracaibo
vain, cheerful, and incredibly positive. This is how people see Sobeida: as a woman who, driven by her ambition to succeed, has managed to pursue her ambitions of going to school and being a professional in addition to being an athlete, singer, and actor in a place that is not her own.
She made the decision to immigrate five years ago after being weary and “demoralized” from not being able to buy food to bring home. Besides, her kids were adamant about staying in Colombia, so they brought her along.
In order to take care of the house and her grandchildren, she packed her “coroticos” and traveled to Bogotá. She worked twelve hours a day, Sunday to Sunday, in a barbecue shop, cleaning and cooking, to help her son-in-law pay for household bills when her daughter became sick in 2021 and needed surgery. She made stopping after three months a priority for her health. He then went to work making juices.
“I had never worked in that kind of profession because I spent 20 years working as a secretary in a bank in Venezuela… Thus, my work was always office-like,” adds Sobeida, who studied accounting in her home nation and has sold naturalization despite holding the necessary permissions.
This mother of three writes that moving was difficult, as was experiencing xenophobia, but it was also highly gratifying because it allowed her to adjust, stay near her family, and explore a new place: “I never imagined that I would travel to Colombia, experience Bogotá, and learn about all the amazing things. Many people have helped us by opening doors.”
The loveliest thing, though, was when a community leader gave her permission to join a group where she learned how to prepare typical Colombian food, dance native dances, and star in a play as a princess.
She has also worked as a volunteer at a community kitchen in her area and is a part of an elderly-focused program run by the Mayor’s Office of Bogotá, where she attends all of the workshops and walks that are offered. She completed an entrepreneurship course and hopes to work as a professional, travel, and validate her Colombian high school graduation.