Interview with Sylvia Molina and Marisol Cardona-Ortiz
On November 25, 2024, I had the unique honor of doing an interview with Ms. Sylvia Molina, who was aided by her daughter, Ms. Marisol Cardona-Ortiz. My mother recommended these lovely ladies to me after asking her coworkers for help with this endeavor. The interview was conducted remotely via Zoom, so I appreciate your patience if there were any technical difficulties or interruptions. Despite these potential difficulties, the interview went well and efficiently. Ms. Sylvia kindly gave insights into her life experience and opinions on being an American, creating a rich tale full of great ideas and inspiration. The conversation was informative and entertaining, providing insight into Ms. Sylvia’s experiences and ideals that have molded her identity and worldview. This interview resulted in a moving and powerful tale that highlighted the resolve, wisdom, and grace of a wonderful human negotiating the complexity of American life.
Ms. Sylvia’s journey from the Dominican Republic to the United States is a remarkable story that began when she was just fourteen years old. Setting foot in the States for the first time on July 4th, 1968, she arrived on a Visa and eventually became a naturalized citizen in 1982 after fourteen years of residing in the country. Reflecting on her initial reluctance to leave her homeland, Ms. Sylvia vividly recalls the poignant moment when she felt somewhat coerced into boarding a taxi headed for the airport, bound for New York. Despite her initial reservations about relocating, she adapted to life in the United States and made it her new home, rarely returning to the Dominican Republic thereafter.
Ms. Sylvia’s father, a typewriter technician, was a strong tie to her Dominican background. Initially unwilling to leave his established life in their home nation, circumstances prompted him to accompany Ms. Sylvia and her mother to America after her mother got a worker’s visa and financed his move. As Ms. Sylvia recalls her parents’ opposing views on the relocation, she describes how her mother’s drive to pursue possibilities in the United States eventually drew her father and other family members from the Dominican Republic to join them. Despite her father’s reluctance to leave, the family’s move to the United States had a direct impact on their jobs and lifestyles.
Ms. Sylvia’s story of immigration and adaptation reflects on her parents’ efforts and the difficulties they faced when starting over in a new country. Their trip captures the intricacies of uprooting one’s life in search of a better future, as well as the bittersweet swaps and sacrifices that formed their family’s path. Ms. Sylvia’s story exemplifies bravery, familial bonds, and the persistent ties that connect her to both her history in the Dominican Republic and her present in the US. Ms. Sylvia reminisced about her first visit to America, recalling an amusing episode in which her mother sent her to the laundromat despite her inability to understand the new language. She chose someone else’s machine by mistake because she was confused, which caused a tense period at the laundry until it was settled without violence. After this incident, she quickly convinced her mother to buy a washing machine and switch to a clothesline at home. She openly discussed how those attempting to adjust and integrate into a new linguistic and cultural setting may find it extremely difficult to overcome a language barrier. Ms. Sylvia admitted that the assimilation process wasn’t without its challenges, even though she had come to the US at a young age. Although she acquired English quite easily through ESL programs in middle school, it was not until a significant time in her life that she genuinely developed confidence in her language abilities. The crucial moment occurred when one of her sons was born with hearing difficulties, forcing her into significant encounters with healthcare specialists and requiring her to communicate effectively with her child in order to nurture his language development. Through this immersive experience of balancing her own language learning journey with assisting her son’s linguistic growth, Ms. Sylvia discovered a newfound confidence in her communication abilities, speaking in English, allowing her to engage in lengthy conversations with a newfound sense of fluency and comfort. When I asked Ms. Sylvia about what she remembered of growing up in the Dominican Republic, she shared a pleasant childhood memory with me. She cherished the evenings when she and her friends would gather in front of her house after a meal to sing songs together, a simple yet pleasant tradition that had a lasting impact on her. Curious to go deeper into her emotions, I asked about any regrets or sorrow she could have about leaving her birthplace. To my astonishment, Ms. Sylvia expressed contentment with and acceptance of her prior experiences. She explained that the transition to New York was easier for her as most of her family had already moved there, and she was just a young girl at the time, adapting to a new life without dwelling on what could have been. Recalling her last visit to the Dominican Republic for a somber occasion, a funeral, many years after leaving, she revealed how her sense of identity had evolved over time. Despite her roots in the Dominican Republic, Ms. Sylvia emphasized that she felt more connected to her American identity, attributing this to her formative years spent in the U.S. She emphasized that her naturalization at the age of twenty-eight only solidified the deep-rooted sense of belonging she had already cultivated over the years, reinforcing her identity as an American while still cherishing her Dominican heritage in a profound and nuanced way.
At the end of my interview with Ms. Sylvia, I made it appoint to infer about her thoughts on the upcoming President, Donald J. Trump, and the immigration policies he intends to enact. Ms. Sylvia’s attitude on Donald Trump is met with stronger feelings of resentment than happiness. She not only dislikes him as a person but also strongly opposes the policies he seeks to implement. According to Ms. Sylvia, the election results indicate a troubling reality in which a sizable percentage of the population appears confused and prone to making quick decisions without a thorough knowledge of the potential consequences of these policies. Her point of view reflects a long-standing concern about misinformation and the ability of ignorant voters to influence major political outcomes.
With the resolution of my interview with Ms. Sylvia alongside her daughter Ms. Marisol, I’ve come to realize that Ms. Sylvia, a remarkable woman from the Dominican Republic, embarked on a life-altering journey when she moved to New York, United States of America. Transitioning from one country to another, she embraced the challenges of adapting to a new culture, language, and way of life. Ms. Sylvia’s devotion to her family, which is comprised of four wonderful children – three boys and one girl, shines through in every aspect of her being. Family forms the nucleus of her existence, and it is in the bustling city of New York that she has successfully built a new home filled with love, warmth, and cherished memories.
Despite facing initial hurdles, particularly the language barrier, Ms. Sylvia exhibited remarkable resilience and determination to ensure a brighter future for her loved ones. Her journey is a testament to the unwavering strength and dedication of immigrants worldwide. During the insightful interview conducted with Ms. Sylvia, graciously aided by her daughter, her endearing personality and good humor became apparent. Ms. Sylvia’s narrative resonates with countless other immigrants who have faced similar challenges and triumphs, creating a rich tapestry of human experiences that transcends borders and unites hearts. It is a privilege to have been entrusted with the task of sharing Ms. Sylvia’s inspiring story with a global audience, amplifying her voice and illuminating the beauty of diversity and resilience within immigrant communities. 
Sylvia’s Journey
===
[00:00:00] Anysa Gourdine: Um, so this is the recording for the immigrant, um, project. I am here with, um, sorry, sorry. I am here with Ms?
[00:00:16] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: Miss Sylvia Molina. That’s my mom. And I am Marisol Ortiz. I’m her daughter.
[00:00:24] Anysa Gourdine: Beautiful. Thank you so much. Um, let’s start off with, sorry, Sylvia.
Yes, sorry. Sorry, Miss Sylvia, where are you from again?
[00:00:36] Sylvia Molina: Dominican Republic.
[00:00:37] Anysa Gourdine: Okay, and how long did you live there?
[00:00:43] Sylvia Molina: Since I was 14.
[00:00:45] Anysa Gourdine: Okay, you lived there since you were 14 and so then you moved here. Um, how did you get to the States? Did you come through, um, like naturalization and try to get [00:01:00] your like papers or how did you come to America?
[00:01:04] Sylvia Molina: I came with a visa from my mom. Okay. Okay. Visa.
[00:01:08] Anysa Gourdine: Alright. And how long?
[00:01:12] Sylvia Molina: My Brothers and sisters, If you remember ? I really don’t remember, but I mean after, well, yeah, well I could say until I made, um. My, um, naturalization senior citizen, 19 82,
[00:01:28] Anysa Gourdine: oh 19 82, became a citizen.
[00:01:35] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: So she came here in July. She came in July of 19 68,
[00:01:40] Sylvia Molina: July 4th, 1968. And she, independence day , and she
[00:01:44] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: finally got her naturalizations in 1982. Right.
[00:01:49] Anysa Gourdine: Oh, wow.
[00:01:50] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: Right. It’s a long process.
[00:01:53] Anysa Gourdine: Yes, I’m sure it is. We talked about it.
[00:01:56] Sylvia Molina: Well, I mean, I’ve done it before, but you know, that’s when I, when I [00:02:00] decided to do it .
[00:02:02] Anysa Gourdine: Okay. All right then. Okay. And you said you moved here when you were 14, correct?
[00:02:13] Sylvia Molina: 14 years old, yes.
[00:02:16] Anysa Gourdine: So how would you say that coming here at 14, like, shaped your idea on how, like, how you grew up in America? Because you had a good enough foundation being in the Dominican Republic, but how would you say that being here at such a prime age of, like, teenage years living in America Okay.
And from 1968, when you first came here, how would you say like that? Like affected you per se?
[00:02:44] Sylvia Molina: I couldn’t get used to, to be honest with you. I didn’t even want to come in. They had to push me in the, in the taxi to come into the airport to get here. So I wanted to start with my, my, my end.
[00:02:56] Anysa Gourdine: Hmm. You went to stay with your [00:03:00] Aunt , um, is it because it was just like home?
It just felt familiar. This was just new all together or.
[00:03:08] Sylvia Molina: Right. Because it was home. It just didn’t feel familiar.
[00:03:11] Anysa Gourdine: Yeah, sure. That was a very big difference. Um, do you remember, like, your first experience being in America? Do you have, like, a general remembrance of your first experience being in the United States?
[00:03:26] Sylvia Molina: Well, yeah. First experience that I had was, like, when my mother sent me to the laundromat to do clothes. Well, we didn’t know the language, you know, and we didn’t know what was going on in there. And we were trying to do, to, to, um, to put the clothes in the machines, but it was the language barrier that we couldn’t understand what was going on.
And people, like, said, no, don’t take the machine. Well, I’m telling you now, because I know now, or things like that, like if they wanted to fight us, they’d say, oh, my God. So I told my mom, like I said, don’t you ever [00:04:00] send me back in there. You better buy a machine, because I’m not going in there. Oh, hold on. No, no, no, no, no, I’m not going in there.
So my father had to buy a machine. washing machine. To have in the house then, you know, the old time they used to have it like in the window, those, um, how do you call that? Clothes line.
[00:04:21] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: Laundry line
[00:04:22] Sylvia Molina: line. So then you hang out the clothes there. That’s better.
[00:04:30] Anysa Gourdine: I wouldn’t want to go back to the laundromat either.
[00:04:33] Sylvia Molina: There’s too many cats. What’s going on in here? It’s like crazy.
[00:04:42] Anysa Gourdine: No, that is crazy. Um, So with you, I’m gonna bounce around a second. Um, so when you first came from the DR, did you go straight to New York or did you live anywhere else before you went [00:05:00] to New York?
[00:05:00] Sylvia Molina: No, we went right straight, right straight to New York.
[00:05:04] Anysa Gourdine: Okay. Um, is there a reason why you feel like you should stay in New York, but you done already move from one home to another.
I might as well just stay here. Or did you have a particular reason?
[00:05:16] Sylvia Molina: No, I just got used to New York. It’s more convenient. You can take the bus, you can take the train, you can go here, you can go there. I don’t know, everything is easy in here.
[00:05:25] Anysa Gourdine: Mmm, okay.
[00:05:26] Sylvia Molina: I was maybe afraid to go someplace else and start all over again.
But it’s easier to be in New York, to me, right now.
[00:05:34] Anysa Gourdine: No, that’s fair. Okay.
And where exactly in New York do you stay, if you’re willing to answer that?
[00:05:40] Sylvia Molina: What was that again?
[00:05:43] Anysa Gourdine: Where exactly do you stay in New York, if you’re willing to answer that?
[00:05:46] Sylvia Molina: Well, when we came in, we started at 109, and we started in Columbus and Manhattan.
That’s Manhattan. Okay. Became the first time. It’s um, a building. [00:06:00] Apartment building.
[00:06:02] Anysa Gourdine: Okay.
Okay. And now I have to back up. When you talked about, you know, you first started off with a visa and then you moved towards your naturalization process. How did the process of naturalization affect you and like how you like viewed yourself as about to become an American, viewed yourself as someone who’s still Dominican in your heart?
How did that process of naturalizing to America affect you, if it affected you?
[00:06:46] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: We’re back.
[00:06:51] Anysa Gourdine: Sorry, do I need to repeat the question?
[00:06:53] Sylvia Molina: No, it’s okay. It didn’t affect me at all. I got a good story, so.
[00:06:59] Anysa Gourdine: [00:07:00] Was it just a matter of you just wanted to officially just be on the paper American and that was just like the end of it?
[00:07:08] Sylvia Molina: Yeah, I just wanted to become a citizen.
[00:07:10] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: Do you feel more American than you do Dominican?
[00:07:13] Sylvia Molina: To be honest with you, yes.
[00:07:14] Anysa Gourdine: That was my next question. Yes. Okay. Is there, so do you think it’s because you came over here at a younger age or do you think it’s just that why you feel more American than Dominican?
[00:07:29] Sylvia Molina: Well, I guess because I came at a younger age and all my life I’ve been here. So I’m already, you know, more Americanized than Dominican because I hardly went over there for nothing.
Like people comes and go every year, not me. I didn’t, I didn’t come back home until after almost 20 something years for the first time. And then 18 more years and then when my father died, it’s been 20 years already. I haven’t, I haven’t come [00:08:00] back, back again.
[00:08:02] Anysa Gourdine: So you haven’t been back to the Dominican Republic?
[00:08:05] Sylvia Molina: 20 years more. Okay.
[00:08:10] Anysa Gourdine: Okay.
Okay. Um, wow, that’s very long time. Is there a reason why you feel as though, like you didn’t wanna go back at all?
[00:08:23] Sylvia Molina: Uh, to be honest, it’s like my, my, my family, most of them are here. My brothers and sister, you know, and my kids and everything, everything. So I, it’s like I didn’t have not too many family over there, like to closest family over there, nothing.
So I feel, feel like I have to go back from nothing over there. For one of the vacation or something, but I didn’t never thought about that. You know, I was, I think my wifey, I got married. I guess I went to school here and I got married and I have my kids here. So I was, everything’s here in the United States.
[00:08:59] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: [00:09:00] Oh, that’s crazy though Anysa oh, I was born here. Right. So I was born here, but I learned Spanish first before I learned English in the household. To me, it was DR . But then when I went to school, it’s like, nope, you’re American. And yeah, I knew I was American, but I identified more with actually being Dominican more than, than, excuse me, more.
Yeah. I identified more with being Dominican than I, than I actually really am American. So I’m, I’m American. Yeah. But I identified more with that because it was my nucleus. In the household,
[00:09:43] Anysa Gourdine: that’s who you are at the, at your core. That’s who you are. You are Dominican. Whereas your mom probably feels, I’m guessing Ms. Sylvia, you feel opposite in a sense. [00:10:00] But you’re still a Dominican woman.
[00:10:02] Sylvia Molina: I’m not denying that, but it’s, it’s like I got used to here. So I’m more Americanized than Dominican. You understand what I’m saying? Because it’s a lot of my coaches that I don’t think that I, I don’t know.
Because when I was home, I would just, like, from school to home.
Or when they, you know, they took me out, when they brought me some pair of shoes or clothes, and that was it. So I was back home. Most of the time, you know, in the house.
[00:10:29] Anysa Gourdine: Mm hmm. Mm hmm.
Okay.
Sorry, this is really interesting to me.
[00:10:38] Sylvia Molina: Yeah, that’s good, that’s good.
[00:10:41] Anysa Gourdine: So if you, um, I know you said you moved here when you were 14, but do you have any prominent memories living in the Dominican Republic? I know you talked about, you know, your life kind of was just like school and home school and home, but do you have any, like,
[00:10:58] Sylvia Molina: Yeah, [00:11:00] especially like when I was younger, after dinner, we used all my friend used to go out in the front of the house.
and sing these little songs and, and go around, maybe go around and, you know, different things.
[00:11:12] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: Do you remember the song? I won’t put you on the spot.
[00:11:16] Sylvia Molina: Oh, . I remember the, but no,
[00:11:18] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: say it in, say it in Spanish.
[00:11:19] Sylvia Molina: Uh, like, um, oh my God. I remember now.
[00:11:26] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: If you don’t, it’s fine.
[00:11:27] Anysa Gourdine: It’s okay. But you do not know the song.
[00:11:41] Sylvia Molina: * sings song in spanish* I mean, you know, it’s like, it was nice. You know, I like,
[00:11:48] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: I would imagine that it was a very innocent child.
[00:11:52] Sylvia Molina: Yeah, it was very innocent.
[00:11:56] Anysa Gourdine: Do you, granted now, you were still young, but do you [00:12:00] have any regrets about leaving the Dominican Republic? Or did you feel regretful in the beginning? Or was it just a matter of on to the new?
[00:12:11] Sylvia Molina: Well, I don’t have no regret, but I’m using like my mom and dad was coming over here. Basically, my mom came for it because my daddy didn’t want to come, but my mom first, my daddy to come in because my father used to work in, um, fixing, um, um, uh, typewriters and then his job from time to time, they send them at like outsides of the, of the, of the city or the country to do like maybe courses and stuff like that to fix machine.
They’re like new machines and stuff like that. So when they sent him here, my mom was already here. Family comes and go. So my mom was forcing him to come, come, come. And plus the people where he went to fix the type of writers, [00:13:00] they got in love with him. So they wanted him to stay automatically. I said, no, no, I can’t stay.
But then, you know, after a while, then they even did the paper for them, the visa, uh, for working stuff, they pay everything for him. So he came. That’s when we, My mom got him to get everybody here in the United States. So that’s where he came because I said that, but my father didn’t want me to really come here.
It was with my mother and she finally got what she wanted.
[00:13:34] Anysa Gourdine: Hey, go mom.
Okay.
[00:13:41] Sylvia Molina: So it was good. He had a good job and you know, a home house and everything, you know, We didn’t have no problem with that food or shelter or anything like that, you know, clothing because he was a working man and he had a good job. And my mother didn’t work. My mother didn’t work. [00:14:00] Sometimes, sometimes she used to go like to Uracau.
Uracau is like another um, Caribbean country.
[00:14:07] Anysa Gourdine: Okay.
[00:14:08] Sylvia Molina: In Puerto Rico. And she used to come and she used to like go over there and buy clothes. Like clothes and stuff and take it back home and sell it.
[00:14:16] Anysa Gourdine: Mm. Like that?
[00:14:19] Sylvia Molina: Yeah.
[00:14:19] Anysa Gourdine: Okay. That’s how she made her money. Okay.
[00:14:22] Sylvia Molina: Yeah.
But it was kind of hard, like she said. But you know, when you, when you buy stuff, like she would say, like they, I say , like you lend it, you give it to people and then they pay, they, they gonna give you, pay you later. Oh. Like that. Oh, like credit. Yeah. Credit. That’s what, that’s what I mean. Credit. And then there’s a lot of people that she have to like be hunting.
To pay and most of the people sometimes they don’t pay. So she decided not to do that anymore. That’s when she decided to come back here to the United States.
[00:14:54] Anysa Gourdine: Yeah, that becomes unreliable.
[00:14:56] Sylvia Molina: Yeah, because people they just want to sleep for free.
[00:14:59] Anysa Gourdine: [00:15:00] Okay, and
I heard you say earlier how you built a family here. I’m going off a tangent from the questions. I’m sorry. You said that you built a family here, um, and you got married. What was your husband? What is your husband’s name?
[00:15:22] Sylvia Molina: Uh, Miguel. Well, it was. We divorced.
[00:15:27] Anysa Gourdine: Okay.
Okay, Miguel. And you got divorced. And then, how many children do you have?
With him? Three. Okay. How many children do you have in total then? Five. Okay. And there are a range of girls and boys?
[00:15:48] Sylvia Molina: Well, there’s only one girl that’s Marisol, she’s the queen,
she’s the queen, uh, and a boy of um, he’s the second one, uh, [00:16:00] can I tell you their age?
[00:16:01] Anysa Gourdine: Oh yeah, you their age.
[00:16:03] Sylvia Molina: 47, Mike was 47, Marisol is 48, uh uh,
[00:16:07] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: Marisol is, is fine, marisol is 25,
[00:16:12] Sylvia Molina: okay, no problem, he’s 47, the third one is 42.
[00:16:17] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: Okay.
[00:16:17] Sylvia Molina: And the twins at 34. So the last two is twins.
[00:16:21] Anysa Gourdine: Oh, okay.
[00:16:22] Sylvia Molina: Wow. Yeah.
[00:16:26] Anysa Gourdine: You made it out, Miss Marisol
[00:16:27] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: I did.
[00:16:30] Anysa Gourdine: Okay. So when you came to America, I know you said the struggle of that one incident at the laundromat and how you didn’t like it, but did you face any other troubles while you first came to the States or do you still experience any type of trouble such as like.
With family growing up, probably not family because you said a majority of your family lives here, but was there like a language barrier that you didn’t like? Or just the lack of [00:17:00] people like you in your, um, in New York that you didn’t like? Did you face any type of struggles? Let me ask you.
[00:17:06] Sylvia Molina: You know, it’s the barrier, the language barrier, you know.
That is stupid to be saying. Then after a while, Like when it’s in um, junior high school, they have the program, I don’t know if they have it now, Bilingual ESL,
[00:17:20] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: yeah, ESL
[00:17:21] Anysa Gourdine: Oh, okay,
[00:17:22] Sylvia Molina: they have the teacher, my, my, my official teacher, she, she used to teach us that, yeah, Spanish and English at the same time, so, you know, she’s translating and learning like that.
They had that, I guess so.
[00:17:37] Anysa Gourdine: Okay. Do you think that, like, helped you learn your English better, or was it like, no, that was just because the school made me do it, I learned English on my own way?
[00:17:47] Sylvia Molina: No, it helped. It helps a lot.
[00:17:49] Anysa Gourdine: Oh, okay, good. Because I know some people said they learned it through, like, TV shows, and music that’s what I was asking.
[00:17:55] Sylvia Molina: Nah. And you want me to tell you something about how I learned it more? [00:18:00] Because I was afraid to speak it. I understood everything they say. Okay. But I was afraid like, like now have a conversation like I’m doing that now where my second son was born, but he was born with problems. So I had to do that on my own, like with the hospital and with people to help.
That’s when I really have more speak more English because I had to do things on my own. And, you know, it’s probably, yeah. So I had to do everything on myself. So that will be more to speak more the language.
Oh, okay. A full conversation. You understand what I’m saying?
[00:18:46] Anysa Gourdine: Yes. Yes, I do. I totally get what you’re saying.
Wow. That’s something you wouldn’t think that would be like a stepping stone that you have to go through until it happens. Oh, wow. Okay. [00:19:00] Hmm. Well, I’m glad that that was your biggest struggle, was the language, if that had to be a problem you had to face. Then what experience made it more comfortable or enjoyable to be in New York, to be in America?
What memories do you have that like makes it more welcoming in where you’re at? I guess that’s what I’m trying to ask. Maybe I should re ask it.
[00:19:31] Sylvia Molina: Yeah.
[00:19:32] Anysa Gourdine: Okay. So basically I’m trying to ask
what experiences that you have lived in America made America more welcoming? Comfortable or more felt like home in a sense is what I’m trying to get at.
[00:19:51] Sylvia Molina: Uh, I don’t know. What did you say? I don’t know. I feel more comfortable now.
[00:19:59] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: Well, you’re [00:20:00] assimilated. I see more assimilated now.
[00:20:02] Sylvia Molina: Yeah.
[00:20:02] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: Cause you left when you were 14.
Yeah. So
[00:20:04] Sylvia Molina: I, uh, it’s more, so you want to experience it while I like, I could manage more of my life, more better in a way, you know, and get a little more. Well, you went to school here. Yeah. I went to school here. Yeah. Right. Right. That’s it.
[00:20:24] Anysa Gourdine: Do you think because of, um,
do you think because you assimilated so quickly, it made your transition to being like an American within yourself easier? Because you assimilated so quickly, because you knew like you were going to be here for a long time, it just made the transition of everything just seem easier and more comfortable because you knew you had to become comfortable with it?
[00:20:55] Sylvia Molina: Yes.[00:21:00]
[00:21:09] Anysa Gourdine: Sorry, I’m looking at my questions.
Do you have one, like, one main thing that makes you love America, or makes you love America more than D. R., or makes you love more D. R. than America? Which one do you think, like, has, like, its leg up with you because of this one thing?
[00:21:32] Sylvia Molina: I love New York.
[00:21:35] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: Do you love America more, or do you love D. R. more?
[00:21:39] Sylvia Molina: I love America more, right now.
[00:21:41] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: Why do you love America more?
[00:21:45] Sylvia Molina: Why? Over here, everything is like, in order, like, it’s more like, I need to say, um, wherever you go, except if I go to the bank, you have [00:22:00] to make a line for everything and things like that. But like back home, it’s like, they don’t have no,
[00:22:06] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: they uncouth girl,
[00:22:08] Sylvia Molina: you know? They don’t have like, they think like, it’s island time.
I, I, yeah, like. They think they’re back home when they’re here. It’s a lot of, I deal with that a lot. I have to tell them, you think you’re back home. As soon as you come in, they’re going to take care of you. No, that’s not the way it works. You have to make time in your line. This is a line for everything.
So it’s more organized in a way. That’s what I’m trying to say. You know? Back home is not that. You know?
[00:22:41] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: Yeah. In Dr. And Dr is very, um, depending, depending on where you are, that’s true in Dr. Your social status and your economic status of where you are in dr, it’s very, um,
me, [00:23:00] me, me, dog eat dog. Like, Hmm. I don’t care if there’s a line I’m gonna get to do what I need, what I need to do, regardless if there are 50 people online, I got, I gotta get what I. You know, get first. So I
[00:23:11] Sylvia Molina: mean, that whole type of right, right. Sometimes you just like, I don’t want to be rude or anything like that.
But sometimes you have to be rude with people sometimes, you know, because I don’t understand that. I’m going to be one one explanation, like when my father died, we had to do some session in the bank and it was for us, for my mom. So when we get there, we put the names in the book to see the the person in charge, because we had to go inside and see the man.
OK. We were waiting there for an hour to see the sky because he has somebody inside the office. So we had to wait until he finished. We didn’t have a choice to wait. I mean, that’s the way it is. You gotta wait your turn. So he’s come this lady because she knows him. He’s come and said, Oh, so, so, [00:24:00] so they said, yeah, he’s with a patient with a, with a client right now.
Oh, wait, as soon as that client come in, I’m going to come in and I got up and I said, I saw the lady. Lemme tell you something. That’s why the book is there. I told, I told I was the only one got up and I telling the girl, listen, we are going next. I said, yes, said no because she said, she go, oh no, I wanna go.
I said, we’ll see , we’ll see who gonna go. Me and my brother and my mother gonna go out first. Mm-Hmm, . I said, no, you’re not, you’re not going in. We are going in the, the said, what’s going? I said, I told her what’s going on. We’ll be here waiting, and this lady come in and said that she’s gonna see you. Before we see, before we get in and after that, that’s not the case.
That’s not going to happen. That’s not going to happen. So if you used to do that,
[00:24:59] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: so that’s a [00:25:00] very new, so look at the dichotomy. So she goes back. Unfortunately, my grandfather, you know, takes care of situations over there.
[00:25:05] Sylvia Molina: Right.
[00:25:13] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: But that’s a very New York rich way have not happened.
[00:25:15] Sylvia Molina: Right.
[00:25:16] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: So, and I do the same thing here too.
[00:25:18] Sylvia Molina: I don’t care.
[00:25:18] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: Yeah, she does.
[00:25:23] Sylvia Molina: I do. I, I, so matter of fact, you don’t want to, I did it here too. Same thing back up, um, Washington High, 181st and Chase Bank because they have all Dominicans in there. They think they’re back home and then they’re going to treat the same thing back home. I said, no, this is not a world war. You are in America.
So you’re going to have to follow the rules. And then he said, oh, I just wanna ask a question. I don’t care if it’s a question. You go back to the end of the line. Oh, I don’t care. Island folks are be real, real. Um, you go back to the end of us,
[00:25:56] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: we can be,
[00:25:57] Sylvia Molina: I mean, you know, come on. Yeah. If I [00:26:00] had to wait, you gotta wait too.
I don’t care. Maybe making a, a question. I made my line just to make a question. Why should I, you know, let you go because you wanna ask a question. I said I don’t care. I’m in a hurry too and I’m in the line.
[00:26:13] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: Alright, let’s move on.
[00:26:17] Anysa Gourdine: There’s a certain level of entitlement that some people from back at home feel as though like they could just do whatever they want and then like they’re the third person but it’s like, Hey, we’re all supposed to do this.
[00:26:30] Sylvia Molina: They think they’re back home. They used to do that. They used to do it. They still do it back home. They think they’re here. They’re going to do the same thing. I said, I don’t think so.
[00:26:40] Anysa Gourdine: Yeah, no.
[00:26:44] Sylvia Molina: That’s
totally fair.
[00:26:46] Anysa Gourdine: Yeah, no.
[00:26:46] Sylvia Molina: Yeah.
You guys
[00:26:50] Sylvia Molina: are impossible. Yeah, wow.
[00:26:59] Anysa Gourdine: We’re [00:27:00] back. Yes, we are.
[00:27:03] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: Yes, we are.
[00:27:07] Anysa Gourdine: Okay, that was a good story.
Wow. Well, this is probably one of my last few questions unless I think of something else. But, um, you know, with this past couple months or past couple weeks really with the election. Uh huh. New president elect is going to be president Donald Trump. And I don’t know if you know, but you probably do about his like immigration policies and with all of that, do you have any, like, you can share your opinion.
Um, what do you think on the matter of especially where he aligns himself with his immigration policies? [00:28:00] Have you ever pondered or thought about it? Thought about it.
[00:28:06] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: What do you think about his immigration policies?
[00:28:08] Anysa Gourdine: Yeah, his immigration policies.
[00:28:12] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: Oh my
[00:28:12] Anysa Gourdine: God. Do I have to say it?
[00:28:14] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: Yeah, be honest. Be kind. Be tactful.
[00:28:18] Sylvia Molina: To be honest, he’s racist.
[00:28:20] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: Well, there it is.
[00:28:22] Sylvia Molina: Okay, that’s it. There it is. He’s very racist. That’s it. And he don’t think about that his mom and his wife is from another country, too. So he should send them back, too. I tell you, if they ask me, I tell them, Excuse me, I will tell you, your wife and your parents, they’re from there, so send them back, too.
Because you’re being racist. They’re from another country.
[00:28:47] Anysa Gourdine: And what do you think about, you know, people from other countries who have possibly voted for Trump thinking that they’re safe or that they’re not going to be any way affected. [00:29:00] What do you think about those people who are also immigrants?
[00:29:04] Sylvia Molina: They are going to be affected.
You know why? Cause they don’t know what’s coming. He’s going to give them a surprise and then they’re going to be crying. And I said, well, you bought it for Trump, right? You wanted Trump. Here you go. Now eat him up.
[00:29:21] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: They’re they’re definitely. So in my opinion,
[00:29:24] Sylvia Molina: they’re going to be like, uh, yeah, you want to Trump?
You got Trump? Now sure. I think
[00:29:30] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: they’re, I think they’re very, they’re, they’re just, they’re, they’re misinformed.
[00:29:35] Sylvia Molina: Yeah.
[00:29:35] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: I think they’re misinformed form.
[00:29:37] Sylvia Molina: They’re thinking that Trump’s going to do for them. They’re not going to do nothing for the poor. He’s going to do it for the richest, to get more richest in the poor, to get more poor.
That’s exactly what’s going to happen.
[00:29:51] Anysa Gourdine: Yeah. But yeah, do you worry at all about his [00:30:00] immigration policy? Or do you think because of, you know, you’re fully naturalized, naturalized, sorry, that you’re fully naturalized? No. That’s why that you’re secure and I’m not trying to like question you or trying to like,
[00:30:16] Sylvia Molina: no, no, I understand what you’re saying
to me.
I’m, yeah, to me, I’m secure, you know?
Yeah. I don’t, because in some way he got, um, let’s say those immigrants coming in now, there’s some good and there’s some bad. You see, that’s the problem that we have in right now. Like things that he’s going to do, it might be. Good in something way, but then he, he, um, qualifying everybody the same.
He’s not gonna take a chance to see, oh no, you good, you’re this, you’re that. No, he [00:31:00] going to, uh, he’s not gonna discriminate no one, he’s just going to take everybody deport everybody. Doesn’t matter if it’s good or bad. Understand, because the problem is for one, good one and by 10, that’s bad. The, the, the good ones are paying for those.
You understand what I’m saying? So that’s the only part that I feel sorry in a way, you know, because some people that come to work and do good for themselves and for their family, they’re going to pay for the other people that are doing the bad stuff in New York. Because since the day starting, it’s a lot of crime over here in New York.
A lot of things going on in New York. It wasn’t happening so much like that, you know.
So sometimes I say, in a way, you got a point, but sometimes, you know, The other, the other people are paying for something that they, you know, they’re not committed.
[00:31:59] Anysa Gourdine: And at [00:32:00] the day, these are all still people that he’s just trying to, that he’s thinking about just mass deporting.
And it’s just like, these are people who made lives here.
[00:32:10] Sylvia Molina: Yeah, like today we’re watching the news, they’ve been putting babies, two years old, sending them by themselves with a coyote. I said, this is ridiculous. It’s bad.
[00:32:22] Anysa Gourdine: That’s terrifying.
[00:32:23] Sylvia Molina: It’s terrible. It’s terrifying. Young kids. So who
[00:32:26] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: pays, who, who, who fits the bill for that?
The American, America does.
[00:32:31] Sylvia Molina: Exactly. You know, but you know what? In a way, sometimes it is what it is, but he’s right in certain times. What’s going on? Because in a way, people who are already here for many years, I’m going to pay, we’re going to pay for that because we’re not getting what we’re supposed to be getting.
Right. You know, like the social, he’s going to cut this. So they’re cutting from everywhere. They’re cutting just to, uh,
[00:32:58] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: that has nothing to do with the [00:33:00] immigration issue. Actually,
[00:33:01] Sylvia Molina: sometimes they do
[00:33:02] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: know that actually has nothing to do with the immigration issue
documented and undocumented immigrants that are here legally to work and have a 10 number. Actually pay into the social security system that we are supposed to tap into that they are not going to tap into.
[00:33:25] Sylvia Molina: Well, I don’t know. That’s not what I heard.
[00:33:28] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: No, they’re not naturalized. They’re, they’re, they’re just paying with a 10 number.
They don’t have a social security number. The 10 number allows them to work.
[00:33:36] Sylvia Molina: No, no, I’m talking about the people who’s coming in now. They were giving this, they were giving shelter, they were giving that. No, that’s
[00:33:43] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: different. That’s what I’m trying to say. That’s
[00:33:45] Sylvia Molina: different. That’s different. They were giving money for shelter, they were giving a courier car, a lot of money.
[00:33:53] Marisol Cardona-Ortiz: That’s different. That was actually the Department of Homeland Security that actually had that, and [00:34:00] this is the part where people are not informed about what true policies really are. That was actually the Department of Homeland Security that did all of that. And some of it, some of those funds came through the Department of Homeland Security and the United Nations and things of that nature.
I think, you know, that those certain, some of those entities actually have an arm to actually regulate those things without actually asking Congress or Senate to do that. People don’t know that because they’re not informed. So when you’re not informed and you don’t know what the black and white is. Then they make decisions based on emotion and what’s happening in their circle.
So here we are.
[00:34:55] Anysa Gourdine: [00:35:00] Yeah. We’re going to see how these next four years are going to go, but no, I think that is all I have. that I need to get from both of y’all. I’d like to say thank you so much.
[00:35:29] Sylvia Molina: and I’d like to help
you and I hope you pass with a hundred
[00:35:33] Anysa Gourdine: and plus. Thank you so much. Um, this will be the end of the recording.
Recent Comments