LA LUCHA is dedicated to NJ domestic workers whose labor rights movement paved the way for the New Jersey Domestic Workers Bill of Rights. Moved by their stories of camaraderie and unwavering faith, we weaved moments from their speeches at the Rutgers Law school convening to amplify their stories.
Recalling employer abuse, unpaid labor, and layers of discrimination, their shared experiences sparked a movement that changed NJ law. In a room with a majority of migrant women, we recognized the importance of highlighting their recorded voices, weaving speech and song into a collective chorus where our voices rise together. La Lucha, The Fight, speaks to the strife of immigrant and un-documented workers facing oppressive systems of power that benefit from their undervalued labor and a struggle that echoes throughout the history of marginalized communities in the United States.
‘La Lucha’
Nace en el suelo la voz del pueblo,
Cadenas caen, se rompe el miedo,
Born in depths is The voice of the people
Chains have fallen, fear is broken
Llevamos siglos
de resistencia,
de voz silenciada,
de dura ausencia.
We have been for centuries
Of resistance,
Of voices that were silenced
Of difficult absence
Pero en el pecho
guardamos fuerza,
cada victoria se siembra en la conciencia.
But in our chests
We keep strength,
Every victory
Is sown into our consciousness.
No nos detienen, no nos dividen,
la historia arde, la historia vive.
Con nuestras manos, con nuestra herida,
la lucha llama, la lucha es la Vida
They don’t stop us, they don’t divide us,
History burns, history lives.
With our own bare hands,
with our wounds
The fight calls, The fight is the life
Desde El Salvador hasta acá ! Lucha!
Desde Borikén hasta acá ! Lucha!
Desde Palestina hasta acá ! Lucha!
Desde México hasta acá ! Lucha!
Hasta en tu propia tierra lucha
From El Salvador to here! Lucha!
From Borikén to here! Lucha!
From Palestine to here! lucha !
From Mexico to here! Lucha!
Even in your own land Lucha!
