“American” On Paper Only Bianchy's Thoughts and Realities About Living in NYC

There is no doubt that immigrants play a vital role in life in the United States, each with their own stories and frames of reference. Within the millions of immigrants in this country, there is my mother, Bianchy, from the Dominican Republic. The first large presence of migration from the Dominican Republic to the United States began in the 1960s after Dominican dictator Rafael Trujillo was assassinated and the country’s political and economic climate was unsteady. In the very early stages of Dominican immigration, in 1960, there were only roughly 12,000 Dominicans in the United States. However, that number continued to increase: it reached 350,000 in 1990 and 802,000 twenty years later. By 2012, there were roughly 960,000 immigrants from the Dominican Republic in the United States. Since 1990, the number of Dominican immigrants in the United States has increased so drastically that its presence is larger than any other immigrant group from the Caribbean, excluding Cuba.

My mother, of course, was one of these hundreds of thousands of immigrants. Bianchy came to the United States when she was 27 years old on February 26, 1991 [Ironically, the day before Dominican Independence Day]. She arrived on America soil with her husband, Rafael, who was a naturalized United States citizen, and their two year old daughter, Biara.  

When asked what was one thing that made this transition easier for her, Bianchy quickly gave credit to the support of her family. “I was not the first one in my family to move to the United States. Some of my aunts, a few cousins, and the sister of my grandmother all left. I guess my family was just used to it by the time I decided.”

Bianchy with her parents in the Dominican Republic

With more and more immigrants from the Dominican Republic entering the United States, it is much easier to notice certain patterns and trends within this immigrant group. For example, in terms of legality, the vast majority of Dominican immigrants acquire legal residency in the United States. Most citizens of the Dominican Republic are given “green cards” through family unification, and scarcely any are given through their employment. In other words, most residencies for Dominican immigrants were given to spouses, children, or parents of American citizens. This perfectly describes Bianchy’s experience in a nutshell.

Rafael had already become a naturalized citizen by the time that he and Bianchy met. After about a year of being married, they mutually decided to return to the United States.

“Less than a year after we made the decision, I was already on the plane on my way to New York! To my surprise, all the paperwork was relatively painless. I was expecting rocket science”

In 2012, of the roughly 960,000 foreign born Dominican immigrants living in the United States, about 50% of them were naturalized US citizens. Bianchy became a naturalized United States citizen in 2014. Since she did not know nearly enough English, Bianchy had to wait until she was 50 years old, and lived in America for at least 15 years, because that was the minimum requirement for allowing someone to take the exam in Spanish. After passing the exam, Bianchy felt very “proud, happy, and calm.”

“I was very excited to be given the right to vote. Without that, I felt very passive; as if, I just had to accept whatever other people chose. But now that I was a citizen, I felt active.”     

She explained that, even though she still considered herself to be Dominican, she loved feeling like she was helping the country that helped her. She said that being able to vote meant contributing to the society; “it felt like I was giving the United States some sort of thank you.” 

Certain patterns also exist in terms of language and education.  When compared to the entire immigrant population, immigrants from the Dominican Republic are generally more likely to live with limited knowledge of English and become citizens of the United States. On the other hand, they are less likely to have obtained a college degree.  

Coming to the United States, and attempting to learn a new language completely different from one’s own, can be a difficult task for anyone, especially for the Dominican immigrants. In 2012, roughly 65% of all immigrants of the Dominican Republic had limited English proficiency. This percentage, compared to the 50% of the total immigrant population, shows a large disparity.

Even though Bianchy can understand some words and sentences, she is not English proficient. “I remember I bought this book meant to teach Spanish-speakers English. But, I never really put my mind to it; I was getting older, and I had take care of Biara and my work. I’m not even sure if I still have that book.” When asked if she regretted that decision, she said:  “Well… Of course it would have made things easier for me and I would not have to depend so much on you and your sister. But, either way, my entire life is in Spanish. My home, my friends, even my job: everything is in Spanish. I have done pretty well for myself without being a perfect English speaker ”    

Another drastic gap is seen in levels of education. Only roughly 14% of Dominican immigrants in the United States had a bachelor’s degree or higher, compared to the 28% of the total immigrant population. Many immigrants from the Dominican Republic also do not have a high school diploma: 38% to be exact.

My mother only completed one year of college in 1982 at La Universidad Iberoamericana in Santo Domingo. She described not obtaining a higher education as “common” in that day and age. That is one of her biggest regrets because she knows that she would have been able to do it.  Although foreign born Dominican immigrants might not have shown a strong presence in universities, they do show their drive through the workplace. While roughly 67% of Dominican immigrants participate in the workforce, about 35% of those Dominican workers [above 16] work in the service industries.

“My life in the Dominican Republic was never terrible, so I never felt the need to imagine an ideal world here. I never really had the idea that I was going to make it big in America. I was working in the Dominican Republic and I knew that I had to work in New York. I was being realistic”  

Bianchy is someone that has worked since the second she arrived. “Any job that I could get, I tried to get it.”  Bianchy has worked in various occupations throughout the 26 years that she has lived in New York. She has worked in multiple factories, especially one that specialized in plastic, and discount stores. Bianchy also worked in child care for those families that needed Public Assistance. Currently, she works as a home health aid in Inwood.      

The majority Dominican immigrants tend to prefer to reside in New York, New Jersey, and Florida. So much so that, between 2008 and 2012, 75% of the total Dominican immigrants lived in these three states. When Bianchy first arrived, she lived in Glenmore, Queens with Rafael and their daughter. After she and her husband got a divorce, Bianchy moved in with her aunt in Inwood. After this point, Inwood became a permanent home to Bianchy. Although she did move apartments, she always remained in Inwood.

First Inwood Home!

“Unless I, or someone in the family, wins the lottery, I know for a fact that I am not leaving this neighborhood.”  In Manhattan, the largest Dominican concentration can be found in two neighborhoods: Washington Heights and Inwood. It is truly ‘the center for Dominican culture.’ Bianchy really enjoys living in Inwood. “Almost everyone is Dominican in Inwood, just like in the Dominican Republic. 

“Everyone knows the same slang and the same inside jokes; it makes the neighborhood more enjoyable. When we are inside our apartment, we hear the same music being played in the streets that I play in our home. That we play in the Dominican Republic.  ”

Here’s just a few of the songs she could recall from the top of her head:

Bianchy dancing in DR, just as she does in New York

The gentrification of Inwood is something that anyone that resides in the neighborhood has noticed. “Right after I began to realize what was happening, I felt concerned. Prices for everything are going to rise and what is cheap to them is not cheap to us”. As of now, Bianchy knows that there is nothing she can do to prevent gentrification; she just hopes for the best.       

My mother is very grateful to have been able to immigrant from her home country to the United States relatively easily. However, there is no doubt in her mind, that she is [and will always be] a Dominican.  Her heart will always be in the Dominican Republic and she wishes the country all the best. Not only does she actively keep herself updated in the current events of the Dominican Republic, she also willingly goes out and does her part to help when it is needed.

“I know some people that come to New York, and want to pretend like they are all high and mighty. As if there were never Dominican to begin with. People like that are so ridiculous.”

In the Dominican Republic, there is excessive political corruption where those in power would rather use the money for themselves, instead of giving it away to its own citizens. Just two months ago, there was a large march, in both the Dominican Republic and states across the United States, to help spread the awareness of the corruption and show those in power that they do not agree with their actions. Bianchy was one of these marchers! This just goes to show how devoted Bianchy is to the Dominican Republic. No matter where she is in the world, she will always be ready to fight for the country’s best interest and show her support.  

Here is a Youtube video that depicts the loyalty that the Dominicans living in the United States have toward their home country. This particular video was taken in Upper Manhattan.