EASTSIDE PRIDE
By Yosimar Reyes
We arrived on the Eastside in August 1991
Wide-eyed with open arms
We thank the heavens
And asked the universe for what would be our new home
On Story and Capitol
We laid a foundation
A street row of apartment buildings
Low income with so much heart
A juxtaposition
To a city built on wealth and technology
We were the cucarachas
Loitering in front of home depot parking lots
Selling tamales on street corners
The dark working-class immigrants
That rarely get represented when we talk about the greatness of this city
This is our home
We worked multiple jobs.
Across VTA bus lines
We stared out of windows
Knowing that today's sacrifices would pay for tomorrow
In 94, we marched against prop 187
Letting political officials know
That our brown bodies are not criminal
That our children deserve to grow proud
At the flea market
We sold trickles
Took what others considered trashed
And built a community
Con pico y pala
We made art
From what millionaires considered trash
This is what the eastside is now
All color and sound
Loud
An obstruction
Like lowriders cruising down Santa Clara
It's been more than 30 years
And yet we are still here
Despite the high rents and low wages
We are fighting to stay in the home we built
Now, it's trendy to say,
"We are a city made of immigrants."
But what we need is structures
That protect those who are the most vulnerable
What the eastside needs
Is a commitment
It’s people
The monolingual immigrant speakers
A sanctuary for the immigrants
Who have given their bodies to raise these tall buildings
What the eastside needs is a commitment to its inhabitants that will not forcibly be removed to
The outskirts of the cultura we brought
What good is a city when you gentrify its heart?
And to us,
I say
Let’s step into our light
Kiss our skin
Look at these talls builds and say,
“We helped built this”
There would be no city without me
Without us, standing proudly in our brownness
