1 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:03,480 Speaker 1: It was a sweltering summer evening in Washington, d C. 2 00:00:04,400 --> 00:00:08,719 Speaker 1: May of two thousand and seven, and Hermannia, a domestic worker, 3 00:00:08,880 --> 00:00:13,440 Speaker 1: was getting dinner ready for her employer, Veronica, an Ecuadorian diplomat, 4 00:00:14,040 --> 00:00:16,040 Speaker 1: and then there was a knock at the door. 5 00:00:17,720 --> 00:00:20,280 Speaker 2: Cort went to yesabay, Yes. 6 00:00:27,320 --> 00:00:30,920 Speaker 1: Hermania knew who was on the other side, but she 7 00:00:31,120 --> 00:00:34,440 Speaker 1: tried to keep a poker face. Earlier in the day, 8 00:00:34,840 --> 00:00:37,760 Speaker 1: she had stuffed the few items which she had arrived 9 00:00:37,800 --> 00:00:41,479 Speaker 1: with in the US into black trash bags and placed 10 00:00:41,479 --> 00:00:43,880 Speaker 1: them near a dumpster outside the house. 11 00:00:44,320 --> 00:00:50,280 Speaker 3: Hey Yasin, says, welles poso inser Montolio. 12 00:00:51,800 --> 00:00:52,280 Speaker 2: La Banco. 13 00:00:52,720 --> 00:00:55,440 Speaker 1: When the man who'd been knocking walked in the house, 14 00:00:55,880 --> 00:00:59,360 Speaker 1: he told Hermania to leave now, grab her bags and 15 00:00:59,440 --> 00:01:02,920 Speaker 1: get in the white man he'd parked outside. Sitting in 16 00:01:02,960 --> 00:01:06,920 Speaker 1: the van, Himania says she was nervous, She was happy, 17 00:01:07,240 --> 00:01:11,800 Speaker 1: but mostly scared. She had no money, she didn't speak English, 18 00:01:12,040 --> 00:01:15,120 Speaker 1: and she didn't really even know where she was going. 19 00:01:16,040 --> 00:01:25,840 Speaker 1: But she was free from futuro media and PRX. It's 20 00:01:25,920 --> 00:01:30,280 Speaker 1: Latino Usa. I'm Maria nor Rosa today. The dark side 21 00:01:30,480 --> 00:01:40,679 Speaker 1: of little known visas for diplomatic domestic workers Washington, d C. 22 00:01:41,240 --> 00:01:44,800 Speaker 1: Is one of the world capitals of diplomacy. While less 23 00:01:44,800 --> 00:01:47,560 Speaker 1: than a million people live in the city, it's home 24 00:01:47,600 --> 00:01:50,480 Speaker 1: to diplomatic missions for more than one hundred and seventy 25 00:01:50,480 --> 00:01:55,800 Speaker 1: five countries, meaning that there are thousands of ambassadors, councils, diplomats, 26 00:01:55,840 --> 00:02:01,000 Speaker 1: and other international organization officials who live there. But there's 27 00:02:01,080 --> 00:02:05,600 Speaker 1: a hidden world inside their homes. It's the world of 28 00:02:05,680 --> 00:02:11,560 Speaker 1: their staff, drivers, translators, and domestic workers, most of whom 29 00:02:11,680 --> 00:02:14,639 Speaker 1: are women who were brought to the United States via 30 00:02:14,720 --> 00:02:19,120 Speaker 1: a special temporary visa created just for the staff of 31 00:02:19,200 --> 00:02:25,639 Speaker 1: diplomatic representatives. But once in the US, these workers are 32 00:02:25,680 --> 00:02:30,040 Speaker 1: isolated and live in an international gray area, making them 33 00:02:30,160 --> 00:02:36,079 Speaker 1: extremely susceptible to abuse and exploitation by their employers. This 34 00:02:36,240 --> 00:02:39,840 Speaker 1: is what Neu Throupcow learned after years of interviewing immigrant, 35 00:02:39,919 --> 00:02:44,079 Speaker 1: diplomatic domestic workers in Washington, d C. She's an independent 36 00:02:44,120 --> 00:02:49,800 Speaker 1: journalist who specializes in human and labor trafficking. Neid details 37 00:02:49,840 --> 00:02:53,960 Speaker 1: their stories in an upcoming investigative piece for the Washington 38 00:02:54,000 --> 00:02:58,280 Speaker 1: Post magazine in collaboration with Latino USA Today, we bring 39 00:02:58,320 --> 00:03:02,040 Speaker 1: you the story of one of those women, Hremania, an 40 00:03:02,080 --> 00:03:05,119 Speaker 1: Ecuadorian domestic worker who we heard from at the top 41 00:03:05,160 --> 00:03:10,240 Speaker 1: of the show. Latino USA producer Julieta Martinelli has worked 42 00:03:10,240 --> 00:03:14,640 Speaker 1: with Noi in reporting Hinmania's story. They together pick up 43 00:03:14,680 --> 00:03:15,640 Speaker 1: this story from here. 44 00:03:19,240 --> 00:03:21,279 Speaker 4: NOI, welcome to Latino USA. 45 00:03:21,440 --> 00:03:23,600 Speaker 5: Thank you so much for leet. I'm excited to be here. 46 00:03:23,600 --> 00:03:25,600 Speaker 5: Thank you for having me so. 47 00:03:25,840 --> 00:03:29,080 Speaker 4: Noi, You've spent a lot of time covering cases of 48 00:03:29,120 --> 00:03:33,200 Speaker 4: human trafficking and labor exploitation all over the world, but 49 00:03:33,320 --> 00:03:35,960 Speaker 4: for your latest work you were much closer to home. 50 00:03:36,440 --> 00:03:39,360 Speaker 4: Can you tell us about these special visas for diplomatic 51 00:03:39,440 --> 00:03:42,040 Speaker 4: workers in the US and why you say that they 52 00:03:42,080 --> 00:03:45,040 Speaker 4: make domestic workers particularly vulnerable. 53 00:03:45,720 --> 00:03:49,880 Speaker 5: The special visa program is actually administered by our own 54 00:03:49,960 --> 00:03:53,720 Speaker 5: State Department here in this country, and it allows diplomats 55 00:03:53,800 --> 00:03:58,440 Speaker 5: and employees of international organizations like the World Bank or 56 00:03:58,480 --> 00:04:02,080 Speaker 5: the International Monetary Fund and to bring in domestic workers 57 00:04:02,080 --> 00:04:05,600 Speaker 5: to work for them here in this country. So there 58 00:04:05,600 --> 00:04:09,160 Speaker 5: are two kinds. One is the A three visa, and 59 00:04:09,240 --> 00:04:14,160 Speaker 5: that is for diplomats in missions and counsular officials to 60 00:04:14,200 --> 00:04:17,880 Speaker 5: bring in domestic workers. The other is G five and 61 00:04:17,960 --> 00:04:22,800 Speaker 5: that is for international organization staff to bring in domestic workers. 62 00:04:23,200 --> 00:04:26,000 Speaker 5: I think The argument was in the past, we're coming 63 00:04:26,000 --> 00:04:29,479 Speaker 5: from another country, and we want to have someone who 64 00:04:29,560 --> 00:04:32,000 Speaker 5: was working with us, who speaks our language, who makes 65 00:04:32,040 --> 00:04:34,800 Speaker 5: our food, who can talk to our children in our 66 00:04:34,920 --> 00:04:38,080 Speaker 5: native language as we are here in a foreign country. 67 00:04:38,120 --> 00:04:41,279 Speaker 5: So it was kind of designed around the cultural comfort 68 00:04:41,680 --> 00:04:45,840 Speaker 5: of the employers. It is a kind of complicated system 69 00:04:45,920 --> 00:04:50,800 Speaker 5: because these workers are coming, oftentimes from impoverished countries, and 70 00:04:50,839 --> 00:04:53,719 Speaker 5: they're working for people with a great deal more status 71 00:04:53,760 --> 00:04:57,000 Speaker 5: than them, So there's a power differential already in terms 72 00:04:57,000 --> 00:05:01,280 Speaker 5: of their economic status. In terms of legal structure of 73 00:05:01,320 --> 00:05:05,200 Speaker 5: this visa, it basically ties their ability to be in 74 00:05:05,279 --> 00:05:08,919 Speaker 5: this country and to work legally to one singular employer. 75 00:05:09,800 --> 00:05:13,240 Speaker 4: You did dozens of interviews with former domestic workers, all 76 00:05:13,279 --> 00:05:15,760 Speaker 4: of them women who worked in the homes of foreign 77 00:05:15,800 --> 00:05:19,040 Speaker 4: diplomats here in the US. What did you learn from them? 78 00:05:19,520 --> 00:05:22,760 Speaker 5: I saw a wide range of experiences. You know, of course, 79 00:05:23,120 --> 00:05:26,279 Speaker 5: there are many domestic workers who work for scrupulous and 80 00:05:26,480 --> 00:05:31,560 Speaker 5: kind and law abiding employers who are diplomats. That absolutely happens, 81 00:05:31,560 --> 00:05:35,200 Speaker 5: and this work relationship can be transformative on the personal 82 00:05:35,200 --> 00:05:39,279 Speaker 5: and economic level in any other way. But the problem 83 00:05:39,360 --> 00:05:43,560 Speaker 5: is the power imbalance enshrined in both their individual economic 84 00:05:43,720 --> 00:05:47,640 Speaker 5: statuses and also within the visa program itself can lead 85 00:05:47,680 --> 00:05:50,560 Speaker 5: to a lot of problems. So we can see everything 86 00:05:50,600 --> 00:05:55,320 Speaker 5: from over work many many hours past forty hours a week, 87 00:05:55,720 --> 00:05:58,800 Speaker 5: under payment, and wage theft, in which they're promised one 88 00:05:58,880 --> 00:06:04,240 Speaker 5: wage and given another non payment. I've seen workers who 89 00:06:04,279 --> 00:06:07,479 Speaker 5: have worked for literally years and gotten paid nothing. But 90 00:06:07,560 --> 00:06:11,560 Speaker 5: there are also really a lot more troubling problems than that. 91 00:06:12,200 --> 00:06:17,680 Speaker 5: There's been physical abuse, threats, people's passports have been confiscated, 92 00:06:18,000 --> 00:06:20,440 Speaker 5: They've been forbidden to leave the home or talk to 93 00:06:20,480 --> 00:06:23,520 Speaker 5: people outside of the family. And these two pieces, you know, 94 00:06:23,600 --> 00:06:27,880 Speaker 5: the confiscation of people's documents and then confining and restricting 95 00:06:27,960 --> 00:06:31,440 Speaker 5: their movements, are integral pieces of what can amount to 96 00:06:31,560 --> 00:06:35,680 Speaker 5: human trafficking, which is the use of force, fraud, or 97 00:06:35,720 --> 00:06:39,760 Speaker 5: coercion to compel another person's labor. I think there has 98 00:06:39,880 --> 00:06:44,640 Speaker 5: been a fixation on trafficking for the purposes of forced 99 00:06:44,680 --> 00:06:48,680 Speaker 5: prostitution in this country for many different reasons. But I 100 00:06:48,760 --> 00:06:53,440 Speaker 5: have found that labor trafficking is actually perhaps more prevalent 101 00:06:54,000 --> 00:06:57,080 Speaker 5: than trafficking for the purposes of forced prostitution. But we 102 00:06:57,160 --> 00:07:00,200 Speaker 5: don't understand it in that way. We don't understand and 103 00:07:00,640 --> 00:07:04,120 Speaker 5: its systemic nature. We don't want to talk about its 104 00:07:04,160 --> 00:07:07,520 Speaker 5: groundings in our history, and we certainly don't want to 105 00:07:07,520 --> 00:07:09,800 Speaker 5: look at the ways that we are implicated in this. 106 00:07:10,560 --> 00:07:13,720 Speaker 4: Can you tell me how prevailing abuse and exploitation is 107 00:07:13,760 --> 00:07:17,160 Speaker 4: among diplomatic domestic workers. I mean, is this a rare 108 00:07:17,200 --> 00:07:20,320 Speaker 4: occurrence or is this a systemic issue? 109 00:07:20,560 --> 00:07:23,640 Speaker 5: So it's difficult to say exactly how much of this 110 00:07:23,720 --> 00:07:26,480 Speaker 5: is happening. We do know that it is happening, and 111 00:07:26,520 --> 00:07:30,120 Speaker 5: we also understand that there are systemic problems that are 112 00:07:30,160 --> 00:07:33,640 Speaker 5: causing this problem and systemic fixes that are not being 113 00:07:33,680 --> 00:07:38,720 Speaker 5: implemented to make sure that perpetrators and alleged traffickers are 114 00:07:38,760 --> 00:07:42,280 Speaker 5: actually being punished as a form of deterrence. And I 115 00:07:42,360 --> 00:07:47,120 Speaker 5: actually built a database of both legal filings by domestic 116 00:07:47,160 --> 00:07:52,320 Speaker 5: workers pressing cases against their diplomat employers and allegations that 117 00:07:52,360 --> 00:07:55,640 Speaker 5: I called from different social service organizations as well, and 118 00:07:55,680 --> 00:07:59,360 Speaker 5: that was well over one hundred for about since two 119 00:07:59,400 --> 00:08:03,360 Speaker 5: thousand or so go to twenty twenty one. We have 120 00:08:03,400 --> 00:08:07,080 Speaker 5: an office inside of the State Department that is supposed 121 00:08:07,120 --> 00:08:11,280 Speaker 5: to be the watchdog on this issue, and yet at 122 00:08:11,320 --> 00:08:15,880 Speaker 5: the same time, the State Department runs at administers a 123 00:08:16,000 --> 00:08:21,680 Speaker 5: program that has led to human trafficking. So that kind 124 00:08:21,760 --> 00:08:25,400 Speaker 5: of tension is not one that has been resolved. The 125 00:08:25,440 --> 00:08:31,120 Speaker 5: potential for diplomatic incidences and the souring of relationships between 126 00:08:31,200 --> 00:08:35,040 Speaker 5: countries and over what the word of a domestic worker. 127 00:08:35,520 --> 00:08:39,160 Speaker 5: So what is more important, state craft or domestic work. 128 00:08:39,600 --> 00:08:42,800 Speaker 5: We've made it very very clear what side we're on. 129 00:08:43,320 --> 00:08:45,960 Speaker 4: And there's another legal structure at play here, right that 130 00:08:46,080 --> 00:08:51,440 Speaker 4: actually further exacerbates this problem, and that's diplomatic immunity. Can 131 00:08:51,480 --> 00:08:53,800 Speaker 4: you tell me a little bit about what this means. 132 00:08:54,480 --> 00:08:57,560 Speaker 5: There are two levels of immunity. One is limited immunity, 133 00:08:57,600 --> 00:09:01,440 Speaker 5: which means that you have immunity for what you do 134 00:09:01,640 --> 00:09:04,200 Speaker 5: during the course of your job, so like a nine 135 00:09:04,200 --> 00:09:07,920 Speaker 5: to five kind of immunity. And the other kind is 136 00:09:08,240 --> 00:09:12,040 Speaker 5: full immunity, and that's for people like ambassadors, are high 137 00:09:12,160 --> 00:09:15,240 Speaker 5: up mission officials, and that means that you are exempt 138 00:09:15,600 --> 00:09:20,440 Speaker 5: from criminal investigation and prosecution across the board twenty four 139 00:09:20,440 --> 00:09:24,479 Speaker 5: hours a day. So when you combine those factors plus 140 00:09:24,800 --> 00:09:31,160 Speaker 5: our own complicated history of discriminatory labor protections for domestic workers, 141 00:09:31,679 --> 00:09:34,320 Speaker 5: the fact that these workers are working inside of the home, 142 00:09:34,760 --> 00:09:37,760 Speaker 5: the fact that their legal status and work status is 143 00:09:37,760 --> 00:09:41,720 Speaker 5: tied to one employer and that employer might have diplomatic immunity. 144 00:09:42,120 --> 00:09:45,520 Speaker 5: It can lead to potentially a lot of problems. 145 00:09:45,120 --> 00:09:54,000 Speaker 4: And that's exactly what happened to Heremonia. Heremonia's story starts 146 00:09:54,040 --> 00:09:57,160 Speaker 4: in her native Igualor. At thirty two years old. She 147 00:09:57,280 --> 00:10:00,640 Speaker 4: was living in Quito, the capital, and working the daycare 148 00:10:01,200 --> 00:10:03,439 Speaker 4: Hermania had been working since she moved to the city 149 00:10:03,520 --> 00:10:06,160 Speaker 4: at just thirteen years old from a small village near 150 00:10:06,200 --> 00:10:09,080 Speaker 4: the coast. As a kid, she and her siblings had 151 00:10:09,160 --> 00:10:10,719 Speaker 4: worked on her family's. 152 00:10:10,240 --> 00:10:27,560 Speaker 3: Farms you will call LeHo, Study, scils, oh, Pio, oh 153 00:10:27,800 --> 00:10:30,000 Speaker 3: Derecho and Quito. 154 00:10:30,160 --> 00:10:33,320 Speaker 4: Hermania put herself through school while working full time and 155 00:10:33,400 --> 00:10:36,200 Speaker 4: saving to help her family back on the farm. She 156 00:10:36,320 --> 00:10:39,400 Speaker 4: dreamed of becoming a doctor, maybe a lawyer, or even 157 00:10:39,440 --> 00:10:42,800 Speaker 4: a teacher, but her biggest goal was to help her family, 158 00:10:43,240 --> 00:10:45,600 Speaker 4: and eventually she had to give up on pursuing a 159 00:10:45,679 --> 00:10:59,400 Speaker 4: degree extra artisna. Still, she mostly enjoyed life in Quito 160 00:10:59,760 --> 00:11:02,400 Speaker 4: while she worked long hours at the daycare. She loved 161 00:11:02,400 --> 00:11:04,440 Speaker 4: to dance and had a big group of friends that 162 00:11:04,520 --> 00:11:07,640 Speaker 4: she saw all the time. One day, the owner of 163 00:11:07,640 --> 00:11:10,600 Speaker 4: the daycare where she worked told her about an opportunity. 164 00:11:11,400 --> 00:11:14,800 Speaker 4: Her sister, Betonica Beenya, was a diplomat and she was 165 00:11:14,800 --> 00:11:17,120 Speaker 4: looking for a domestic worker to take with her to 166 00:11:17,200 --> 00:11:19,720 Speaker 4: the US to take care of her two kids and 167 00:11:19,760 --> 00:11:23,680 Speaker 4: her home. Peronica had just been named second Secretary to 168 00:11:23,720 --> 00:11:27,480 Speaker 4: the Ecuadorian Mission to the Organization of American States, a 169 00:11:27,520 --> 00:11:32,280 Speaker 4: diplomatic job representing Ecuador in Washington, d C. Benonica hired 170 00:11:32,280 --> 00:11:36,360 Speaker 4: Hermonia for a trial period in Ecuador. It was hard work. 171 00:11:36,520 --> 00:11:39,520 Speaker 4: It entailed cooking, cleaning, and taking care of the kids. 172 00:11:40,120 --> 00:11:43,040 Speaker 4: Hermonia says she worked about eleven hours a day. She 173 00:11:43,080 --> 00:11:44,760 Speaker 4: lived in the back of the home and had her 174 00:11:44,760 --> 00:11:48,280 Speaker 4: own bedroom and bathroom. She made about one hundred dollars 175 00:11:48,320 --> 00:11:51,760 Speaker 4: a month. The job wasn't easy, but Hermonia says she 176 00:11:51,880 --> 00:11:54,160 Speaker 4: knew if she could make it to the US, she 177 00:11:54,200 --> 00:11:56,360 Speaker 4: would make more money and be able to help her 178 00:11:56,360 --> 00:12:00,280 Speaker 4: family in a more meaningful way. Once the trial area 179 00:12:00,280 --> 00:12:02,439 Speaker 4: it ended, she got the offer to go to d. 180 00:12:02,480 --> 00:12:08,679 Speaker 2: C and Contrato. 181 00:12:10,000 --> 00:12:12,480 Speaker 4: Hermonia remembers that as they were about to enter a 182 00:12:12,600 --> 00:12:15,120 Speaker 4: room in the embassy, but only got pulled out a 183 00:12:15,120 --> 00:12:18,320 Speaker 4: contract and asked her to sign. Hermonia only had a 184 00:12:18,360 --> 00:12:19,360 Speaker 4: moment to skim it. 185 00:12:23,320 --> 00:12:30,520 Speaker 3: I said, Mama, record the seconds comi ikiva uh aga 186 00:12:32,000 --> 00:12:35,439 Speaker 3: a la questavestipulado in Washington, d C. 187 00:12:36,280 --> 00:12:38,520 Speaker 4: But she remembers it. Said that she would be paid 188 00:12:38,520 --> 00:12:41,600 Speaker 4: the minimum wage in d C, about six dollars an hour, 189 00:12:42,120 --> 00:12:44,760 Speaker 4: she would work full time, and her housing and medical 190 00:12:44,800 --> 00:12:49,080 Speaker 4: care would be taken care of. It sounded great, Hermonia signed. 191 00:12:49,800 --> 00:12:52,840 Speaker 4: Then she was approved for a G five visa and 192 00:12:52,920 --> 00:12:55,079 Speaker 4: told her she would need to return home every two 193 00:12:55,160 --> 00:12:58,520 Speaker 4: years to renew it. The next day she got a passport, 194 00:12:59,320 --> 00:13:02,120 Speaker 4: all set to travel. Armania went back home to see 195 00:13:02,120 --> 00:13:10,240 Speaker 4: her family one last time. It was a tearful goodbye. 196 00:13:09,000 --> 00:13:23,000 Speaker 3: And mine no maida. 197 00:13:24,200 --> 00:13:27,160 Speaker 4: But Hermonia was excited. Her plan was to stay in 198 00:13:27,160 --> 00:13:29,680 Speaker 4: the US for the five years that Veronica was in 199 00:13:29,760 --> 00:13:32,800 Speaker 4: her post, and that time she was saving enough money 200 00:13:32,840 --> 00:13:36,160 Speaker 4: to open her own business when she returned. In the meantime, 201 00:13:36,280 --> 00:13:38,440 Speaker 4: she would send her parents' money to build a home. 202 00:13:39,360 --> 00:13:46,720 Speaker 2: You're in a coos ara compra maximos f. 203 00:13:49,640 --> 00:13:53,079 Speaker 4: Hermania says. She left the Guador with a suitcase full of. 204 00:13:53,080 --> 00:14:01,520 Speaker 1: Dreams coming up on Latino USA. Hiemania arrives in DC 205 00:14:01,800 --> 00:14:05,200 Speaker 1: to begin her job at Veronica's house, but soon she 206 00:14:05,320 --> 00:14:08,200 Speaker 1: realizes her life in the US won't be what they 207 00:14:08,240 --> 00:14:53,320 Speaker 1: had agreed to stay with us. Yes, hey, we're back. 208 00:14:57,120 --> 00:15:00,720 Speaker 1: Before the break, we heard from Hermania. She's an Ecuadorian 209 00:15:00,760 --> 00:15:03,240 Speaker 1: woman who was about to start a new life in 210 00:15:03,280 --> 00:15:06,720 Speaker 1: the US as a domestic worker for a diplomat. Producer 211 00:15:06,800 --> 00:15:09,440 Speaker 1: Julieta Martinelli picks up the story from here. 212 00:15:11,360 --> 00:15:14,200 Speaker 4: When Hermania arrived in Washington, d C. In July of 213 00:15:14,280 --> 00:15:17,960 Speaker 4: two thousand and two, it was culture shock. The US 214 00:15:18,200 --> 00:15:20,160 Speaker 4: was not how she imagined at all. 215 00:15:21,120 --> 00:15:27,120 Speaker 2: This stnesn' wow. 216 00:15:27,960 --> 00:15:31,000 Speaker 4: Hermania says. She was shocked to recognize poverty as they 217 00:15:31,120 --> 00:15:34,360 Speaker 4: drove through certain neighborhoods. What she saw in the movies 218 00:15:34,560 --> 00:15:38,440 Speaker 4: was so different. Within a few days in DC with 219 00:15:38,520 --> 00:15:42,920 Speaker 4: Bedonica's family, Hermania started worrying. She thought the job would 220 00:15:42,960 --> 00:15:45,840 Speaker 4: be like her experience in Guito, but now there was 221 00:15:45,880 --> 00:15:48,400 Speaker 4: an endless amount of work to be done. She was 222 00:15:48,480 --> 00:15:51,600 Speaker 4: up at sunrise and still working well into the evening, 223 00:15:52,080 --> 00:15:53,680 Speaker 4: and things with Veronica were. 224 00:15:53,800 --> 00:16:06,920 Speaker 3: Icyina Carolinmpian Monsa Comia. 225 00:16:07,240 --> 00:16:10,800 Speaker 4: One of the first things Butonica did was take Hermionia's passport. 226 00:16:11,280 --> 00:16:13,720 Speaker 4: Hermia knew that the passport was all she had to 227 00:16:13,720 --> 00:16:17,200 Speaker 4: prove her identity, but Butonica told her she had no choice. 228 00:16:21,120 --> 00:16:25,760 Speaker 2: Caya me ami, Miam, you. 229 00:16:27,520 --> 00:16:31,160 Speaker 4: Place. Hermania worried about leaving the house. She thought about 230 00:16:31,200 --> 00:16:34,720 Speaker 4: what would happen if she got stopped by immigration, Butonica 231 00:16:34,760 --> 00:16:37,160 Speaker 4: said she didn't need to worry. She would just call 232 00:16:37,240 --> 00:16:39,960 Speaker 4: her and she would confirm her legal status with the police. 233 00:16:40,480 --> 00:16:44,160 Speaker 4: But this anxiety made Hermionia reluctant to go out at all. 234 00:16:45,120 --> 00:16:48,240 Speaker 4: In EU, Hermania had the comfort of her own country. 235 00:16:48,600 --> 00:16:51,680 Speaker 4: She spoke the language, she had family and friends around, 236 00:16:52,000 --> 00:16:55,120 Speaker 4: but here she didn't speak English or really even know 237 00:16:55,240 --> 00:16:58,640 Speaker 4: where she lived. She literally knew no one outside of 238 00:16:58,640 --> 00:17:02,520 Speaker 4: her employers. But Hermia kept telling herself that things would 239 00:17:02,520 --> 00:17:06,280 Speaker 4: get better. This was a sacrifice for her future and 240 00:17:06,359 --> 00:17:10,320 Speaker 4: for her family. Because Hermonia was always at home, she 241 00:17:10,400 --> 00:17:13,399 Speaker 4: was at her employer's beckon call twenty four to seven 242 00:17:14,040 --> 00:17:16,760 Speaker 4: at night when she finally laid to rest. If the 243 00:17:16,800 --> 00:17:20,520 Speaker 4: family wanted something, they just walked into her bedroom unannounced. 244 00:17:22,359 --> 00:17:25,240 Speaker 4: Hermia really had no privacy since she slept in the 245 00:17:25,280 --> 00:17:27,639 Speaker 4: laundry room in the basement and there were no locks 246 00:17:27,720 --> 00:17:31,200 Speaker 4: on her door. Her bed was an old cot I 247 00:17:31,320 --> 00:17:34,760 Speaker 4: hand me down with cigarette burns. Most nights she was 248 00:17:34,800 --> 00:17:38,639 Speaker 4: so exhausted that she still managed to fall asleep, despite 249 00:17:38,680 --> 00:17:41,760 Speaker 4: the discomfort of the thin heart surface on her wary back, 250 00:17:42,800 --> 00:17:46,800 Speaker 4: the loneliness, and the endless suishing, thumping and banging of 251 00:17:46,840 --> 00:17:55,760 Speaker 4: the old washing machine next to her cot. Eventually, Hermonia 252 00:17:55,800 --> 00:17:58,800 Speaker 4: says she couldn't take it anymore. She needed space. She 253 00:17:58,880 --> 00:18:01,840 Speaker 4: wanted to do other things. Hermania says she saw a 254 00:18:01,920 --> 00:18:04,840 Speaker 4: sign for free English classes taught at a nearby school 255 00:18:04,840 --> 00:18:08,159 Speaker 4: in the evenings. She begged her employers for months to 256 00:18:08,240 --> 00:18:12,000 Speaker 4: let her sign up. Eventually they agreed, so two nights 257 00:18:12,000 --> 00:18:15,639 Speaker 4: a week, if all her duties were handled beforehand, Hermonia 258 00:18:15,680 --> 00:18:18,000 Speaker 4: was allowed to leave while the family ate dinner. 259 00:18:27,640 --> 00:18:31,240 Speaker 2: Media Elimpia Commune. 260 00:18:31,400 --> 00:18:35,199 Speaker 4: Hermania felt grateful for this small kindness and hoped that 261 00:18:35,240 --> 00:18:38,960 Speaker 4: it was an indication of Betonica's loosening grip. But then 262 00:18:39,160 --> 00:18:42,320 Speaker 4: one day, Hermania began having serious pains in her abdomen, 263 00:18:42,760 --> 00:18:44,960 Speaker 4: and Bedonica told her that she wouldn't pay for a 264 00:18:45,040 --> 00:18:46,440 Speaker 4: doctor well. 265 00:18:48,119 --> 00:18:50,280 Speaker 2: Pardiga Medico. 266 00:18:54,000 --> 00:18:56,560 Speaker 4: Hermania says. Veronica told her if she needed to get 267 00:18:56,560 --> 00:18:59,160 Speaker 4: her appendix taken out, she would just have to wait 268 00:18:59,240 --> 00:19:01,760 Speaker 4: until she went back to Quito, or she could pay 269 00:19:01,800 --> 00:19:09,480 Speaker 4: for it herself, and Heremania couldn't afford a doctor's bill. 270 00:19:09,800 --> 00:19:12,600 Speaker 4: While she worked twelve to fifteen hours a day, six 271 00:19:12,680 --> 00:19:15,720 Speaker 4: days a week, she was only making three hundred dollars 272 00:19:15,760 --> 00:19:18,800 Speaker 4: a month. It was barely enough to get by, let 273 00:19:18,840 --> 00:19:21,760 Speaker 4: alone take care of her family back home too, so 274 00:19:22,200 --> 00:19:25,000 Speaker 4: she borrowed money from Berdonica's husband, and it took her 275 00:19:25,040 --> 00:19:29,040 Speaker 4: nearly a year to pay it back. Hermania was increasingly 276 00:19:29,160 --> 00:19:33,040 Speaker 4: lonely too. When her birthday rolled around, her employers took 277 00:19:33,040 --> 00:19:40,680 Speaker 4: her out to eat to the burger king near the house. Yeah, 278 00:19:43,680 --> 00:19:47,440 Speaker 4: she says, They ate their burgers and went home. They 279 00:19:47,440 --> 00:19:57,800 Speaker 4: didn't even sing Happy Birthday. But Harmonia kept her spirits 280 00:19:57,880 --> 00:20:01,800 Speaker 4: up by calling home every Sunday. She would buy a 281 00:20:01,800 --> 00:20:04,760 Speaker 4: phone card and call her family from a pyphone outside 282 00:20:04,800 --> 00:20:06,280 Speaker 4: of a McDonald's. 283 00:20:08,000 --> 00:20:11,920 Speaker 2: Loomingo MacDonald. 284 00:20:14,640 --> 00:20:30,480 Speaker 3: Yea fourque. She said. 285 00:20:32,520 --> 00:20:35,560 Speaker 4: She never told her family about the long workdays or 286 00:20:35,600 --> 00:20:38,600 Speaker 4: the hours she spent locked inside the home alone. She 287 00:20:38,680 --> 00:20:41,560 Speaker 4: didn't want to burden her family, and there was also 288 00:20:41,640 --> 00:20:44,040 Speaker 4: a lot of guilt. 289 00:20:44,280 --> 00:20:49,040 Speaker 2: Sentence calls us deficit but. 290 00:20:53,240 --> 00:21:00,800 Speaker 4: Investiga Hermania says she faltered herself for not asking more questions. 291 00:21:01,119 --> 00:21:04,359 Speaker 4: She felt foolish and the weight of her employer's words 292 00:21:04,359 --> 00:21:07,280 Speaker 4: were getting to her. She says they made her feel 293 00:21:07,320 --> 00:21:11,920 Speaker 4: like she was worthless. 294 00:21:12,600 --> 00:21:24,600 Speaker 3: But guess los assaying la mas, we'll see cacila Mangoria. 295 00:21:24,760 --> 00:21:29,639 Speaker 4: Nelson, the husband and his young son called Hermania or 296 00:21:29,800 --> 00:21:32,800 Speaker 4: sister monkey. It's a racist slur that she had heard 297 00:21:32,800 --> 00:21:35,240 Speaker 4: in Ecuadoro, but she had never been called that to 298 00:21:35,320 --> 00:21:39,080 Speaker 4: her face. But there was one saving grace in her life, 299 00:21:39,400 --> 00:21:42,800 Speaker 4: her friendship with Alexandria. She was a domestic worker as 300 00:21:42,800 --> 00:21:47,360 Speaker 4: well who worked for another Ecuadorian diplomat. Alexandria and Hermania 301 00:21:47,400 --> 00:21:50,719 Speaker 4: went to English classes together, and eventually they also started 302 00:21:50,760 --> 00:21:53,840 Speaker 4: meeting up on Sundays. There one day off, they would 303 00:21:53,840 --> 00:21:56,600 Speaker 4: go to McDonald's, the only place they could afford, and 304 00:21:56,680 --> 00:22:00,760 Speaker 4: sit and talk for hours. Hermania learned a lot about 305 00:22:00,800 --> 00:22:04,359 Speaker 4: her rights from Alexandria because Alexandria had been talking to 306 00:22:04,440 --> 00:22:08,639 Speaker 4: advocates from CASSA, the Maryland, a community organization that fights 307 00:22:08,680 --> 00:22:11,240 Speaker 4: for the rights of Latinos and immigrants in the area. 308 00:22:12,080 --> 00:22:15,440 Speaker 4: The organization had also quietly stepped in to help diplomatic 309 00:22:15,480 --> 00:22:19,080 Speaker 4: domestic workers, helping them escape the homes of their employers 310 00:22:19,320 --> 00:22:23,240 Speaker 4: and offering legal assistance through CASTA. The Maryland. The women 311 00:22:23,320 --> 00:22:25,800 Speaker 4: learned that they were being underpaid, that they had a 312 00:22:25,880 --> 00:22:30,399 Speaker 4: right to privacy, to healthcare, to keeping their own legal documents. 313 00:22:30,880 --> 00:22:35,680 Speaker 4: Alexandria wanted to escape, but Hermania was too afraid escaping 314 00:22:35,720 --> 00:22:38,560 Speaker 4: meant losing her visa and casa. The Maryland didn't have 315 00:22:38,600 --> 00:22:40,359 Speaker 4: a shelter where she could stay. 316 00:22:43,040 --> 00:22:47,640 Speaker 3: But a Yadomucha's Problemsfziland. 317 00:22:48,640 --> 00:22:52,600 Speaker 4: Then, one day, while cleaning, Hermania spotted her passport inside 318 00:22:52,600 --> 00:22:55,320 Speaker 4: of a drawer. It was early two thousand and four 319 00:22:55,640 --> 00:22:58,240 Speaker 4: and Hermania had been in the US for nearly two 320 00:22:58,320 --> 00:23:01,840 Speaker 4: years at that point. She wanted so badly to take 321 00:23:01,840 --> 00:23:04,920 Speaker 4: her passport back, but she felt like she was stealing, 322 00:23:05,400 --> 00:23:08,880 Speaker 4: even though the passport was hers, So she left it there. 323 00:23:09,320 --> 00:23:11,479 Speaker 4: But every few days she would go back and just 324 00:23:11,680 --> 00:23:15,760 Speaker 4: look at it, say. 325 00:23:19,119 --> 00:23:23,640 Speaker 3: Are you no that can start. 326 00:23:28,760 --> 00:23:32,480 Speaker 4: One day, Hermania decided she was done. Her friend Alexandria 327 00:23:32,600 --> 00:23:35,840 Speaker 4: was planning to escape her employers Heremania was scared that 328 00:23:35,880 --> 00:23:39,239 Speaker 4: they would find out and she would face repercussions. So 329 00:23:39,600 --> 00:23:42,880 Speaker 4: Hermania made a phone call to Castada, Maryland. She told 330 00:23:42,920 --> 00:23:49,000 Speaker 4: them she was ready to go too. It was nine 331 00:23:49,000 --> 00:23:52,920 Speaker 4: p m. And joyshra Thought, an immigration lawyer from Castada, Maryland, 332 00:23:53,200 --> 00:23:55,920 Speaker 4: drove up a quiet DC street in a white van. 333 00:23:56,720 --> 00:23:58,960 Speaker 4: He parked under a tree where he could watch the 334 00:23:59,160 --> 00:24:03,560 Speaker 4: entrance of the town home where Hermonia was living. His coworker, Sylvia, 335 00:24:03,600 --> 00:24:08,000 Speaker 4: sat in the passenger seat. Alexandria, Hermania's friend, sat in 336 00:24:08,040 --> 00:24:11,280 Speaker 4: the backseat with all of her belongings. She had just 337 00:24:11,440 --> 00:24:14,920 Speaker 4: escaped the home of her employer. It was Hermonia's turn. 338 00:24:14,800 --> 00:24:18,760 Speaker 6: Next, and so we got out of the van and 339 00:24:18,840 --> 00:24:20,760 Speaker 6: walked up to the door and we knocked. 340 00:24:21,240 --> 00:24:24,159 Speaker 4: Hermonia had been waiting for Betonica to get home. 341 00:24:24,400 --> 00:24:29,160 Speaker 6: And Hermania answered the door, and I remember her whispering 342 00:24:29,200 --> 00:24:33,480 Speaker 6: something to us about the employers or traffickers weren't yet home. 343 00:24:33,600 --> 00:24:36,280 Speaker 6: I think she was helping the kids with their homework, 344 00:24:37,040 --> 00:24:39,320 Speaker 6: and so we knew that we needed to wait until 345 00:24:39,320 --> 00:24:41,960 Speaker 6: they got home so that we could communicate directly with them, 346 00:24:42,000 --> 00:24:43,320 Speaker 6: so they knew what was happening. 347 00:24:45,000 --> 00:24:48,560 Speaker 4: Before Jayesh arrived, Hermania had thrown all of her belongings 348 00:24:48,560 --> 00:24:50,840 Speaker 4: and trash bags and put them out on the curb, 349 00:24:51,400 --> 00:24:53,760 Speaker 4: hoping that the neighbors would think she was just taking 350 00:24:53,760 --> 00:24:57,840 Speaker 4: out the garbage. Eventually, Nonica and her husband got home, 351 00:24:58,400 --> 00:25:01,840 Speaker 4: Jaysh and his partner waited for a few minutes, then 352 00:25:02,200 --> 00:25:03,160 Speaker 4: they knocked on the door. 353 00:25:04,119 --> 00:25:08,560 Speaker 6: We explained to them that we were here to help 354 00:25:08,640 --> 00:25:11,680 Speaker 6: Hermonia get out of the house because of the conditions 355 00:25:11,680 --> 00:25:15,720 Speaker 6: that she had been living in, and I remember distinctly 356 00:25:15,800 --> 00:25:19,240 Speaker 6: that there was just confusion and frustration on the part 357 00:25:19,240 --> 00:25:22,600 Speaker 6: of Veronica. Frankly, I think she was shocked, right because 358 00:25:22,640 --> 00:25:25,480 Speaker 6: she didn't expect that this would happen, that somebody would 359 00:25:25,480 --> 00:25:27,760 Speaker 6: have been paying attention to what was happening in the home, 360 00:25:27,800 --> 00:25:31,119 Speaker 6: and that her domestic worker would be leaving. 361 00:25:31,880 --> 00:25:34,800 Speaker 4: But Jayesh says they held her ground. As they talked, 362 00:25:34,880 --> 00:25:37,639 Speaker 4: Hermonia left the house and got into the van. She 363 00:25:37,840 --> 00:25:56,679 Speaker 4: was terrified. Hermonia says this decision was just as risky 364 00:25:56,720 --> 00:25:59,400 Speaker 4: as coming to the US and that hadn't worked out 365 00:25:59,440 --> 00:26:02,480 Speaker 4: for her. She kept thinking, at least here I have 366 00:26:02,520 --> 00:26:05,000 Speaker 4: a roof over my head. What if I end up 367 00:26:05,000 --> 00:26:06,280 Speaker 4: in the streets? 368 00:26:09,600 --> 00:26:13,000 Speaker 2: But what I said, salios dilmao. 369 00:26:13,600 --> 00:26:16,080 Speaker 4: Because Caso the Maryland didn't have a shelter to take 370 00:26:16,119 --> 00:26:19,960 Speaker 4: the women to, others had volunteered to help. That night, 371 00:26:20,040 --> 00:26:22,480 Speaker 4: Beronica and Alexandria went to the home of a woman 372 00:26:22,520 --> 00:26:24,760 Speaker 4: that they had met a few times and started the 373 00:26:24,840 --> 00:26:32,840 Speaker 4: fearful process of figuring out what's next. Hermionia had a 374 00:26:32,880 --> 00:26:36,320 Speaker 4: lot of different needs, most urgently a place to sleep 375 00:26:36,520 --> 00:26:40,560 Speaker 4: and money to eat, but she also desperately needed legal assistance. 376 00:26:41,080 --> 00:26:44,160 Speaker 4: Leaving her employer meant she no longer has legal status 377 00:26:44,200 --> 00:26:49,560 Speaker 4: in the US. She was suddenly undocumented. A little while later, Jayesh, 378 00:26:49,640 --> 00:26:52,800 Speaker 4: the lawyer who helped Hermania escape, began running a law 379 00:26:52,800 --> 00:26:56,600 Speaker 4: clinic at American University in DC. He and the students 380 00:26:56,600 --> 00:26:59,320 Speaker 4: he worked with decided to take on her case brobono. 381 00:27:00,200 --> 00:27:03,520 Speaker 4: They helped Hermonia file for a tee visa, which victims 382 00:27:03,520 --> 00:27:06,639 Speaker 4: of human trafficking who have cooperated with law enforcement can 383 00:27:06,680 --> 00:27:10,520 Speaker 4: apply for. If she got approved, that would allow Hermonia 384 00:27:10,560 --> 00:27:15,280 Speaker 4: to remain in the US legally. While Hermonia's immigration petition 385 00:27:15,400 --> 00:27:18,760 Speaker 4: was pending. The clinic also filed a civil lawsuit for 386 00:27:18,800 --> 00:27:23,160 Speaker 4: stolen wages against Betonica and her husband. Betonica didn't show 387 00:27:23,240 --> 00:27:25,920 Speaker 4: up to court, but in June two thousand and seven, 388 00:27:26,160 --> 00:27:29,320 Speaker 4: a judge ordered Bedonica and her husband, Nelson to pay 389 00:27:29,320 --> 00:27:34,040 Speaker 4: Hermonia about forty five thousand dollars in unpaid wages. This 390 00:27:34,280 --> 00:27:38,359 Speaker 4: was great news. The problem was there really wasn't any 391 00:27:38,400 --> 00:27:41,120 Speaker 4: way to compel them to pay. Right. 392 00:27:41,160 --> 00:27:45,359 Speaker 6: There really isn't true accountability yet, right because when it 393 00:27:45,359 --> 00:27:51,320 Speaker 6: comes to things like enforcing judgments or imposing more severe penalties, 394 00:27:51,440 --> 00:27:55,159 Speaker 6: right which the law permits and in fact requires, that isn't. 395 00:27:54,920 --> 00:27:59,159 Speaker 4: Happening facing no repercussions. Betonica and her family left the 396 00:27:59,240 --> 00:28:02,719 Speaker 4: US for equal when her post ended There, she waited 397 00:28:02,760 --> 00:28:06,439 Speaker 4: for her next diplomatic assignment, hoping that the Ecuadorian government 398 00:28:06,440 --> 00:28:09,080 Speaker 4: would step in. Harmonia and her lawyer reached out with 399 00:28:09,119 --> 00:28:12,040 Speaker 4: a copy of the lawsuit. The following year, they asked 400 00:28:12,040 --> 00:28:14,720 Speaker 4: the US Department of State to step in. The US 401 00:28:14,800 --> 00:28:18,199 Speaker 4: Department of State said they supported her claim, but that 402 00:28:18,400 --> 00:28:21,800 Speaker 4: was it. The Ecuadorian government replied, saying that they were 403 00:28:21,840 --> 00:28:24,680 Speaker 4: really sorry about what Hermonia went through and that they 404 00:28:24,720 --> 00:28:28,960 Speaker 4: stood against labor in human trafficking, but they consider this 405 00:28:29,200 --> 00:28:34,360 Speaker 4: a quote personal matter, and the government wouldn't intercede. Jayesh 406 00:28:34,400 --> 00:28:36,919 Speaker 4: says the idea that this is a private matter is 407 00:28:37,080 --> 00:28:40,200 Speaker 4: laughable because it was a government of IGUADORO which petition 408 00:28:40,280 --> 00:28:42,760 Speaker 4: for her visa, and it was a government official in 409 00:28:42,800 --> 00:28:46,560 Speaker 4: a diplomatic mission who committed the abuse, an official which 410 00:28:46,600 --> 00:28:49,400 Speaker 4: can only legally get in trouble with their own government 411 00:28:49,560 --> 00:28:53,800 Speaker 4: due to diplomatic immunity. But Heremonia's lawyer kept trying. Their 412 00:28:53,880 --> 00:28:57,160 Speaker 4: letters and calls to Bedonica went unanswered, but Jaysh and 413 00:28:57,200 --> 00:29:00,120 Speaker 4: the law students continued to keep tabs on her moves. 414 00:29:00,680 --> 00:29:04,920 Speaker 6: There she is again with her husband and another guest 415 00:29:04,920 --> 00:29:07,800 Speaker 6: at the event. Maybe some kind of art exhibit. Doesn't 416 00:29:07,800 --> 00:29:11,520 Speaker 6: seem to be camera shized she's doing her work as 417 00:29:11,520 --> 00:29:14,240 Speaker 6: an ambassador, and she's at public events. She's out and about, 418 00:29:14,280 --> 00:29:15,840 Speaker 6: she's with high profile people. 419 00:29:16,520 --> 00:29:19,240 Speaker 4: Jsh shows some of the photos that they've collected over 420 00:29:19,280 --> 00:29:22,480 Speaker 4: the years. Currently, he says, Meronica is working at the 421 00:29:22,520 --> 00:29:27,640 Speaker 4: embassy in Madrid, Spain. Almost fifteen years later, they're still 422 00:29:27,680 --> 00:29:28,840 Speaker 4: trying to collect the debt. 423 00:29:29,520 --> 00:29:32,400 Speaker 6: We recently sent a letter to the State Department under 424 00:29:32,440 --> 00:29:36,960 Speaker 6: the Biden administration, right reminding them that under federal law, 425 00:29:37,520 --> 00:29:40,240 Speaker 6: when there was a case like Keramania is involving an 426 00:29:40,400 --> 00:29:47,200 Speaker 6: unsatisfied judgment, the law permits and effect arguably requires the 427 00:29:47,240 --> 00:29:52,640 Speaker 6: State Department to stop issuing visas to that country for 428 00:29:52,680 --> 00:29:56,640 Speaker 6: purposes of bringing domestic workers for their diplomats, and so 429 00:29:57,040 --> 00:30:02,720 Speaker 6: until that kind of accountability actually happened, Right, like real consequences. 430 00:30:03,320 --> 00:30:06,720 Speaker 6: You know this practice is going to continue, j Esh says. 431 00:30:06,800 --> 00:30:10,480 Speaker 4: Lawyers like him to spend their entire careers chasing diplomats 432 00:30:10,520 --> 00:30:13,880 Speaker 4: all over the world. That's why the US needs to 433 00:30:13,960 --> 00:30:16,800 Speaker 4: intervene from the start, he says. The US has a 434 00:30:16,880 --> 00:30:20,240 Speaker 4: right to request a waiver for diplomatic immunity, which would 435 00:30:20,240 --> 00:30:22,520 Speaker 4: allow them to take a diplomat to court for breaking 436 00:30:22,560 --> 00:30:25,760 Speaker 4: the law and for trafficking workers. They just have to 437 00:30:26,000 --> 00:30:27,040 Speaker 4: want to use it. 438 00:30:27,560 --> 00:30:30,840 Speaker 6: That is the most powerful weapon that they have, right 439 00:30:30,920 --> 00:30:35,400 Speaker 6: and of course politically very sensitive because of the reciprocal 440 00:30:36,160 --> 00:30:42,400 Speaker 6: effect it could potentially have UNUS diplomats overseas. Right, but again, 441 00:30:42,520 --> 00:30:46,560 Speaker 6: if we're going to take the human rights labor rights 442 00:30:46,600 --> 00:30:51,960 Speaker 6: of these domestic workers seriously, then we have to push 443 00:30:52,000 --> 00:30:56,840 Speaker 6: harder and to demand more accountability, even if it's politically 444 00:30:57,160 --> 00:30:58,960 Speaker 6: and diplomatically uncomfortable. 445 00:30:59,360 --> 00:31:01,800 Speaker 4: We reached out to Beatonica for comment, but did not 446 00:31:01,880 --> 00:31:19,760 Speaker 4: receive a response. Pedomonia struggles are not exclusive to her. 447 00:31:20,200 --> 00:31:23,280 Speaker 4: In fact, many have faced even harsher abuses at the 448 00:31:23,320 --> 00:31:28,480 Speaker 4: hands of their diplomatic employers. Claudia Marie Flores has been 449 00:31:28,480 --> 00:31:32,320 Speaker 4: fighting to protect domestic workers for nearly two decades. She's 450 00:31:32,320 --> 00:31:34,600 Speaker 4: a director of the Global Human Rights Clinic at the 451 00:31:34,720 --> 00:31:36,440 Speaker 4: University of Chicago Law School. 452 00:31:37,520 --> 00:31:42,040 Speaker 7: These domestic workers could not hold the diplomats accountable in courts, 453 00:31:42,080 --> 00:31:45,480 Speaker 7: they couldn't recover lost wages, they couldn't bring them to 454 00:31:45,680 --> 00:31:49,480 Speaker 7: justice in any way. And so advocates like myself, after 455 00:31:49,520 --> 00:31:52,120 Speaker 7: making several attempts to go before US courts and the 456 00:31:52,120 --> 00:31:54,880 Speaker 7: State Department would always step in on behalf of the diplomat, 457 00:31:55,200 --> 00:31:58,120 Speaker 7: we finally saw no other option, and so we went 458 00:31:58,160 --> 00:32:00,280 Speaker 7: to this regional body to try to seek justice, to 459 00:32:00,320 --> 00:32:02,560 Speaker 7: the Inter American Commission, and that's why we filed the petition. 460 00:32:02,680 --> 00:32:05,360 Speaker 4: The Inter American Commission for Human Rights is actually one 461 00:32:05,400 --> 00:32:07,960 Speaker 4: of the two main bodies to the human rights portion 462 00:32:08,080 --> 00:32:11,440 Speaker 4: of the Organization of American States, which the US is 463 00:32:11,480 --> 00:32:14,880 Speaker 4: a part of and is supposed to comply to. Claudia 464 00:32:14,920 --> 00:32:17,239 Speaker 4: was a lawyer with the ACLU in two thousand and 465 00:32:17,320 --> 00:32:20,040 Speaker 4: seven when they filed the petition asking the court to 466 00:32:20,120 --> 00:32:23,960 Speaker 4: hear their allegations against the US. They recounted the cases 467 00:32:23,960 --> 00:32:25,840 Speaker 4: of dozens of women like Hermania. 468 00:32:26,760 --> 00:32:29,000 Speaker 7: The argument that we were making in the original petition 469 00:32:29,320 --> 00:32:32,760 Speaker 7: is that the US was discriminating against women and people 470 00:32:32,760 --> 00:32:36,200 Speaker 7: of color. Essentially so this is a very, very vulnerable 471 00:32:36,320 --> 00:32:39,320 Speaker 7: group of workers that are making very little money in 472 00:32:39,440 --> 00:32:44,320 Speaker 7: an industry that's already extremely unregulated, and in the United States, 473 00:32:44,480 --> 00:32:48,280 Speaker 7: domestic labor is excluded from most of our major labor 474 00:32:48,320 --> 00:32:49,400 Speaker 7: and employment protections. 475 00:32:49,440 --> 00:32:52,000 Speaker 4: Claudia says this cost a lot of bad press for 476 00:32:52,040 --> 00:32:54,640 Speaker 4: the US at the time, which led to some changes 477 00:32:54,680 --> 00:32:55,760 Speaker 4: in the following years. 478 00:32:56,720 --> 00:32:59,200 Speaker 7: The State Department tried to put some protections in place 479 00:32:59,880 --> 00:33:02,800 Speaker 7: of them have put these domestic workers on equal footing 480 00:33:02,880 --> 00:33:07,040 Speaker 7: with other workers who are working for employers as domestic workers. 481 00:33:07,080 --> 00:33:10,560 Speaker 4: Those protections include requiring the diplomats to give domestic workers 482 00:33:10,600 --> 00:33:15,000 Speaker 4: a contract that they pay minimum wage. US officials also 483 00:33:15,080 --> 00:33:18,200 Speaker 4: now give pamphlets to domestic workers about their rights in 484 00:33:18,240 --> 00:33:20,880 Speaker 4: the US when they get their visa, and the Department 485 00:33:20,920 --> 00:33:24,080 Speaker 4: of State even began doing some home visits, but Claudia 486 00:33:24,120 --> 00:33:28,480 Speaker 4: says is not nearly enough. This summer, fourteen years after 487 00:33:28,520 --> 00:33:31,760 Speaker 4: the petition was filed, the Commission has finally agreed to 488 00:33:31,800 --> 00:33:35,480 Speaker 4: take this matter under advisement. After hearing, the Commission will 489 00:33:35,520 --> 00:33:39,280 Speaker 4: issue what is called an advisory opinion. Claudia hopes that 490 00:33:39,320 --> 00:33:41,840 Speaker 4: the Commission will rule that the US has been failing 491 00:33:41,880 --> 00:33:44,920 Speaker 4: to protect these workers and needs to change its laws 492 00:33:45,480 --> 00:33:48,200 Speaker 4: so that diplomats can be punished for violating the rights 493 00:33:48,280 --> 00:33:51,400 Speaker 4: of their workers under US law, but she thinks to 494 00:33:51,440 --> 00:33:54,360 Speaker 4: make a meaningful change, these changes would need to happen 495 00:33:54,400 --> 00:33:58,400 Speaker 4: through US Congress. Claudia adds that a favorable ruling for 496 00:33:58,480 --> 00:34:02,480 Speaker 4: diplomatic domestic workers could actually be huge for domestic workers 497 00:34:02,520 --> 00:34:11,200 Speaker 4: of all types across the country. In twenty twelve, eight 498 00:34:11,360 --> 00:34:15,400 Speaker 4: years after escaping Meronica's home, Hermania became a legal resident 499 00:34:15,440 --> 00:34:18,520 Speaker 4: of the US, and five years later she became a 500 00:34:18,640 --> 00:34:22,279 Speaker 4: US citizen. Along the way, she had a daughter, Kiata, 501 00:34:22,320 --> 00:34:26,000 Speaker 4: who's eleven years old. Now. While Hermania is still hoping 502 00:34:26,040 --> 00:34:28,720 Speaker 4: to recover the money that she's owed, she has moved 503 00:34:28,760 --> 00:34:31,640 Speaker 4: on with her life. She's been working at an elementary 504 00:34:31,640 --> 00:34:34,799 Speaker 4: school for the last nine years as a custodian, and 505 00:34:34,880 --> 00:34:37,040 Speaker 4: she was even able to make at least one of 506 00:34:37,040 --> 00:34:40,120 Speaker 4: her dreams come true to go back home to Eculor 507 00:34:40,200 --> 00:34:43,960 Speaker 4: to see her family. Six years had passed without seeing them. 508 00:34:47,680 --> 00:34:54,520 Speaker 3: Momento ki El Pilot is as little sister Stoa as 509 00:34:54,640 --> 00:35:17,560 Speaker 3: Quito clo Familiarmania describes being on the plane with her 510 00:35:17,680 --> 00:35:21,120 Speaker 3: daughter and seeing the lights of Quito shining below them 511 00:35:21,160 --> 00:35:22,560 Speaker 3: as they were getting ready to land. 512 00:35:23,280 --> 00:35:26,239 Speaker 4: She always thought that she would break down crying. She 513 00:35:26,280 --> 00:35:28,440 Speaker 4: thought of the young woman who left the Guadora with 514 00:35:28,520 --> 00:35:32,200 Speaker 4: so many dreams and the hardened woman who returned. But 515 00:35:32,280 --> 00:35:35,279 Speaker 4: she says that when the moment came, the tears didn't come. 516 00:35:38,360 --> 00:35:42,120 Speaker 4: Heermania currently lives in Virginia with her daughter Kiara. She 517 00:35:42,200 --> 00:35:44,560 Speaker 4: has since traveled two more times to a Guador to 518 00:35:44,640 --> 00:35:47,879 Speaker 4: visit her family. Each time, she says, she sees how 519 00:35:47,880 --> 00:35:51,440 Speaker 4: her country has changed, how time has affected her friends 520 00:35:51,480 --> 00:35:54,680 Speaker 4: and loved ones. She no longer dreams of returning home 521 00:35:54,719 --> 00:35:59,880 Speaker 4: to live in Quito, at least not yet. 522 00:36:01,920 --> 00:36:19,480 Speaker 2: Can I bagging? Look at me babing? Can you parkista meme. 523 00:36:24,440 --> 00:36:27,880 Speaker 4: Anadi Hermania says that she won't feel like justice has 524 00:36:27,920 --> 00:36:30,840 Speaker 4: been served until her former employers pay her the money 525 00:36:30,880 --> 00:36:33,680 Speaker 4: that they owe. She says it's not really about the 526 00:36:33,719 --> 00:36:36,719 Speaker 4: money for her, after all, she's gone through more than 527 00:36:36,760 --> 00:36:39,400 Speaker 4: a decade without it, and even when things were the 528 00:36:39,440 --> 00:36:42,399 Speaker 4: most difficult, she has always come out on top through 529 00:36:42,400 --> 00:36:45,759 Speaker 4: her hard work. But Herminia says money is what they 530 00:36:45,840 --> 00:36:48,480 Speaker 4: care about most, and that's why she would like to 531 00:36:48,520 --> 00:36:51,360 Speaker 4: see the US government step in and assist her in 532 00:36:51,400 --> 00:36:52,239 Speaker 4: collecting the debt. 533 00:36:59,320 --> 00:37:02,400 Speaker 2: Adam pard Thing completely a missus. 534 00:37:13,440 --> 00:37:20,279 Speaker 4: C her money, admits that forty five thousand dollars would 535 00:37:20,360 --> 00:37:23,920 Speaker 4: change her life. After all, she worked hard for that money. 536 00:37:24,400 --> 00:37:27,040 Speaker 4: It would allow her to finally make that suitcase full 537 00:37:27,040 --> 00:37:29,520 Speaker 4: of dreams that she left Ecuadoro with it come true, 538 00:37:30,080 --> 00:37:32,680 Speaker 4: to buy a home for her family, and to open 539 00:37:32,719 --> 00:37:48,879 Speaker 4: a little shop where she's finally her own Bossisa endo 540 00:37:52,520 --> 00:37:56,120 Speaker 4: Eroni Guys currently stationed in Spain. She's still a diplomat 541 00:37:56,120 --> 00:37:59,799 Speaker 4: for the Ecuadorian government. Hermonia as lawyers are still at 542 00:37:59,800 --> 00:38:08,160 Speaker 4: ten to collect the data. 543 00:38:12,160 --> 00:38:15,560 Speaker 1: You can learn more about the experiences of diplomatic domestic 544 00:38:15,640 --> 00:38:19,480 Speaker 1: workers and the abuse they're exposed to in an upcoming 545 00:38:19,600 --> 00:38:39,600 Speaker 1: investigative piece by Neu Thrupcow for The Washington Post magazine. 546 00:38:44,800 --> 00:38:48,319 Speaker 1: This episode was produced by Julieta Martinelli, with assistance by 547 00:38:48,440 --> 00:38:52,360 Speaker 1: Janie Jamoca and reporting by Neu Thrupcow. It was edited 548 00:38:52,360 --> 00:38:56,640 Speaker 1: by Marta Martinez and mixed by Julia Caruso. The Latino 549 00:38:56,760 --> 00:39:01,640 Speaker 1: USA team includes Andrea Lopez Grussavo, Mike Sergeant, Victoria Estrada, 550 00:39:01,800 --> 00:39:06,920 Speaker 1: Patricia subaran Gini Montalgo Alejandra Salasad, re Renaldo Leanos Junior 551 00:39:06,920 --> 00:39:10,360 Speaker 1: and Julia Roncha, with help from Raoul Perees. Our editorial 552 00:39:10,360 --> 00:39:13,960 Speaker 1: director is Julio Ricardo Barela Special thanks to The Washington 553 00:39:14,000 --> 00:39:18,880 Speaker 1: Post Magazine. Our senior supervising engineer is Stephanie Lba. Additional 554 00:39:18,880 --> 00:39:21,759 Speaker 1: engineering by LEAs Shawl Damron with help from Gabriel A. 555 00:39:21,840 --> 00:39:25,680 Speaker 1: Bias and jj Caroubin. Our digital editor is Luis Luna. 556 00:39:25,920 --> 00:39:29,400 Speaker 1: Our New York Women's Foundation Ignite fellow is mari Eshca. 557 00:39:29,680 --> 00:39:32,319 Speaker 1: Our intern is Oscar de Leon. Our theme music was 558 00:39:32,360 --> 00:39:35,000 Speaker 1: composed by Zee Robinos. If you like music you heard 559 00:39:35,040 --> 00:39:37,919 Speaker 1: on this episode, stop by Latinousa dot org and check 560 00:39:37,920 --> 00:39:41,280 Speaker 1: out our weekly Spotify playlist. I'm your host and executive 561 00:39:41,320 --> 00:39:44,520 Speaker 1: producer Maria J. Josa. Join us again on our next episode, 562 00:39:44,560 --> 00:39:47,120 Speaker 1: and in the meantime, I'll see you on social media. 563 00:39:47,440 --> 00:39:49,120 Speaker 1: Astapproxima Chaou. 564 00:39:53,160 --> 00:39:57,480 Speaker 8: Latino USA is supported by the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative. 565 00:39:58,080 --> 00:39:58,560 Speaker 6: W U K. 566 00:39:58,840 --> 00:40:04,120 Speaker 8: Kellogg Foundation, a partner with communities where Children Come First, 567 00:40:04,480 --> 00:40:08,200 Speaker 8: and funding for Latino USA is Coverage of a culture 568 00:40:08,239 --> 00:40:10,800 Speaker 8: of health is made possible in part by a grant 569 00:40:10,800 --> 00:40:12,720 Speaker 8: from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. 570 00:40:16,680 --> 00:40:20,800 Speaker 1: Get Away Away from the Mosquito. Away from my iPad. 571 00:40:22,280 --> 00:40:25,800 Speaker 1: I'm Maria in no Josa. Next time on Latino USA. 572 00:40:25,960 --> 00:40:29,640 Speaker 1: The inequities that have left millions of people without access 573 00:40:29,640 --> 00:40:32,919 Speaker 1: to vaccines in Latin America and the role the US 574 00:40:33,000 --> 00:40:44,640 Speaker 1: can play to fix them. That's next time on Latino USA.