Maid In L.A

Maid In L.A. is a very interesting reading that opens the eyes of non Latino entities who have never known women like the ones described in the chapter. The reading not only talks about the experiences both "live in" and "live out" maids went through, but it allows you to hear the voice of the maids by hearing about their personal experiences.

This reading was particulary interesting to me because I have known many women (family members) who have gone through the experiences that the women in the reading went through. In the first paragraph, it says that the poorest of the poor migrate to the U.S and simply cannot afford to make a living. I couldn't agree more. People migrate here to make a better living and to make more money and they are taken advantage of by businesses that know they can get away with paying them the bare minimun.

Maribel Centeno, the first live in maid talked about, was getting paid a measly $80 a week to care for a child and a 23 bedroom home. A server in a restaurant makes more than that on one five hour shift. The sad part is that Maribel was actually a smart, educated women but because of her age and situation, she got taken advantage of as far as not being provided a better income.

The section about house cleaners also hit home to me because I also know many women who continue to learn a living in this way. Of course, even though still not getting paid enough, they make more than the women being talked about in the reading. I think it's sad and disgusting that someone (for example the family that Maribel worked for), can have so much money to own a 23 bedroom home and be okay with paying someone less than a hundred dollars for the amount of work done.