Rodriguez does not hang out, go to bars, or watch sports with friends. He devotes all his free time to his family, a trait he inherited from his father who was a strict disciplinarian. He wears his one rebellion in life in the form of three tattoos, one of which spreads prominently up his left forearm to his elbow.
A graduate of Queens College, Rodriguez never put his accounting degree to work. After being turned down by the police department for a hearing problem, he landed a job as a doorman and has been there ever since.
He and his wife, who works as a special education teacher at a public school in the Bronx, are adamant that their children make a change in the world. Liam’s sixth-grade teacher, Mary Beth Gallagher, thinks he would make a great politician because he is good with people.
“He’s a social butterfly,” says Gallagher. “He’s kinda like the mayor of our class.”
Rodriguez and his wife hope that he becomes a doctor. In two years, Liam will take a test to determine whether or not he will be accepted into the Bronx High School of Science, a free school for gifted New York teenagers — and Liam’s best bet for getting into a good college.
Empty shelves, empty bellies
Two shop cats scampered on the empty shelves at Hour Children Food Pantry in Long Island City, unaware that more play space for them means less food for struggling families. It’s the result of rising food and fuel costs, and cuts in state and federal funding. At the same time, more people than ever are coming in seeking help. Pantry director, Christy Robb, told me she had gone into debt to keep this pantry open. At night she can't sleep because she's worried about the cutbacks she will have to make.
The city’s struggle
Like a walk through a dense forest, the news about America's economy grows darker with every step. The recession is here, but looking backwards is the only way to tell how bad it is. Graduating into a recession is a relief, because new graduates always struggle. Perhaps having my struggle masked by a recession will be a comfort. Struggle is part of the character of New York. We forgot. New York will survive. It always does. Hardship reminds us why we love this city and why people still chose New York after more than 300 years.
New York will survive.
—Chikodi Chima
Meanwhile, Rodriguez’s son Cristen attends a private pre-Kindergarten school, because the public school program gets out before Joe and Migda are out of work. This sets the family back an additional $540 a month.
Rodriguez puts $200 a month into a savings account, but uses the money for cash to get through the month. Two years ago, he stopped contributing to his 401(k) because he could not take money out of it. They would like to buy a house, but have been stymied by the New York real estate market. Now that the market is better, they don’t have the money.
“We haven’t come up for air yet, “ says Migda.
As the economy continues to falter, Rodriguez’s experience is all too familiar in New York City. His life and family are unique, but his financial struggle is just one tale of many to be told as middle class New Yorkers grit their teeth and find ways to survive the country’s economic crisis.
