St. John Zine- Lorena Borjas

Lorena Borjas

“My community is hispanic, immigrant, undocumented, trans, and sex worker. So, I identify myself with this community. For me, that’s my community.”

- Lorena Borjas

Early Life

Lorena Borjas was born on May 29, 1960, in Veracruz, Mexico. Prior to her activism, Borjas was an at-risk member of the LGBTQ+ community herself. In her teens, she ran away to Mexico City and eventually made it to the United States where she would seek hormones to begin her transition from male to female. Lorena eventually find herself a victim of drugs and accused of trafficking and prostitution. Subsequently, arrests followed. Thus, she was unable to renew her green card or acquire naturalized citizenship in the states. Despite such adversity, she was able to overcome her addiction and her activism began.

Contributions

Lorena set her sights on policymaking in New York and organiziation of trans centered events such as a trans march through the city. The march was described as an opportunity to give trans individuals a voice and tell them “... you’re valuable, you’re worth something, and we’re going to fight for our rights together…” Additionally, she supported hormone therapy for trans individuals. Prior to Lorena’s passing, she organized a group that accumulated over 450 members of trans individuals and focused on the advocacy for individuals living with HIV/AIDS. (Queens Public Television.) She was also a counselor for the Community Healthcare Network’s Transgender Family Program, where she helped find legal aid for victims of human trafficking.

Monument

Lorena Borjas deserves a monument due to her significant efforts to create a safe space for LGBTQ+ and sex workers within a community majorly comprised of people of color. Even further, among immigrant individuals who are likely seeking refuge from countries or racial/ ethnic groups that do not have a welcoming community for LGBTQ+ individuals. Among her political activism, Lorena found significance in the little things.

For example, providing free condoms and making an effort to assist at the food pantry daily. Lorena was described as a loving, selfless individual who wanted to ensure everyone felt cared for. (The New Yorker) Lorena’s efforts deserve a monument due to the sheer fact that she worked extremely hard to aid individuals of a taboo community. Not only is sexuality, gender, and sex work a difficult subject, but particularly so among communities of color. Borjas’s work has long-lasting influences on the community in New York as well as across the country.

Ideally, Lorena’s monument would be an iconic image of her sitting in an eccentric floral dress, with red lipstick and a flower in her hair. The two accessories being a staple in her overall eccentric style. Additionally, she would have a rolling backpack with her, as it was described to go everywhere with her when she traveled across the city each day. The backpack included all the items necessary to complete her daily acts of service from condoms to birth certificates

Location

Student Union Building I would be the optimal lociation for Lorena Borjas’ monument. A beautiful courtyard sits just outside the building with ample area for a monument. There is a lot of traffic in this building and it is the center for many of the offices and events significant to LGBTQ+ and people of color on campus. Additionally, the center of campus will allow visitors to easily understand the community and importance of diverity and inclusion at Goerge Mason University .

An additoinal location would be in her community of Brooklyn, New York.

Lorena passed away in April 2020 due to complications relating to Coronavirus.