Three community leaders of Chelsea, a Latinx immigrant city that has long been overlooked, have never given up on their community. Despite great odds they are fighting for a better future for their city. What happens when you believe in yourself when no one else does?
Squeezed under a highway and between giant fuel tanks and salt reserves that fuel regional airports and melt snow on winter roads, the city of Chelsea has long been home to waves of new immigrants, pioneers of a new life and old traditions. For generations, people from the outside world have seen Chelsea as a poverty and crime-ridden place to avoid. But inside Chelsea there is a different story in the making.
In Chelsea there are residents who believe in Chelsea and defying the odds. The film follows the journey of three residents working to eradicate long-existing inequities laid bare by the COVID pandemic. When they let their guard down, their community falls. Maria Belén Power is an environmental justice activist and mother of two young children seeking to forge a Chelsea where residents can live healthy lives. Judith García is a political activist raised by a single mother who immigrated to Chelsea from Honduras. Brandie Garcia is a high school student and community leader raised in the Chelsea projects. They believe in Chelsea, in what it is now and what it can be. As they begin to gain ground, they must also face the reality that their success may create a city its residents can no longer afford to live in.
Our main characters have been shaped and motivated by Chelsea and the challenges it has faced over the years. Through their stories and the voices of community members, Chelsea (working title) is a collective portrait of the often-overlooked community of Chelsea, populated by essential immigrant Latinx workers whose contributions allow daily life to go on in the northeastern portion of the United States. Chelsea is defined by its small size, by triple-decker houses next to three-story high piles of rock salt that de-ice winter roads for the surrounding cities. Community parks abutted by massive tanks hold fuel for Boston’s regional airport and New England homes during the winter. The cinematography of our documentary brings us into the lives of its residents amidst this industrial landscape.
Historically, Chelsea has struggled with environmental issues, food insecurity, the impact of immigration policy, and rising housing costs. Many pre-existing health conditions that made COVID-19 such a deadly disease are prevalent in Chelsea: it is among the Massachusetts cities with the highest incidences of asthma, pulmonary disease, cardiovascular disease and cancer.
Born in Nicaragua, Maria Belén Power is a Chelsea resident and community leader focusing on environmental justice. She works tirelessly to forge a Chelsea where residents can afford to live with dignity and in a safe environment. A disproportionate percent of Chelsea’s population suffers from asthma, including Maria Belen’s three-year-old daughter Ana Victoria. We follow Maria Belén when the Massachusetts Department of Transportation dumps waste with asbestos near a Chelsea housing project, and as she and fellow community members work to secure land in Chelsea that can provide affordable housing for Chelsea residents.
“We are a community that people dump stuff at. We’re an industrial community. We’re the third densest in the state. But none of that motivated me to leave.” – Judith García
Judith García, considers herself a “daughter of Chelsea.” Motivated by the struggles of her mother as a single parent and immigrant who has worked for decades at a factory in Chelsea, Judith is driven by a desire to forge a political voice for her community. She grew up in Chelsea at a time when it was particularly stricken by poverty, corruption and crime, so much so that the city government and school system was placed under receivership. As long as Judith can remember, decisions were made for Chelsea residents. Upon graduating from college Judith returned to Chelsea and became the youngest city councilor ever elected in the city. We follow Judith as she runs for State Senator and gains a seat at the table at the state level. As she embarks on this new phase, what challenges will she face as the first state senator from Chelsea, and the first Central American elected to the Massachusetts legislature? Will she be able to effect the changes she has hoped for, for her community?
Youth leader Brandie García is a self-described gay Afro-Caribbean student activist at Chelsea High School. Their mother, an essential worker, deals with long-term COVID, as does Brandie. Despite the bullying Brandie faced as a child, they became an outspoken advocate for Chelsea. We follow Brandie as a high school senior, leading a drive to remove the Christopher Columbus statue from a busy park in downtown Chelsea. Both Brandie’s perspective and the community’s polarized reaction to the removal of the statue provide a lens onto how the city will redefine itself moving forward. We follow Brandie as they become the first in their family to go to a four-year private college and begins to question their own identity and feelings about Chelsea.
Our main characters’ stories draw a portrait of Chelsea, furthered by ancillary characters that reveal the character of a community that fights to defy expectations. These voices, like the voice of a troubadour or Greek chorus, will be interwoven with intimate moments in the city which we describe in our artistic approach. In particular, there are two community members who may provide a “troubadour” voice. One is city sanitation worker, Brian Santiago, a poet and keen observer of Chelsea, and another, Gladys Vega, leads a community center that provides triage for the ongoing food, housing and immigration crises residents face. Many in Chelsea describe Gladys Vega as “the mother of Chelsea.” Raised in Chelsea, Gladys provides an unfettered view of her community and the way in which they must always be on guard.
Through the journeys of our three main characters, and with visuals tracing the daily rhythms of the city narrated by the voices of Chelsea residents, Chelsea is a collective portrait of an underdog community that has never given up. What happens when you believe in yourself when no one else does?
Credits:
Nikki Bramley, Sabrina Avilés