Immigrants learn English along carless street in Jackson Heights

Jackson Heights participants in English classes along 34th Avenue. Photo courtesy by Nuala O’Doherty.

By Francisco Velazquez

Violetta Morales had never met so many of her neighbors until the pandemic spread through Jackson Heights. 

COVID-19 took a devastating toll on residents in the community where she has lived since moving from Mexico. But something else happened, too: The coronavirus spurred residents to help their neighbors in need.

“It’s the first time I’ve known so many people from my neighborhood,” said Morales, 34. 

COVID isolation also prompted the city to ban cars from a stretch of 34th Avenue, thus opening space for several new activities, like English classes that Morales regularly attends. Her three children play in the street while she practices her second language.

“I wanted to communicate with my kids, but it was hard to do it in English. Especially when you don’t have someone to look after them while you practice,” she said.

The classes have been led since May by community leader Naula Naranjo O’Doherty, a member of the District 30 Community Education Council and a former Assembly candidate. They are free to the public and are held outside of a local public school in order to allow parents and children to pick up lunch.

Anna Huerta, 45, her husband Roldolpho, 55, and two of her three boys in Jackson Heights, Queens. Photo courtesy of Anna Huerta.

Class participants bring their own chairs or sit in a few provided by O’Doherty.

 “The classes are more than 45 minutes of teaching, they are about strengthening community ties,” O’Doherty said.

Jim Burke, cofounder of the 34th Avenue Open Streets Coalition, said the classes formed in response to community members.

“A couple who lives on 93rd stopped me on the street and asked, ‘Why don’t we have an ESL group?’” Burke said.

He said O’Doherty was walking by as Burke repeated the idea and she agreed to teach the classes the next day. 

Anna Huerta, 49, said the 34the Street classes supplement her other ESL education. She recently completed her fall semester with the Jacob A. Riis Immigrant Services program, where she earned a diploma of completion on Dec. 10. 

“I feel happy, and beyond the circumstances I’m in, I feel like I’m doing a good job,” she said.

Huerta left Puebla, Mexico, 25 years ago, cementing roots in Queens once she arrived. Six years ago, she made the move to Jackson Heights, where she is raising her three boys with her husband Rodolpho Melendez, 55.

Since the pandemic, Huerta’s babysitting job has been on and off.

“I’ve been babysitting the kid for 10 years and he’s 10 now. I don’t watch him as often because his parents are working from home, but I do when they need me,” she said.

Huerta said she plans to continue attending the ESL classes, so long as the weather permits and the coalition continues programming into the new year.

Burke and O’Doherty say they plan to continue hosting the classes.

The classes have fostered a community among members, who regularly check in on a Whatsapp group chat where participants talk about class attendance, their health and their holiday plans. They have also helped each feel more confident speaking, Huerta said.

“I used to get nervous and a little embarrassed when I had to speak in front of other people because it sounded broken, but practicing with my neighbors has made me feel more comfortable,” she said. “It’s hard to believe I’ve been around them for years and I’m just now meeting them.”