After spending nearly four years chronicling the lives of the three women featured in MAID IN AMERICA, filmmaker Anayansi Prado continues to follow developments in their struggles to remain in the United States.

Prado checked in on her subjects in November 2005 and found out how Telma, Judith and Eva are coping.

TELMA

In the film…

Telma is a native of El Salvador and a surrogate mother to Mickey Marbury, a precocious 6-year-old on Los Angeles’ well-to-do Westside. But now Mickey is starting school. Will the Marburys still need her to nurture the boy she has come to regard as one of her own children?

Since then:

Prado reports: "Telma is still working with the Marbury family. Mickey is in second grade and she is supplementing her income by cleaning other people's homes while he's at school. Everything else in her life is pretty much the same."

JUDITH

In the film…

Judith came to the United States with her husband in search of a better future for her four children and her elderly mother, who live in a shack in Guatemala. But when Judith gets pregnant again and can neither perform heavy manual labor nor afford childcare for new baby Everest, she’s forced to make a life-altering decision.

Since then:

Prado reports, “After moving back to Guatemala, Judith returned to the U.S. in March 2005. Judith's daughters and family were heavily affected by the devastating rains in the Mexico/Guatemala border region a month or so ago [early October 2005]. When I saw Judith and her husband Alvaro last week, he was getting ready to go back to Guatemala to help their family rebuild."

EVA

In the film…

Eva worked as an accountant in her native Mexico and holds a B.A. degree. She came to Los Angeles for the job opportunities she imagined to exist there, but has ended up cleaning houses in order to survive. Eva spends what little free time she has continuing her studies—but is Eva deluding herself about the possibilities open to her in America?

Since then:

Prado reports: “Unfortunately, Eva hasn’t found work as a tax accountant again, but when I spoke to her last week, she said she's doing well. She's working three days a week cleaning houses; she doesn't want to be tied down to working all week. She's currently taking a break from night school.

“She told me she has a little bit of money saved and she and several other friends are looking to buy a house. Their plan is to put their money together, live in the house for a couple of years, then turn around and sell it for a profit. She’s also been rigorously attending yoga classes and has even already taught a few classes as a substitute teacher. As usual, Eva seems laid back and like she's having a good time.”

Learn about las domésticas in America >>