By Cindy Portillo, Editorial Intern
Ada Briceño immigrated from Nicaragua. She and her family fled a civil war at the age of 6. She never imagined her journey would lead her to become a fighter of women’s rights, civil rights, and immigrant rights. Moreover, she never imagined that her passions would raise her to the leadership of the Democratic Party of Orange County and Unite Here Local 11, which represents 32,000 workers employed in hotels, restaurants, airports, sports arenas and convention centers throughout Southern California and Arizona.
“As a Latina, I was not very welcomed [when I moved to Orange County],” said Briceño of her election in 2020 as the chairwoman of the Democratic Party of Orange County.
Orange County is primarily known for being a Republican County. But she is dedicated and motivated to make a change. When it comes to politicians there are not many people that look like her. Being a Latina and knowing that she is capable of making a change is very important to her.
As a union leader Briceño has been involved with Unite Here since she was 18 years old. At age 26 she became the first president immigrant Latina of the union. Her first hotel job is what led her into being a part of a union and into what she would be advocating for after that. She has always, in one way or another, been involved in politics. Working as a hotel clerk, Briceño saw first-hand how hotel workers were treated. She realized that without assistance from the union people of color, immigrants, men and women were not protected against company harassment such as discrimination or sexual harassment.
“I found passion in helping workers … and teaching people how to use their voice,” Briceño said. “That’s how I found myself, by giving a voice to workers, helping them find a voice.”
Briceño also worked at the Sheraton hotel in San Pedro for a year. She was able to obtain healthcare and received her best meal of the day there. Briceño was happy to work there, and made sure her co-workers did not get mistreated, making sure that they stood up for themselves.
Kurt Peterson, who has worked with Ada Briceño for more than 20 years, describes her as a tough woman who does not give up.
“She is a remarkable leader,” said Peterson, co-president of Unite Here Local 11. “She is a rare combination of vision, drive, and toughness. … Ada has grown into this extraordinary, remarkable, confident woman. Every step of the way she has fought for workers”
As the first Latina immigrant-serving her second term as chairwoman of The Democratic Party in Orange County, Briceño has been able to prosper against all odds.
In Nicaragua, her family was middle class. They often took trips within Central America and to the United States. Briceño is the oldest of four siblings and was a maternal figure for them. Her father was a banker and they were financially stable.
In addition, Briceño and her family were forced to leave their beautiful home where she often saw vast amounts of greenery. She remembers being able to freely run outside and play with her friend Virginia until one day in 1980 she could no longer go outside and see the beautiful scenery and flowers.
“One day when I came home from school, I was not allowed to leave my house anymore, Briceño said. “I couldn’t go out to play anymore because it was too dangerous, and then we would hear the bombs going off and that was a sign that we had to duck under my dining room table.”
The Nicaraguan revolution known as Revolucion Popular Sandinista happened in 1960-1970’s. When the dictatorship was ending, the civil war happened during the 80’s when the dictator was killed. The war was happening outside her home. It was a very frightening time period for Briceño and her family. She was confined in her home in 1980, the same year her family decided to leave because it was not safe. The green scenery and beautiful flowers were no longer there when she stepped outside her house. Everything was dark and muddy; her house was not the house she once knew. Her neighborhood was unrecognizable. The beautiful green scenery was gone.
When her family moved to the U.S. her family struggled economically. It was hard to adjust. Briceño struggled in school and her father did not have a good job. The simple life that she experienced in Nicaragua was long gone.
“We did a lot of Top Ramen,” Briceño said.
Despite their financial struggles when moving to the United States. Her parents tried their best with what they had. Briceño struggled in school, she struggled to make new friends and that was a really difficult time for her.
“It was hard to find friends in school or otherwise,” she said. “We were quite different, not only did we dress differently (my brothers and I), but we spoke differently, we ate differently. It was tough to acclimate. Our only friends were my cousins.”
Briceño said she finally found her voice in this country when she joined the union. She now shares that strength through her labor fight.
“My passion is developing leaders,” she said. “My union taught me how to find leaders and develop them so they can create social change in our country.
“Whether it was women’s rights, workers rights, immigration … every single road through those things led to politics.”