She was wheeled in on a cart decorated with shiny silver and pink garland. The large statue of Our Lady of Guadalupe looked regal, wearing a crown and a baby blue cloak as Boyle Heights residents took to the streets to honor the Virgin Mary, patron saint of Mexico.
Carrying flowers and candles, they sang “Mi Virgen Ranchera” and walked a mile-long pilgrimage to an apartment complex where they joined other tenants to pray the rosary and share a meal.
“¡Que viva la Virgen de Guadalupe!” they cheered.
It was one of 12 processions leading up to the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe — which, according to Catholic teaching — marks the appearance of the Virgin to St. Juan Diego, an Indigenous man, on a hill of Tepeyac in Mexico in 1531. The brown-skinned Virgin is honored with Masses and other celebrations across the Eastside.
This year, her feast day on Dec. 12 comes as immigration raids continue to sweep neighborhoods across Los Angeles. For many in Boyle Heights, the Virgen de Guadalupe — a symbol of immigrants and the fight against community injustices — offers strength and hope as they struggle with economic hardships and the threat of housing displacement.
“This is the moment for people to say, ‘I’m not going to be afraid. I’m going to go out on these marches because this is my community,’” said Ofelia Platon, with Unión de Vecinos, a local chapter of the Los Angeles Tenants Union that has helped organize the processions for several years.
“We have to keep working and fighting against all of this, and I think this is the best time to tell people, ‘Have faith. Have hope. There is light at the end of the tunnel,’” she added.
Along the procession route, there’s no escaping Boyle Heights’ devotion to the Virgin of Guadalupe. The Virgin finds her way into shrines outside neighborhood homes and on murals, like on the wall of East LA Market & Liquor and on the side of an ice cream truck passing by Sheridan Street.
As part of the tradition, residents deliver the Guadalupe statue to a new home each night leading up to her feast day.
This celebration, Platon said, is a way to preserve their cultural and religious traditions while uniting neighbors. To Platon, this is crucial as she sees residents forgo meals to afford rent. Groceries are too expensive and landowners are invoking the Ellis Act to evict tenants from rent-controlled units, she said. Unión de Vecinos distributes food packages twice a month to offer some relief.
“El pueblo salva al pueblo. If we don’t save ourselves, who will?” she said. “The Virgen gives us peace and tranquility. That’s exactly what we need right now.”
Ana, who took part in the procession, said she has entrusted her family to the Virgin of Guadalupe.
“Every day I ask la virgencita to protect them on their journey so that they travel and return safely,” said Ana, who asked that her last name not be published for safety reasons. “With the raids we are experiencing, we don’t know if we are going to return when we leave the house. Wherever you are, [immigration agents] can get you.”
Despite this fear, she finds peace and safety in honoring the Virgin with her community.
“It’s wonderful to congregate with different families. The sense of community we’re experiencing these days is like a warm embrace,” she said.
For Rosa Jimenez, the Virgin has granted her many miracles. She’s a reason why her mother overcame a recent illness, Jimenez said. “We would ask her with all of our hearts for her to get better,” she said.
Jimenez said she doesn’t leave her home without offering a prayer to the Virgin Mary and Saint Jude.
“Right now we are in a very difficult, very sad situation with these raids,” she said. “We go out, and we don’t know if we’re going to come back. I always say, with the blessing of la Virgen, the blessing of my San Juditas, and the blessing of my parents, I return home. Safe and sound … That’s the faith we have.”