Adriana
George
Photograph by
Lydia Chebbine
words by
Errin Haines
At 21, Adriana George left her home in the Caribbean for a new life in New York. She arrived with a strong sense of justice and fairness — and wasn’t here long before she was fighting for caregivers’ rights after hearing the stories of nannies like herself. Now an activist in Philadelphia and a U.S. citizen, George pushes for freedom, fairness and equality, helping to change local laws for domestic workers.
Adriana George didn’t set out to be a founder of our nation.
At 21, she left her home in the Caribbean for a new life in New York. She fell in love with caregiving as a nanny, and soon found community with others doing the same work in the city. At meetups in a local park, they shared stories of long days, low pay and mistreatment.
George realized what was happening to them was unjust, and she began organizing, documenting the workers’ experiences and speaking out.
She moved to Philadelphia, birthplace of American freedom, and did what the original founders did: She listed grievances and worked to demand change. It was there that she also became a U.S. citizen.
Today, she advocates for Black, Afro-Latina and Caribbean domestic workers, helping win protections that make employers accountable and workers safer.
Work like George’s is happening everywhere in our country — in city halls, in courtrooms and in neighborhood parks where caregivers gather between shifts, imagining something better.
“I don’t like to see injustice around me,” George said. “I’m fighting for workers to know they deserve better. Domestic workers do the work that makes all other work possible.”
George’s work is a reminder that democracy is not a finished project — it’s an ongoing one.