Antonia Pantoja

A preeminent social leader of Puerto Ricans in the United States, Antonia Pantoja arrived in New York City in 1944, joining thousands of islanders who moved there over the following decade to work in low-paying postwar industries. While employed at various factories, she quickly started organizing to contest labor violations. Meanwhile, with scholarships, savings, and determination, she eventually earned a doctorate in social work.
In 1961, Pantoja founded ASPIRA (“to strive” in Spanish), an organization dedicated to improving disproportionally low Latino high school graduation rates. ASPIRA won a landmark lawsuit in 1972 that mandated bilingual education in the New York City school system. Pantoja’s efforts in education earned her the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1996.

This mosaic is a study for a public mural honoring Pantoja that was installed in the Puerto Rican community of East Harlem in 2015, where Pantoja initiated her career as a community and youth organizer.