Marlis Momber - La Guerrera de Loisaida

Hello friends and admirers of Marlis Momber, please help us fundraise to cover medical and living expenses and to make sure that our "Guerrera" has good, healthy food on her table to get her through the excruciating medical treatments she is undergoing as a cancer survivor.

More about Marlis Momber's legacy below:

Marlis' long-time friend Susu, provided the following update:

"Marlis has been through hell physically since she had some chemo treatments due to the cancer. Her treatments came at the cost of other debilitating illnesses. Shingles that affected her body last summer and left her with neuralgic shooting pain throughout her back and other hyper-sensitive areas. Because of her fear of pain, she can’t be comforted with a hug or a gentle rub on the shoulder, arm, or back. And it’s taken a toll on her mental and emotional well-being. She is in debt and needs help, so Marlis and Curtis need all hands on deck, please. Marlis has helped hundreds of people, including myself, from NYC to New Paltz and other destinations she has traveled to. It’s time to help her get through these very challenging times."

Additionally, Marlis produced a critical piece of Lower East Side (Loisaida) documentary history, which has reached museums, archives, and galleries and has been used as b-roll material in uncountable other videos, documentaries, and even theaters. It continues to do so today without royalties or remuneration reaching Marlis, and it continues to be available to all.

Viva Loisaida! (1978) paints a beautiful and even daunting portrait of the Loisaida community emerging from the harsh times of disinvestment, showcasing the resiliency of the impoverished Lower East Side neighborhood's immigrant, African American, and Puerto Rican communities, who yet amidst the surrounding destruction and violence plaguing the neighborhood before and after the mid-1970s, still found the strength to lead positive change through art and innovation that led to community empowerment and survival.