Our Work Will Be Far, and the Roads Are Unsafe

Housing insecurity has implications for the lives of Muslim migrant domestic workers not only in the context of shelter and economic distress but also in relation to care, violence, religious freedom, and labour rights. Drawing on data from focus group discussions and interviews with domestic workers living under the threat of eviction in the Indian city of Gurugram, the chapter aims to understand how gender, migrant status, religious identity, and class intersect to create distinct patterns of vulnerability and resilience in the context of housing insecurity. Actors such as the state and the employers exercise power in varied ways in these women&s;s lives as they navigate the eviction process. Our findings highlight four themes: Working class women see housing as gendered safety for themselves and their loved ones. Domestic workers see housing as central to their right to rest. For migrant Muslim women, housing security also offers protection for their religious freedom. Finally, housing security offers women the ability to foster community. These micro level insights about domestic workers&s; experiences of housing insecurity point to larger systemic issues such as hostile working conditions, absence of legislative protection, lack of state accountability and gendered and casteist violence in an environment where care is increasingly privatized. The chapter discusses the implications and potential interventions to promote equitable and inclusive urban development, specifically for vulnerable groups.