Latino/a Oral History Project
Dublin Core
Title
Latino/a Oral History Project
Subject
Oral History
Description
An ongoing oral history project focusing on the history of the Latine/Latino community of the Tri-Cities, Washington area.
Previously known as the WSU Tri-Cities Latinx Oral History Project headed by History faculty Robert Bauman and Robert Franklin. Hanford History Project made the decision in 2024 to use Latino/a instead of Latinx as the former more reflects the grammar and practical use and identification of Spanish speakers. We know that one term will not encompass all those identities. For example, Latine, a gender neutral pronoun and product of the queer Spanish community, was considered for use but we use Latino/a to reflect the prevalence of gendered pronouns in the Spanish language. However, we would like to acknowledge that the discourse around which term to use is complex and evolving. Every person has the right to use the term that captures who they are and that feels the most welcoming to them.
Previously known as the WSU Tri-Cities Latinx Oral History Project headed by History faculty Robert Bauman and Robert Franklin. Hanford History Project made the decision in 2024 to use Latino/a instead of Latinx as the former more reflects the grammar and practical use and identification of Spanish speakers. We know that one term will not encompass all those identities. For example, Latine, a gender neutral pronoun and product of the queer Spanish community, was considered for use but we use Latino/a to reflect the prevalence of gendered pronouns in the Spanish language. However, we would like to acknowledge that the discourse around which term to use is complex and evolving. Every person has the right to use the term that captures who they are and that feels the most welcoming to them.
Creator
Washington State University Tri-Cities
Rights
Those interested in reproducing part or all of this oral history should contact the Hanford History Project at ourhanfordhistory@tricity.wsu.edu, who can provide specific rights information for this item.
Language
English; Spanish
Items in the Latino/a Oral History Project Collection
Interview with Ruben Lemos
Ruben Lemos was born in Edinburg, Texas, to a large Mexican American migrant farmworking family that traveled across the western United States harvesting crops throughout the 1950s and early 1960s. After serving in the U.S. Army during the Vietnam…
Interview with Nathaly Posada
Nathaly Mendoza Posada was born in Silao, Guanajuato, Mexico, and immigrated to the United States at the age of nine, settling in Pasco, Washington, with her mother and grandmother. Her grandmother, a single mother of six, had first migrated to the…
Interview with Artemo Benitez Solano
Artemio Benítez Solano was born and raised in a small rural town in Mexico, where from an early age he dreamed of coming to the United States to work in agriculture. At sixteen, with his father’s reluctant permission, he left home with little more…
Interview with Lucy Aragon and Sharlett Mena
Lucy Aragon discusses migration to the United States, work, and raising her daughter Sharlett. Sharlett discusses growing up in Pasco and her work as a Washington State Representative and as a first person to attend college in her family. Watch the…
Interview with Ruben Peralta
Reuben Peralta and his family immigrated to the United States from a small village in Colima, Mexico, in 1978. They initially lived in Tijuana before moving to the Tri-Cities. The Peralta family's experience highlights the challenges faced by many…
Interview with Jerry Martinez
Jerry Martinez, a first-generation American, shares his family's journey from El Salvador to the United States. His parents fled the civil war in El Salvador and eventually made way to the U.S. through Mexico. Jerry was born and raised in the…
Interview with Alexia and Manuel Estrada
Manuel Estrada discusses his journey from Mexico to the Tri-Cities starting in 1977, his work in agriculture, and experiences incurred during the immigration process.
Alexia Estrada discusses growing up in the Tri-Cities, experiences in a diverse…
Alexia Estrada discusses growing up in the Tri-Cities, experiences in a diverse…