Capturing Connections by Liz Cantu

Oral History

2022-10-25 20:46:03 UTC

Ben Bevins

For my interview, I chose my aunt and her job experience as a teacher. I started asking her about herself, along with a few simple questions. While asking her, I found it interesting that she seemed so determined and could take on any challenge in her life. She told me that she was an open book and loved to talk about anything. During my interview, I asked her what it was like being a teacher and how she uses that experience in her current life. She told me that she would always treat her students with kindness. She still uses this skill in her current life, and in her current job as a Claims Adjuster. For example, when she speaks to people at her job or meets people in her life, she always tries to first understand their feelings. From what I gathered in my interview, I think people should learn how to treat others with kindness and learn from their life experiences. I believe students who want to earn a career as a teacher will benefit from learning about my aunt’s experience. Learning from her will help teachers gain knowledge on how they should treat students. This can give teachers the ability to understand and support other students if they're struggling in life. For my oral history, I think I will present it as PowerPoint slides. I will describe the interview, share what I've learned, and include recordings from the interview.

Daniel B.

2022-11-08 17:16:58 UTC

I chose to interview my father to learn more about him as I've never done before since there's a language barrier between the two of us (not fluent in Spanish). I asked questions regarding his childhood, and he was willing to answer my questions regarding my SDG topic, poverty, and talk about his life. While his family were not wealthy, they were not
poor either. He lived in Sinaloa, Mexico and was quite the troublemaker as a
child as he will usually pick fights and get in many altercations. He helped
the family by working on their farm and by taking many different jobs to
support the family until he turned 20. At the age of 20, my father made the
choice to move to California. There, he will work as a floor carpenter and take
on many old jobs by the locals to make ends meet. He will later meet my mother
who too moved to the U.S. and later get married together. They will have
their first child, my older brother, and that's when my father chose to look
for a better job to support his family. He worked tirelessly to make ends meet
and then later had me and my younger brother. He had to sacrifice his time to
be around us so he could provide for us, which is unfortunate. But I’m grateful
for what my father did. He made a new start in life by moving to California,
took on different jobs, never had the chance to go to school and continued to
work tirelessly to provide his family. This is a prime example of hard work and
dedication can do, from poverty to a mundane life. So, I want everyone to take
from this is even someone like my father was able to rise from poverty and can
support a family of three. Therefore, I would like to create a comic strip
depicting my father’s life as a child to today, like a short story.

Oral History #2

2022-11-18 00:04:04 UTC

Ammy Rubio

I chose to interview my dad. I wanted to learn more about his story and how he left Mexico as a teenager to come work in the United States since he does not talk about it. I couldn’t imagine leaving home so young and going to a different country where you had to learn a whole new language. What I found most interesting is his childhood. He grew up with six brothers and one sister, his dad worked many jobs but the one I enjoyed hearing about the most is when he would sell sodas. But they weren’t just regular can sodas they were the glass bottle ones because that’s all they had back then. And when my dad was little, he would go and help him sell the sodas. His mom did not work she would take care of him and all his siblings. But in my opinion, taking care of 8 kids is a job. And in that time, everything was so different they didn’t have washers and dryers as we do now. So, she would have to hand wash everyone’s clothes and my dad described her doing laundry almost every day. He says that she would have a big pile of clothes and would sit and hand-wash every single piece until she was done. Both of his parents were very motivated and hard-working, and he got that from them. Based on the interview I think others should learn about how hard it is to leave your home and all that you know to work for a better life for you and your family. I plan to make a PowerPoint so I can share my oral history with others.

Oral History 2

2022-11-18 17:52:45 UTC

For my interview, I chose my mom, ever since I can remember I’ve always found her story about how her career in Journalism fascinating. What I found the most interesting is the fact that my mom knew early on what her interests were both at school and in her personal life. I found it compelling when she knew what she wanted to be when she grew up and flourished in her adulthood. Based on the interview, I believe that others should know that even if they struggle with the career that they want to pursue such as financial problems or lack of motivation that anything they put their mind to, they can achieve their goal. I also believe that others should know that all careers are important and contribute to society in different ways, even the ones that are deemed “useless”. I think all people would benefit to hear my mom’s story of how she got to where she is today career and family wise, especially aspiring writers, journalists, and even those who want to major in communications. For my medium, I plan to make a brief powerpoint presentation describing my mother’s story to share with others.

Oral History #2

2022-11-18 22:55:28 UTC

Abel Rascon

For the second part of my oral history, I chose to write an oral history of my uncle. He was born in Mexico but moved to Gila Band when he was little. When he was a kid, he would go and play with his 5 other siblings. They would make up any game that they could and were very active. At the age of 10, him and his brother started working on a farm in Paloma. Of course, he wouldn't get paid since he was so young and naive, but he didn't care since he loved working and so did his brother. His school life was pretty good since they grew up in a small town, everybody knew each other, and everybody was everybody's friend. At the age of 16 he got a job as a farmer, then moved to Buckeye to work for a farmer there. Afterwards, he worked for a semi-truck company, then worked for the sheriff for 3 and a half years, then worked in a prison as their riot control, and is now a firefighter, and was recently promoted to firefighter captain. He has been married to his wife to for 13 years and has 2 young sons. He currently lives in Buckeye.

Oral History 2

2022-11-19 04:44:12 UTC

Zoe Tacia

For my oral history project I interviewed my dad. I think my dad's views on his family life were very interesting like how he viewed my aunts and grandparents when he was a child. I was also glad I got to get a peek into his college life and how he felt during that time. It made me feel so much more connected with him knowing that we are having such similar experiences even despite it being multiple years apart. I think people can either learn what it’s like being the youngest sibling between all girls or that college can bring out the best and the worst in people. I think people can also learn that it’s best to persevere even despite the challenges of college. I think that college students could find something to connect with in this story, especially the struggles he went through in order to succeed. I plan to do a video of the interview between my dad and myself with some editing to make the major points stand out.

Oral History 2

ant2288493 — 2022-11-19 04:47:05 UTC

Antonio Saavedra chavez

I chose my mom for my oral history interview. I asked her questions about her job, her childhood, and about being a mother while she was making gorditas stuffed with mozzarella cheese. She is one of the youngest of her 5 siblings, she comes from a family that were ranchers. She had a childhood that was happy and calm and was very close with the animals that my grandfathers used to have in his ranch. My grandfather used to teach her about loving and taking care of the animals, but mostly took care of her dog that she had. I asked her about what it is like to be a mother. She stated that as she grew up she tries to be responsible and try to stay active in various aspects of her life. My mom mentions that she considers herself as a housewife during her days of rest. She tries to get things in balance in her job, her family, and her house. She also likes to cook good meals for me, my siblings, and my dad. She also likes to make delicious tortillas as a way to release stress from her job. She likes to socialize and is a person that is open minded and also a person that you can always depend on. She also told me that she didn't get to finish school due to having to work most of the time. She also told me about her job, which is working in a warehouse in Goodyear, where they make cups and plates. She also told me that she works at night in order to balance her time with us so it wouldn't be complicated to take care of things at home. While talking about her job she gave me a valuable lesson about continuing to study, being in school, having a career that can make you successful in life because it is difficult to not have a career and working on an average job is very tiring than to have a job that you like and be very passionate about it. She also stated that if someone motivated her to be in school and keep on studying she would be in a better position. She finally stated that to never leave your dreams and it is never too late to fulfill those goals in your life, to stay healthy and always have a positive mindset because you transmit that positive energy into you. I will make a powerpoint to share my interview with my mom and include a recording of my mother.

Oral History #2

2022-11-19 04:57:43 UTC

Joseph Guerrero
For my interview I choose my neighbor. The reason I choose her is because I wanted to know more about her story on how she came to the United States. What I found interesting about the person I interview is how much she has gone through but is still a cheerful person. Based on the interview what I think other should learn about is how hard it is for immigrants to come to the United States. Not only that but also why they come here and how it has changed their life. I think everyone could benefit from learning about this person’s life because she has gone through things but didn’t stop her from trying to make things better. She decided to find a better life in the United Stated even though things would be very different. What I produced was an audio recording with translation so people who don’t speak Spanish could understand.

Oral History 2

2022-11-19 06:55:28 UTC

Daviel Vazquez

The person I selected for my oral history interview is Jim Heinrich, the MTI Club Director here at EMCC. This was a good candidate for my oral history because he has a fascinating past and is now a teacher. What I found most interesting about Jim was his experiences before becoming a teacher and his insight into different parts of life that touch not only on the good but also some of the bad parts. More specifically, when we talked about the constant sacrifices that had to be made to get to where he is now, he spoke about how happy he is to be where he is now. Based on the interview, everyone should take time to learn about what makes them happy and what sacrifices they might have to make in the future to achieve their vision. Everyone would benefit or take something of value from the interview with Jim. So far, I plan on doing a video; however, I’m planning on adding a creative twist to it, but I’m still brainstorming for now.

Oral History 2

2022-11-20 02:49:15 UTC

Halle Jackson
For my oral history assignment I chose to interview my boyfriend because I wanted to hear more about how him and his family moved here because of the earthquake that happened in his country Haiti. I thought it was interesting to learn about because I like hearing upbringing stories of people from different countries in hearing about how they lived and how other countries treat them. I think others should learn more about immigrants or natural disasters because it takes a big part of your life away or I could change it for the better. I think it would benefit people who live in the United States or other countries where they're protected because people don't understand that it's a privilege to live somewhere like the United States and have certain opportunities given to you then other countries. I will be having a audio of the interview that I did with my boyfriend and him explaining what he saw and how he felt during the earthquake.

Oral History #2

kat2320078 — 2022-11-23 04:11:04 UTC

Kat Sukhorukov

For this assignment, I interviewed my mom. The most interesting thing I found out is that my mother is actually very knowledgeable in politics, and has some detailed solutions for problems such as war and immigrant inequality. She also talked about how if we wish to stop inequality within countries, then we should host more fun community gatherings, such as summer camps and campfires. I think others should learn about such methods, since summer camps are a great way for people to bond, regardless of status or wealth. Many people would benefit from hearing her perspectives and story on how difficult it is to immigrate to another country when you do not know the language, culture, or customs. I think her story would bond many immigrants together through experience and advice on how to live among people who do not understand you. She also mentioned how immigrant discrimination is inevitable due to a language barrier, since misunderstandings would be common. She hopes that more people will acknowledge the fact that many immigrants have had rough experiences before coming to a new country, and want to settle peacefully. I would produce her story as a video to add visual elements and gain sympathy from people who have not experienced a similar situation.

Oral History #2

2022-11-30 01:00:00 UTC

Cruz Herrera

I Decided to interview my sister as she is now the first in our family to actually have a degree. What i found very interesting was the train of thought and how she worded her expierence of the struggles and hardships she felt when tryin to achieve such a feat. I believe when it comes to school that people should know all sides to what it means to strive for a degree including the first time achievers like my sister. I think personally that the way she described some of the hardships and ways to solves this issue would be a great asset for upcoming student like myself as knowing some one who has not only been there emotionally but has done it on their own with no insider knowledge truly gives comfort to those trying to gain the same accomplishment under the same circumstances. I conducted a powerpoint with audio asking various questions on what it means to have drive, struggles, achievements, goals, and contempt during her time of trying to get her degree.

Oral Histories Part 2 Bradley Frye

bradleyfrye1 — 2022-12-03 04:19:23 UTC

The thing that I found most interesting about the person that I interviewed is how dedicated he is to the game of golf. I've met many people that are passionate about what they do, but my brother is someone who takes that to another level by making golf the thing that gives him the most joy out of just about everything he does in his life. Golf is his life and that is what makes him so great at it. I think that a lot of people can take away a lot from the conversation that we had and the answers he gave because he is someone who puts his all into what he's passionate about and a great example of what hard work can do for someone. Becoming a golfer or a professional athlete in general is a very difficult task, but he has the work ethic and the passion required to get to that level and I am extremely confident in the fact that he will make it to that point one day. The medium is chose for this project was audio because I think that it's such a personal form of an oral history because you get to hear the person describe their life through their words which gives you a better sense of who that person was and what they were like. I think that this is a great way for people to preserve the past and save it for future generations to see even years after being made.

Oral history #2

2022-12-03 04:19:25 UTC

Kiya Rowland

For my interview, I chose my dad because I wanted to learn more about his drug and alcohol addiction and how he became sober and a successful role model. Which he talks a lot about but I never could fully understand why he did it and why he stoped. 1. What I found most interesting about this interview was how he explained that alcohol made him feel. When he was in high school he felt like he was out of place and uncomfortable within himself and the first time he got drunk he was 15 and in that moment he knew alcohol was going to be a big part of his life. He explained that it made him feel nothing and had confidence and he felt in place. Later my brother was on drugs and he explained to me he had felt the same way my dad felt which makes me think that maybe all addicts have something in common. 2.What I think others should take from this interview is that seeking help when struggling with alcohol and drugs is very important. Like my dad said in his interview he tried doing it alone and in "his own way" because he didn't want to find help. And now he is a sponsor for teenagers who struggled with the same thing as him. Which inspires me because he took one of his lessons in life and turned it into a blessing helping other and being there for them. That's what I want to do in my life as well to help kids and seeing my dad do that out of the kindness of his heart makes me believe I can as well and anyone really can. Another thing people should take from this interview is that it is okay to be different and weird from the rest. Not to change yourself for others because in the end it only hurts and effect you more in the long run. 3. The people who would benefit from this interview would be the teenagers or adults who feel out of place or feel alone because the people who feel like this tend to do activities that make them not want to feel anymore and drive them down a bad path. 4. My oral history to share with the class will be a video of me interviewing my dad.

1. What I learned from my interview was that it’s important to ask for help when it’s needed and to ask before It’s too late or it gets worse. Also, it’s okay to think about yourself than other it’s important to take care of yourself because it betters you as a human being.

2. How your learning helps you better understand interpersonal communication?

My learning helped me better understand interpersonal communication with watching my dads body language while he was telling his story and that where nonverbal communication comes in because I could tell he was getting sad while telling me about his alcohol addiction.

3. How will you plan to apply your learning beyond our class? I plan on using interpersonal communications in my daily life but mainly focus on how to deal with conflicts in personal relationships because that is something I am willing and wanting to work on more. I tend to just push thing to the side, and I rather not talk about it but reading this chapter made me realize that it’s better to communicate your feeling.

oral history part 2 - Akansha Tewatia

2022-12-03 23:17:24 UTC

For my interview I chose to interview my long distant aunt about her son's addiction to hard core drugs causing him to pass away. It was a very serious heartbreaking conversation because he was like an older brother to me and super close to his mom. It is hard to say people in our generation get in doing the worst things at a young age and the results are horrendous. Drug addiction is a global issue and it has to be prevented because it's really bad to see what they can do to a person. She said she tried communicating with him but his friends and everyone has influenced him badly and he was facing lots of stress. People choose to do drugs so they can get away from stress, something that is bothering them for temporary time to make them happy. I found most interesting about this interview that she was able to help me with this project and explain me the story and it opened my eyes and that I will personally stay away from those things because addiction is not always the right choice to do when something is bothering you, it's better to face it and move on in life. Because life is just a memorable thing, it is better to enjoy every single movement as much as you can.

Oral History #2 - Andrue Anaya

and2310015 — 2022-12-05 01:17:35 UTC

For my interview, I chose my grandpa. The reason I chose him was because of his past. I was curious about how he got to Arizona due to his coming from Chihuahua. He told me that he came here by himself first leaving my grandmother and father in Chihuahua. His goal to come to Arizona was to guarantee a better future for his son. He told me that Chihuahuas struggled with poverty. I asked him about the infrastructure, and he brought it back to why he left for Arizona. When he arrived, he said he could see the potential for Arizona even though it was barren 35 years ago. He explained that he worked as a farmer until he could finally bring my father and grandmother here. After conducting my interview, the thing I found most interesting was my grandfather's mindset. He told me that he was determined to do anything for his family. Even leaving everything behind for a better future. I think others should know or learn about the real problem of poverty. We don't get to see the real severity of poverty but it does exist and people are stuck there for a long time. I think people who are scared to take a risk can benefit from this interview. They can learn to take a leap of faith for the betterment of themselves or family. To share the oral history, I will choose to make a comic book strip.

Oral History #2 Arianna Lopez

2022-12-05 03:47:27 UTC

I decided to interview 2 residents at the Independent Living home I currently work at. Mr. and Mrs. Saputo were great candidates for my oral history project. I mainly interviewed Mrs Saputo. What I found the most interesting was her life as a child during the Great Depression and how she worked at the Pentagon for a year. Based on this interview with Mr and Mrs Saputo, I hope individuals will have a greater understanding of how life was truly like during those difficult times . It is important to learn about history since it allows for us to know why things are the way they are today and develop the ability to avoid past mistakes. I plan to provide a slideshow with audio included.

Oral History #2 - Justin Nguyen - Oh boy, it's war!

2022-12-05 08:09:24 UTC

For my interview I decided to interview my mom in order to learn more about her life as a Vietnamese immigrant. She was born in 1959 in Vietnam and never knew her father. He was a white soldier who didn't want to have anything to do with his child. A lot of mixed-raced children, majority being half-white, were born in Vietnam during the 50's and 60's and sadly, a lot of them were left abandoned by their white fathers. That's just another one of the sad forgotten realities of war. She remembers living in a little village, and going down the streets buying small snacks for just a few cents. She had a best friend who lived in the next village over that she used to play with a lot. As the war progressed and spread, they realized they couldn't stay where they were any longer. The village her friend lived in was attacked, and her friend was killed. When my mom fled the country, she remembers her and her family being put on one of those giant aircrafts used to carry large cargo. And they left everything behind and came to America. She was a teenager when she first arrived in Ohio. She didn't know any English and had to teach herself. She remembers being bullied when she first got here but over time she made friends and adjusted to the American life quite well. Eventually her and the rest of her family moved to Arizona which is where they have been ever since. She met my father in the 90's and had me and my sisters. It is still hard for her to talk about Vietnam and I understand. The amount of trauma that people must have suffered from that war is unimaginable to me.

First thoughts:
Immigrants often have to work more than twice as hard to make a basic living here in America. If they need help they are scrutinized by 'certain' Americans as being lazy or freeloaders. And that's when they're not being called r*pists, serial killers, or drug smugglers who are here to destroy the country. I remember being a kid and learning about how America was a wonderful melting pot of different people from all around the word. It really stuck with me and still does. I was a first generation American. I consider myself lucky to have grown up around so many different people of different backgrounds. I won't let the hateful and ignorant try and destroy that.
---

Even in the year 2022, right now, we are still suffering from war. And it saddens me that what my mother went through OVER 50 YEARS AGO...

Is happening to another little girl just like her.

I'm lucky that I get to live a life I am happy with, have the opportunities that I do, freedoms that I do, and I only want the same for everyone around the world.

My take away from this is that I think it is sad. It's sad that people treat immigrants so poorly. It's sad that the world can't get along. It's sad that in this day and age we can have pizza vending machines, self driving cars, the internet, 1,000+ Pokemon, more opportunities, faster than ever before societal progress, and freaking virtual reality strippers?! - next to things like racism/discrimination, war, poverty, diseases, starvation, human rights violations, homelessness, lying to the public, mass violence, countries making threatening power plays as if we're in some dam Civilization game, and the list goes on.

It's just a crazy juxtaposition where it feels like we are living in that thin line between a violent past and a peaceful future. The holidays are coming up, so here is your present. Enjoy.

But you know 100 years ago in 1922, we were still riding horse carriages down the streets. 100 years may seem like a long time - but being over 25 I've already lived more than a quarter of it. The world is completely different from 100, heck even 25 years ago. And I feel the rate of progression is only going to get faster - so long as we don't kill each other in the process.

So maybe there is hope that things will get better. And we can all just happily enjoy being weird looking hairless monkeys on a floating moldy rock, slowly drifting through the endless void of space.

No nukes, no wars, nothing bad, just space monkeys.

oral history #2 (Karina C.)

2022-12-05 08:36:45 UTC

for my interview, I chose a manager I'm very close to. the reason I chose her is because she dealt with a lot of hardships while being here in Arizona for the past few years and I feel as if me and her have a lot in common. I decided to interview with her about how it was like raising 3 girls by herself as an independent woman. she told me it was a challenge especially with difficulties in her hometown Anaheim CA. she was a teen mom when she had her first daughter back when she was a senior in high school she told me her having her didn't stop her from graduating. As time passes by she had her two other baby girls by the year 2017 she decided to come to Arizona Jobless she was surviving off of her savings account as she either slept in her car or her sisters couch since that's the only family she has. soon enough she eventually found the job we both currently work FEDEX Ground working her way to the top and became a manager. what I learn from this is that she sacrificed a lot to be where she's at but it shows that she never gave up giving her and her 3 (currently 4) daughters a better life. what others should know that parents sacrifice a lot to provide a better life for their children and that's something most take for granted. many people would benefit her story because being a single mother isn't easy. I will provide a powerpoint visualizing her story.

Oral History #2 Ernesto Q.

2022-12-05 21:47:38 UTC

For my interview, I chose my granddad. He told me all about how the Mexican lifestyle and what he experienced. He stated, "Mexico is made up of 31 states and one federal district. It is the third largest country in Latin America and has one of the largest populations (more than 100 million, making it the home of more Spanish speakers than any other nation in the world. Despite the political and social changes that have occurred over the centuries, evidence of past cultures and events is apparent everywhere in Mexico. Although their rebellion was unsuccessful, the Zapatistas continue to fight against imbalanced land ownership and power distribution, with little success. Further complicating the already problematic social division is the ever-growing problem of drug trafficking, which has contributed to political and police corruption and helped widen the gap between the elite and the underprivileged. In recent years, building foreign-owned factories and plants (maquiladoras) in some of Mexico’s rural areas has helped draw the population away from Mexico City and redistribute some of the country’s wealth. The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) of 1994 increased Mexico’s financial ties to the United States and Canada, but the Mexican economy remains fragile. Despite its problems, the Mexican economy, with its growing industrial base, abundant natural resources, and variety of service industries, remains important to Latin America.

My takeaways:
Mexico has the greatest cultural change of their time between the 1800s-1900s and the time period that my granddad grew up in was better than previous years. In his time, however, the people still struggled in certain places in Mexico even after all the fighting and bloodshed.

Oral History #3- Samuel C

sam2178850 — 2022-12-06 01:59:43 UTC

For my interview, I decided to speak with my grandma. She was born and lived in Mexico until she came to the United States of America at the age of 22. She explained how her life was drastically different from where she grew up. Mexico had such a familiar unit of taking care of, not just family, but neighbors, friends, coworkers and more! She mentions that when she moved here, she noticed that many people kept to themselves and how she found it indifferent when a simple “hello” would be assumed as off putting. She had recalled a time of introducing herself to the neighbors the first time she moved, and says that that was one for four times of interacting with them, of the five years she lived in her neighborhood. I took away a lot from this interview. In the United States of America, we have lost that common sense of friendliness towards each other. We have all been taught to kept to ourselves and focus on ourselves, and maybe immediate family. We tend to stray away from even the people we live next too! It would be beautiful to see, once again, simple communication and friendliness between each other!

Oral history # 2 (Isabel Ramirez)

2022-12-06 03:31:27 UTC

I chose to interview my boyfriend's mom, Karina. The thing I found the most interesting about her is the sacrifices she was willing to take for her and her child’s well being, which is my boyfriend. She came to the United States for better opportunities such as: better jobs, finance, stability, and for her child’s education. Not to mention, for him to live a less hard lifestyle that she did growing up. However, to do this she had to leave her husband behind and end her marriage because he loved the life he built in Mexico. What I find the most interesting about Karina is how dedicated she is; when she wants something she does all that she can to succeed. In the interview I asked what she thinks we should learn from her story and she said, for us who were born in the United States, to be more grateful for the things and opportunities we have received and I would agree with her because I myself can admit there has been times where I do not take that into consideration. I feel that Karina’s story would be the most beneficial to my boyfriend Marcelo because with him comprehending what his mom went through so that he can have a better life will make him want to try more/ to be more dedicated the way she was. I plan to create this interview by making an audio for my peers to hear and listen about this motivating story.

Kenny Thomas

2022-12-06 03:46:35 UTC

The topic I chose from global solutions is sustainability from goal 11. I interviewed my neighbor Mrs. Ortiz. What I found most interesting is how much she composts in her backyard for her garden. She has a lot of plants on the front porch and a huge garden in the back. She grows carrots, cilantro, jalapenos, tomatoes, flowers, and basil.She buys a lot of fruit and makes sure to keep the scraps in order to keep the plants healthy and growing.I have never composted so I thought it was fascinating to see how she reuses her waste. Based on the interview, I think that it’s very important to limit the amount of water you use between showers, washing your hands, dishes, washing your car, or even over-watering plants. It will help Arizona as a state not run through all of our water supplies and save money on the water bill. I think that everyone can learn from my neighbor’s life. Some people don’t compost, recycle, think about how much waste they are producing, think about how their gas contributes to environmental problems, utilize solar energy, or be aware of how they affect the environment. A medium that I would like to produce to share this information is a graphic.

Amaya Pruitt Goal #1 No Poverty Target 1.4

2022-12-06 03:49:58 UTC

For my oral interview I interviewed my dad. My dad is dark skin black man living in America and had a pretty stereotypical upbringing within the black community, so a lot of our conversation was on and reverted back to his roots of poverty and a general sense of poverty in the world. Talking to my dad about this was interesting because I’d never heard his take on poverty and how he felt about it, it was interesting to see him talk about how a lot of times poverty is inherent and systemic and because of that it’s nearly impossible to dig yourself out of it because the odds are forever unfavorable to you. This take was interesting to me because I have also had thoughts along those lines and I feel as though not enough people talk about how oppressive and systemic poverty is. A lot of people like to pretend and believe that poverty is the the individuals fault, that normally they’re drug addicts or just choosing poor jobs, didn’t want to get an education, that people are just kind of lazy, but that’s not the case at all. We don’t live in a world where we all have the exact same opportunity and chances and there’s so much nuance in a topic such as poverty and I really wish more people understood that and invested their time into looking into it and trying to find a way to solve the problem rather than put the blame on victims. I think my dads story with poverty is a pretty important and impactful one (without airing out all his dirty laundry, my father heavily dealt with poverty from his mother being a single mother in Chicago to him then living on his own at the age of 17, his story shows a very rough and vicious cycle of poverty), I think more people would be empathic and understanding of poverty if they knew people who grew up in the true depths of it without no way out and no one to place blame on them. I plan to produce a poem of which I will do right now:

Jobs can’t be kept

All the children wept

So many nights not slept

There’s no one misstep

Children so oblivious

We aren’t keen on being frivolous

So many people are delirious

When will this seem serious?

There is no rest

We try our best

But we’ll fail the test

Because this wasn’t built of us

White towers

With white powers

Black struggle

And we don’t always have each other

If we came together

And tried to fix the mess instilled

So deeply in a system that’s been here since forever

We might find ourselves be-stilled

With the change of our will

Oral History #2(Aprilia K.)

apkng2765 — 2022-12-06 04:06:29 UTC

For my oral history I interviewed my sister. She was young when we moved from California to Arizona. I found it interesting to see her point of view from how she was impacted from the move. She described her emotions and what she felt during those times. It was easy to see the emotion she had about the subject through her words and tone. Based on the interview I believe those who get to know her need to know the background to her. She is a private person and has dealt with several hardships. To fully understand her they would need to know who she used to be before her life got flipped upside down. Those who are willing to get close to her will benefit deeply. They will learn who she is and why reacts certain ways. She shares several key points during the interview which can influence those to view their own emotions to events that could have impacted them. I plan on sharing this story through a video. The video will show her facial features and will add definition to her emotions.

My take away:

You don’t truly know what someone is feeling until they explain to you what they are going through. Many people experience things differently and will show different emotions form the next.

Maira Robles

2022-12-06 05:31:10 UTC

For my interview I choose to interview my mom. She was born and raised in Zacatecas, Mexico with a middle school education but her and my father moved to the U.S. in their 20s like many others to provide a better future for their kids. I wanted to know what drove her to become the successful person she is. Growing up she was a part of a poor community but was actually one of the more wealthy families in the area. She was just able to have access to basic necessities such as water, electricity, WIFI, and other things others in her community did not have. When she and my father came to the U.S. they were in California working in the fields eventually moving to Arizona. When she moved to Arizona she and my father were able to get a permanent residency and worked here in the fields again but were provided housing. She had my sister and it pushed her and my dad to find better-paying jobs with my other sister conceived 2 years later. As my sisters were younger my mom would work multiple jobs, as well as my dad, provide for them. She later started a house cleaning business as she also worked at a restaurant. in 1999 they bought their first home and a small home 3 bedroom 2 bath that they still own to this day. When I was born in 2001 my parents both had businesses and financially were getting by. She spoke about knowing that she wanted me and my sisters to get higher education and it pushed her to work harder so she could pay for it. She eventually had her business pick up traction to where she now employs 7 people. When speaking about ensuring me and my sisters received higher education she got emotional. She spoke on how she will never regret it even now knowing that my older sister is currently working on her doctorate and my other sister finished with a master's with me planning on a double bachelor's. She said that everything she sacrificed and did was well worth it after seeing the women we became.
From this interview with my mother I really understand how much a mother's love and dedication to ensure her children have it easier will drive you to success. Now my mother still has the business and her and my dad are comfortable with an early retirement that they well deserve.

Anthony Gomez

2022-12-06 05:32:07 UTC

I interviewed my friend who worked in Canada during the pandemic. They had an interesting viewpoint as someone who was considered essential by the law but they weren’t treated essentially to the point that they did not get all the benefits that were supposed to be offered to them. I also found their concerns for AI on future sustainability interesting as most people normally only consider the automation of supposed low-skill jobs like factory work. People should understand how their life opportunities are heavily influenced by upbringing For example, most people are focused on Ukraine but the policies and violence going on in the Philippines made a large impact on people in Canada. As for upbringing, my friend came from a very privileged background and was able to get a job mostly due to their background and opportunities given to them by others even if they did use those opportunities well. Another aspect people should keep in mind is how easy it is for national policies to cause people harm or let people slip through the cracks even if the government targets them with detailed laws. I used an audio recording to share the interview because I think it helps focus on the content of the person’s story.

Goodness Ezra, Goal 10-Reduced Inequalities

2022-12-06 06:12:47 UTC

For this Oral history project, I interviewed a friend of the family, Doctor C. He has always been vocal about his struggles immigrating from a rural part of his home country Congo in Africa to the United States. He talked about how he grew up poor and when he was finally granted the opportunity to flee his poverty-stricken country, he was elated. The United States is seen as the land of the free, so he was excited to embark on his new journey to success. Unfortunately, when he got here, employers did not favor his skin color or his accent. Because of this, he was limited to cooking and cleaning jobs to make ends meet. He lived with a friend and saved enough money to attend college and earn a bachelor's degree. He went on to become an ophthalmologist. I found it interesting that the discrimination did not stop after he started improving. He also spoke about how he was repeatedly passed up for a job position in favor of his non-black counterparts with fewer educational accomplishments. He discussed how it wasn't until one of them made a grave mistake, that he was offered the position. I believe other immigrants or people who plan on migrating from other places in Africa would benefit from this information. They would know that sometimes immigrants may have to work twice as hard because some believe they have not earned the right to be here. I plan to develop an audio to share this oral history with others and how we can all work together to achieve the goal of reducing inequalities.

Mia Garcia

mia2165250 — 2022-12-06 06:54:58 UTC

For my oral history project, I interviewed my coworker, her name is Nina Salvador. From a previous conversation, I knew that she had her own garden, and I decided to ask her more about this choice. Nina told me that it is something that she likes to do to keep herself busy and healthy. She likes to plant veggies and other foods. She states that it is a much richer taste that she loves to give her family members. Not only this but she also just has exotic flowers that she is very proud of. When asking her about the way she keeps her plants healthy, she explained that she likes to reuse old produce. She asserted how she likes to use all of her gardens in any way she can find a use for them. She also claimed that whenever she does not have time to attend to her garden, she taught her children how to help her maintain the livelihood of her plants. I think it is amazing that she is also teaching her kids how to compost and create fresh produce. As someone who could not keep a plant alive, I found it very fascinating that she has this whole garden that she attends to daily. In general, she is a very hard-working person, and this only goes to show her dedication to things that are important.

Oral History Alejandra Romero

2022-12-06 06:57:34 UTC

For this interview, I chose my dad because I thought it would be more of a challenge because he hardly opens up about his upbringing but today, he was willing today, my father was born in 1973 and grew up in Sonora, Mexico he was the middle child to a family consisting of 2 sisters and one brother his mother and father, my grandparents are both strict Catholics. My father and his siblings were raised in a strict but loving traditional Mexican household where his dad worked throughout the day and his mother would be the homemaker. This was his life until 1981 when his parents would decide to immigrate to the United States, upon asking he replied with “just” he tells me that they just wanted more opportunities here in the United States my grandparents are hard-working people he went on about stories about my tata (grandpa) working any kind of odd jobs to support them one week it was Jack-in-the-box the other was a car dealership. Eventually, he would settle as a warehouse worker and worked for nearly 40 years! My dad would follow him in his footsteps. I plan on making a more in-depth PowerPoint on my dad’s story because i can illustrate with images and go more into depth with it.

Oral History #2- Christian Zendejas

2022-12-07 00:42:33 UTC

I conducted my interview with my friend Brad. He grew up in Phoenix, Arizona and has been here all his life. After graduating high school Brad took a gap year to better understand himself. In this elasped time he set out to summit the highest points in all 50 states. In his journeys he has met a miriad of unique charcaters and seen countless beauties so I asked him to share some of his favorite experiences with me. As of now he has summitted 28 state's highest points of the 50. So far he says the hardest summits have been Idaho, Colorado and surprinsgly Nevada. He says that Idaho has been the most dangerous but Nevada's hike takes so long that they had to spend the night on the mountain to finsih it. He had to quit his Colorado hike the first time becasue they got caught in a snowstorm but later returned to finish the job. He notes that some of the high points in the US are not as grand as you would expect, for example Kansas''s high point is just an empty field in the great plains with no elevation change for as far as the eye can see. His favorite hike by far has been visiting the highest point in Hawaii. Hawaii's high point sits atop a dormant volcano and stands at a staggering 13, 796 ft of elevation. From there he said the stars are the brighest and clearest he has ever seen them, most likely due to the lack of light pollution we see in many of our cities in the continous United States. Despite Hawaii usual greenery Brad says the mountain is surprisngly barren but maybe to be expected from a volcano, nonetheless the sheer expanse of the landscape was beautiful in its own right he says. Going forward the hardest hikes awaiting him lie in Califonria's Mt. Whitney, Washington's Mt. Rainer, and Alaska's infamous Denali. Despite the challenges and dangers they present Brad says summitting brings him a joy nothing else does. It has helped him become more confident in himself both in his physical abilites but also in his mental disipline. He tells me humans are capable of a lot more than they think they are and that is something he has learned on his hikes as he has countinously found new limits to himself. When you're up on the mountasin miles away from any form of help or civilization he says that is where you find what you are truly capable of. I think this interview could be inspiring to a lot of people, especially those who are unsure of themselves and are looking for who they truly are. I think it does a great job of finding value in a common hobby and applying it to other aspects of their life. I think based off the interview the best medium for this would either be an essay or a video of the interview coming from the person telling the tale.

Arianna Velasquez

2022-12-07 04:06:34 UTC

I conducted my interview about my father, growing up he did not have the best childhood nor household. All his life he was told "no" to the things he wanted even for a loaf of bread. Sitting and listening to his stories makes me wonder what happened to him as a kid back then, if I were to put myself in his shoes. He grew up in Los Angeles where he would go and run with his friends until he went home and there he would go with his siblings and just be bossed around. when he was just 16 years old he started working at KFC with my tio and there that's where he told himself no matter what working will always be what he does in life and get what he always wanted since "NO" was the answer to everything. What I found interesting is that I learned things that I didn't even know about my dad and how that can show a lot of emotions, especially when it comes to communicating his past. Others should definitely take the time to sit down and talk to there loved ones because there can be things that they don't know and you never know what can happen in a persons life and experiences. especially there were days my dad went to sleep hungry. It benefits my social skills and the communication I have with society because when it comes to public speaking, that's something that can be worked on and for the other person it teaches them that going more in depth to the things there holding in it can come with a lot of support in the near future. the medium I chose was slides because it's easy for people to read and understand.

Lizz Irwin

eli2091904 — 2022-12-09 03:40:47 UTC

The person I spoke to was a middle aged white man and even though he believes that there should be more wealth equality and that people should be treated equally based on merit, he didn’t seem to have any idea how to influence that change beyond a person by person basis. He shared that he felt an employer that paid someone more or less dependent on their genetics, accommodations or disabilities, religion, or gender was unfair and showed poor moral character of the company. It was interesting to see how passive he felt his role should be. The ideas he presented for influencing that change was to teach about these issues in grade school. I asked how he envisioned having schools teach on those issues with the recent push against critical race theory and the “don’t say gay” bill that had passed in Florida and he wasn’t sure how to accomplish that, but felt that government and regulations would do nothing to help. I believe his viewpoint is important, because I think it shows how little some people think about issues that don’t affect them and made me wonder where my blind spots may be. People who would benefit from his story are those trying to start the chain of events that bring about this kind of change. I will share a comic about the interview with him.

Alicia - Oral History #2

2022-12-11 17:40:06 UTC

For my oral history project, I choose to interview my grandmother because she has been through so much in her early years in life and till this day, she has not lost her enthusiasm, charm, and love. My grandmother was born in 1977 in Torreon Mexico, she was the second oldest out of 9 siblings, her father was always in his children's lives, but he was hardly around because he worked a lot to be able to provide for all his kids. Her mother had left them when her children were all young, so my grandmother had to step up and be the mother and father of her siblings. She explained to me how she had to drop out of school to take care of her siblings, in the morning she would make everyone breakfast with whatever food they had and made sure they still went to school then after her and her oldest brother would go to work. At the time it was a lot easier for Mexican residents to cross the border, the border patrol system was not as protected as it is now. So, eventually her father would figure out a way to cross his children across the border. They all made it to California and she's lived in Calexico and Imperial valley. When they moved there, she still was young, her and her brother started working in the fields because at the time that was really the only place that immigrant children can work as. In this part of the interview, I asked her about the Caser Chaves movement and how it was experiencing that, she tells me how it was extremely hard working in the fields the conditions were horrible and the people in charge of them would show them no respect and treat them inferior. She explained how walking in the protest gave everyone hope for the future of farm work and she said how it felt great to have everyone united and passionate about this one thing. As she got older, she ended up having 3 children, and her siblings were old enough to take care of themselves, and she moved to El Centro in Cali to raise her 3 kids as a single parent. She told me how she still made sure they went to school, and she tried to provide as much for them as she could. When she would work late, she would hire a babysitter to watch them. She stayed most of her life; her children grew up and had their own children. Long story short one of her sons (my father) moved to AZ to raise his family and about 10 years later my grandma retired and moved to AZ to be near her son. Now she says how happy she is living here in AZ she has her own little place where she can cook and relax and still see her children. At the end of the interview, I asked her how the Cesar Chaves movement affected her life and if she had any wise words of encouragement for anyone hearing her story. She tells me how the movement improved the conditions a bit and how they started to get paid a bit more as well. When it came to the workload it was all still pretty much the same, but she is happy that she has her social security checks now since at the time they were not provided health care or 401. Throughout the interview she kept saying how she wishes she would have finished school, her words of encouragement where to finish school and work hard for the things you want in life and to always thank God no matter the situation. I have learned a lot from her story, and I hope others can too. This interview helped me with my interpersonal communication skills because she was started to get emotional, and I was reading the signs of her voice changing and hand movements to recognize that and ask my next questions in a different demeanor to relax her. I find it interesting how someone can go through so much for many years and still be a high spirted individual as she is, every time we see her, she always has a smile she is always talking and she loves to make food for her children and grandkids, it's like nothing can really break her.

Areina Bravo

2023-03-27 04:12:48 UTC

For this project, I conducted an interview with a close friend of mine who is a black man residing in the southern region of the United States. He comes from a traditional black family that has been living in the south for generations. What struck me the most about my friend is his ability to reflect on his personal experiences and link them to wider issues of social inequality. During our conversation, we delved into the socioeconomic challenges that he and his family have faced due to racism and how it has impacted his childhood and current life as an adult.

One of the most significant psychological impacts of inequality on him is feeling socially excluded due to the inequality gap. This gap has permeated his social circle, making it difficult for him to connect with others. He expressed, "Growing up around people who are almost the opposite of me in ways that society deems most important is challenging." We focused on how inequality can affect our mental health, and we agreed that nobody wants to feel inferior. However, how do we deal with being labeled as inferior intentionally and held back?

During the late 2000s and early 2010s, when iPhones were becoming increasingly popular, my friend fell behind in adapting to the new era where socializing was expanding. As a result, he struggled to maintain friendships because he could not afford to buy a phone.

I hope to raise awareness about how racism and social inequality can create an environment that breeds low self-esteem and loneliness in children and teenagers. I believe that sharing this message through poetry is the most effective way to communicate the language of the heart.

Chris Sullivan Oral History#2

2023-04-04 00:27:51 UTC

For my oral history project, I could not decide who to speak with so I decided to speak to a random citizen within my community to hear their story. I went to my local coffee shop and spoke to a man who agreed to sit with me for a few minutes and answer a few questions. He is a native of Arizona, he grew up in Glendale and became a construction manager he met his wife in 1992 and got married four years later in 1996. They bought their first home together that same year in Glendale. A few years later they moved to Buckeye to be closer to work and to have a more affordable home. In early 2009 he was laid off from his work during the recession. Where he turned around and started his own construction management in 2009 in the same year. With his new business, he worked with the airforce on a project where they made him an honorary commander. He then became a city council member from 2010-2020 where he still works with the city in a different position. He mentions that his life changed when he met his wife and was introduced to religion. One part of his story that sticks out to me is that in 2009 when the recession was still bad, after losing his job, he was able to start a successful construction business. This is a point that would be good for others to keep in mind, just because something may not be ideal timing, does not mean that it will not succeed. This story can resonate with anyone because there are always points in our life that can give us setbacks. It is up to us to pick up what we can and move forward.

Arzo Ahmad-Oral History #2

2023-04-23 19:16:33 UTC

During our religious holiday I met someone whose story is interesting and influencing. He also has the same background as me, he speaks the same language and he is from the same country as I am. When he moved here he was a child and living with his mom and as growing up he opened a dealership which was going pretty good. He met a girl and later married her, and life was going good when he decided to get his own house and move out of his mom's house. Later as the pandemic hits all the business slowly started to fall apart. My family also has a small business and after the year 2020 the business is not really going well. As he was telling his story he said he found another way to earn money as well (through social media) and also keep trying on his business not giving up. He said in the year 2024 or 2025 the market might fall down and the business will go up again in Arizona. Something interesting about his story is that he did not give up on his business even though he found other ways and also gave people hope not to give up. People can learn there are always other ways and that does not mean to give up on your dream or in life in general.

Areina Bravo-Oral History#2

2023-04-24 18:24:45 UTC

For my latest project, I had the privilege of interviewing my close friend Khendric once again. As a black man, he shared valuable and vulnerable perspectives on the persistent issue of inequality in the African American experience. I chose this topic because it's a constant political battle for people of color like my family and friends. Simply having a certain identity can set one up for socioeconomic disadvantages.

During our conversation, Khendric expressed an interesting insight - he may not always see the problems he faces, but he knows that if his environment were different, he'd face more struggles. Racial inequalities are something he can't escape, but he can at least enter an environment where expressing racist stereotypes is less acceptable.

When I asked him about work and how his identity may have made it difficult, he shared an example: "I take pride in my hair growth now, for example, but there are still lots of people who can't tolerate the way I prefer to wear my locs. They see it as unprofessional or unapproachable." Because of his cultural identity, he has poor marketing opportunities and has become a victim of racist stereotypes. Even something as simple as a stereotype can prevent someone from advancing in their career. As a society, we enable these harmful stereotypes to continue by not educating ourselves and those around us.

Khendric's story, and stories like his, are important for everyone to hear because millions of people struggle to navigate the heavy obstacle of their identity.

Shahzaman Ahmad-Oral History #2

2023-04-24 19:55:16 UTC

I have known the subject of this tale for a very long time. when we were high school graduates. He attempted to enroll at a university, but the costs were too high; he was wanting to study medicine, by the way. Then he received a job offer at a company where he spent a few years working and largely saved his money. Together with a couple of his friends and coworkers, he then opened a modest store. After managing the store for a while, they made the decision to sell the narrative. Several months after selling the store, he got married and obtained a CDL. After a few years of working for another company to gain experience, he began his own transportation business roughly three to four years later. For the first few years, he had trouble keeping the company running, but now he was getting the hang of it.
This anecdote demonstrates to me that you can still change your life even if you are unable to pursue the career of your dreams. There are many other employment options you might explore if your professional choice is one you are unable to pursue. Another lesson I've learned is that you don't have to stick with the job path you chose when you were young. You may change it whenever you want, and if you do it correctly, you might not suffer any repercussions. I also discovered that by attempting new things, you can discover a hobby or side job that you enjoy doing. You never know unless you give it a shot.

Silma Acosta, oral history #2

2023-04-25 03:49:12 UTC

For the last oral history project, I interviewed a family member who came to the U.S. hoping to gain a better life for themselves and their family back in Mexico. When I asked my relative what song represented what they felt it was the song linked above. The song mainly states that although living in the U.S. has allowed them to prosper, they are still held back due to their citizenship status. They miss their homeland and the family they had to leave behind but want a way to move forward and provide their children with a better future. When I asked if he had achieved what he thought he could achieve when they first arrived, the answer was no. They began to go into how the stories he heard before coming mainly were about how easy it is and that it is amazing over here, but what he has experienced has been the opposite. It is difficult to make a living for him and enough money to send back financially helps his family. Hearing their story, especially because I am related to them, made me a bit sad because I do not know the issues they face and I have limited power to help. Although their story and experience have been difficult, they say they would do it again so they can move forward with their lives and allow their children to have a bright future. You can never understand where your life can take you, but if you live it to help the ones you love, there is little you will regret.

Perla Murillo: Oral History #2

2023-04-25 04:59:55 UTC

For this oral history I interviewed Jonathan Maldonado, a close friend of mine. He works at the Buckeye Aquatic Center as a lifeguard, swimming coach, and swimming instructor. I found it interesting to learn about how positive his work environment was. When I asked if him and his co-workers had access to safe and secure working conditions, he mentioned that his job makes sure that their employees receive time to hydrate, respect their needs, and maintain an environment safe from injuries. His job implements an increase in productive employment by providing effective training (such as cpr) and providing organized visions and goals. Something that makes his job stand out as a positive workplace is the promotion of equality and inclusivity. There is an equal pay between genders and they promote inclusivity by offering more younger people (high school students) entry level positions. He thinks that an important quality that a workplace must have to promote productive employment and decent work is to keep it fun. Not everything should be serious in the workplace; having fun every once in a while increases productivity and satisfaction. I think anyone in a negative environment can take away key factors from this interview of what a positive work environment should provide. I produced an audio recording of our interview.

Sophia Flores-Oral History 2

2023-04-25 05:34:40 UTC

For this Oral History I talked to my mother who has over 25 years of experience working with children with disabilities. By talking to her I wanted to learn all the educational inequalities and biases faced by special needs children. My mother has had an interesting career working in multiple different settings and ages where she has seen how the children face these obstacles and how it affects them throughout their lives. I think everyone should know that special needs children are still kids that just need extra help and more adaptive learning styles. They need to know that their learning is different and that it comes from a place of necessity. My mother has many stories of these kids getting bullied around school, especially the older they and their peers get. I think these older children need to be taught young and reminded throughout their education that special needs children are people and deserve respect and encouragement. It is not something to be ashamed of and should be more widely discussed. The education board needs to make efforts in informing both teachers and students about how to properly treat peers with disabilities. Because the fact still stands that these kids face inequality in the way they are forced to learn, in the way their behavior suffers, and in the way they have to live the rest of their lives. It all starts with school and they are already at a disadvantage, why make it any harder? I think I either want to do a PowerPoint or an essay to share this oral history with others.

David Perez- Oral History #2

2023-04-25 06:29:36 UTC

For this oral history I interviewed my one of my siblings. My topic was focus on the United Nations sustainable development goals; goal #8. I chose my brother, Javier because I thought since he's a little more older and has more first hand knowledge on the economy. When asked how he felt about the economy for the past 5 years, he said that with everything that has happened within the years, it's been terrible. Javier stated that it had affected everyone, it affected him, our family, social life, routines, careers, and life as a whole. Javier wanted to make the best of his situation and take the hard work motive and by doing this hopefully it would open doors and in fact did open his opportunity's with new careers of an electrician. After the past experiences he since formed new skills as a person from better socials to better life planning, also appreciating the small things. I feel people that would want to tune into this are people that want to know their potential and appreciate life. Also knowing that when some doors close other doors open. I would produce Javier's story through an essay because I feel his story would have a lot of personal experiences and by putting in factual evidence it would have reason to spread the message of hope and motivation.

Oral History focusing on SDG #8 -Sandra Meza

2023-04-25 06:36:00 UTC

For this oral history project, I chose to interview a friend of mine, who attends high school. I wanted to hear what insight he had in regards to the SDG #8 regarding decent work and economic growth. He shared that these topics are discussed commonly throughout his classes and had many opinions and insightful information on the topics. What I found most interesting was what he thought about child labor. He believes child labor is unquestionably wrong; however, he also discussed how the U.S. is a source in enabling child labor. Due to having many companies outsource work for products and materials to be made overseas, the U.S. is encouraging child labor as we are the ones who start these businesses since there are no regulations in most overseas countries. He believes we should be more willing to stop child labor, yet instead, we are enablers. In regards to the Ukraine crisis, he stated that taxes, tariffs, and federal reserves are being heavily targeted and affected and it must be managed to stop declining the economy. I think others should know about how students in high school are more engaged than the average human; I tried to interview my cousin, and that was very unsuccessful. I also believe that the general population should be more engaged in learning about the SDG goals the UN has, as most people have no idea what this is, unless they are going to school or are centered around international news. I believe other students in high school would benefit from learning about this interview, because they might have additional feedback and opinions that would want to be heard. Perhaps even adults would benefit from this interview as well, and would want to be more involved in global news. The medium I would want to produce to share this oral history, would most likely be either a poem or a comic strip. In high school comic strips were regularly used, and proved to be very effective in getting a point across.

Elizabeth Msola-Oral History #2

2023-04-25 06:51:37 UTC

For this project, I interviewed one of the members in our community. His name is Phil, an immigrant from Africa.
I asked him about his background and he was open enough to share his education details. Phil graduated with a bachelor in Electronics and Communication Engineering at St. Jospeh university in Tanzania, Africa. He later got a scholarship to pursue Masters in Oil and Gas Engineering. His first visit to America was after graduating his Master's degree, when he was invited by his cousin. He later decided to stay and start his career here. He faced challenges, one of the biggest challenges was work permit. He was not able to work for a long time, unfortunately he did not come with enough money. Since he was determined he did not give up. He later got a good job where he applied his bachelor's degree experience. His favorite experience about his career has been travelling to different states in USA and different countries. He feels proud to be able to live and work in cross-culture environment. His only regret about moving to America is that he was not well informed before he came here. He had a completely different picture about life in USA. As portrayed on social media, he thought life in USA is luxurious and easy. If he could turn back the hands of time, he could have invested on detailed information and make his move to USA a well prepared mentally and financially journey. His was not specific on where he sees himself in five years, he hopes to achieve more, one step at a time. In four years, he has been able to work as a field service engineer and now he has become the head of department.
The most interesting about interviewing Phil was that he is so open minded. I was impressed when he explained how he thinks of racism. He sounded so positive about it, and he does not let it bother him. It was also so easy to tell how determined he is.
What others can learn from Phil is to never give up. When they have a vision to fulfill, they should not let any obstacle come between them. Another thing to learn from Phil is when you are given a chance, always do your best. Because of his hard work, Phil was promoted to be the head of department in his company. Phil goes back to visit his family every year, another thing to learn from him is to never forget where you come from.

Any person who is determined to accomplish his or her goals would benefit from Phil's life. Youth who aspire to work abroad one day, can learn a lot from Phil's experience.
I am planning to produce an audio so that I can share with others the interview that I have done with Phil. There is a lot to learn.

Melissa Dick - Oral History #2: SDG #12 Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns

mel2238379 — 2023-04-26 18:05:22 UTC

For my second oral history interview, I spoke to my mom about sustainability goal #12: Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns. Throughout my childhood, I always noticed the ways that my mom tried to reduce food waste and overconsumption, so I thought that she would be a good person to interview about this topic. What I found most interesting about the interview was the way that many sustainable practices were ingrained in my life by the way she raised me that I didn’t even realize. Things like using only reusable dishes instead of paper plates and disposable cutlery, and using old cut up tee-shirts as cleaning rags instead of paper towels or wipes were all done in an effort to reduce waste and overconsumption. There are also many clever ways my mom reduces food waste at home like saving the skins and inedible pieces of veggies in the freezer to make broth and using stale bread to make bread crumbs and croutons. Based on this interview, I think people should know that 17% of food waste comes at the consumer level and it's important to make an effort to reduce your food waste whenever you can. It's not as hard as you think to start reducing your carbon footprint when it comes to waste; making little changes in your daily life takes very little effort, but makes a huge impact. I think everyday people and families could benefit from learning about easy ways to reduce waste and the unnecessary overconsumption of disposable products because if everyone does their part to change the culture around consumption and waste, then the world would be much more sustainable. For this project, I plan to make a presentation with narration about how people can reduce their overconsumption and food waste in little ways and the effects it will have on the environment if more people do so.

Kara neal ~ Oral History #2

2023-04-27 21:14:59 UTC

For this interview, I asked my mom questions about goal #7, affordable and clean energy. Since we've lives in Arizona all our lives, I figured this would be a good topic to talk about. Since most of the days of the year are full of sunshine, it's much easier to convert that into sustainable energy, compared to places like Washington or Oregon where they experience much more cloudiness. Since we are in a desert, solar energy is probably the best way to go as this is a natural energy that doesn't require us to destroy the Earth to use it. I asked my mom about energy in other places than the desert. She brought up a good point about the many windmills in California that supply them with tons of energy. Once again, wind is a natural thing. I also asked her about affordable energy around the world. I found it interesting that she brought up hydro energy. This would be beneficial for tropical parts of the world, especially islands. This is essential since many islands are homes to low income communities. I think that others should know about geothermal energy as well. This is the heat from the earth that can be used as energy. This might not be as affordable since the equipment utilized to drill to the source may not be inexpensive. But it is a natural, clean source of energy and does not deplete the source, unlike other forms of drilling like drilling for lithium batteries. I wasn't aware of how natural geothermal resources are. These can be found along tectonic plates usually where volcanoes are located. I think everyone could benefit from this information. Also, since my mom previously lived in New York, then Pennsylvania, then moved here, she has experienced different climates. I think a video would be informational and also keep the listener hooked. I notice that when I'm reading I start drifting off and thinking about other things. But when I'm given information in the form of a video, it's more engaging since you see the speaker.

Ismael Lopez - Oral History #2

2023-04-28 03:39:47 UTC

For my oral history project, I decided to interview my cousin; I asked him questions on goal #15, life in the land. A little back story, my cousin was born and raised in our hometown back in Mexico in a little villa called El Gavilan De Arriba in Jalisco, Mexico. In this region of Mexico we live in a mountainous (sirria) region. It is a very divested and beautiful place, with this in mind I remember when I would go to mexico and visit my family from out there me and my cousin would spend most of our time exploring the different areas of our hometown. One of our favorite places to go was the river and catching different types of fish with our bare hands. Throughout the times that i would go back and visit the noticed how different the ecosystem began to develop to the point that every time I would visit, things looked so different. This brought me to my first question, I asked my cousins what where the driving force behind the decline in the ecosystem was back in our rancho. the first reason he told me was the people in that villa would dump there trash and waste in the river. Second reson he told me was the fact that people would over fish and instead of throw back little fish into the water after cathing them they would toss them kill them. This is also the case with the native deers in the area they over hunted them and would even kill the smaller deers. The diverstity of birds also started to decrrease, my couyisn told me that they would catch them and sell them at the market. Another issue is too that alot of native species of plants would get cut due to there medical perpeses. When I asked him for a solution he told me that the most logical at thus point is amke dumping, hunting, capturing and selling native plants to be a crimial act and jail time. He saids this beacuse, as of right now this things are all illegal but the penialty is simply a fne he said in most cases the police doesnt even inforce this law, what he would want to chnage this issue is for the government to create a special task force to insure the safty of our ecosystem.

Calista Rada - Oral History #2

2023-04-28 04:39:29 UTC

For my second oral history, I went ahead and interviewed with one of my friends. This time, I wanted to focus on goal #13 for this interview, that being Climate Action and climate change. I asked about her perspective about the problem and here's a gist of what she said.

To start off, we discussed about what's currently going on with the climate and how that temperatures are slowly rising each year to the point that it's causing trouble to not only ourselves (with it being too hot) but also at the ice caps with them melting so quickly. In addition, those temperatures will also kill off a lot of ecosystems, such as the coral reefs and creating more droughts in some areas (like in lakes and rivers). As the years go by, she recalled, it's been getting much harder to spend time outside because of the temperatures, heat, and increase in droughts, which in return doesn't allow for a pleasant time in the outdoors. Even some traditions have been slowly dying off because of this like spending time outside with family, going on picnics on warm summer days and so on. It doesn't feel the same anymore, she said. She says that she does hope that are some ways of making this climate change slow down some, perhaps, making climate change aware to others and try to come up with ways to slow it. Overall, I found it interesting to see that not only does climate change affect the overall planet and ecosystems, but it can also affect on a smaller scale, such as families and traditions. If thinking about how climate change is really something we should be worried about, I think this should give an idea of how much it really impacts us and our planet, even if it's something small. If I were to share this with others using a different medium, I would go either with a poem or a comic strip. Those seem to be the most effective and memoriable.

Angelina Cabrera- Oral History #2

2023-04-28 20:36:32 UTC

For the second oral history, I decided to interview my high school financial literacy teacher, Ms. H. In this interview we talked about many issues but we mostly talked about goal number four, quality education. As an immigrant from the Ivory Coast, West Africa, she noticed many educational differences here in the U.S versus the education she was offered back home.

In the beginning of our conversation, I asked her about what life was like back in West Africa. She was very adamant about how big community was there and how all the adults looked after the children no matter what. Throughout my senior year of high school Ms. H was so much more than an educator to me. She was a constant beacon of light throughout the school year and always made me feel like she cared for me beyond a student, but also as a person. After she explained this aspect of her community back home, it made sense that she cared so much for all her students. Soon after this, we began talking about the cultural differences between America and West Africa. One of the main things that she said she struggled the most with was the culture and education of American students. She emphasized that many American students were quite tone deaf and even sometimes racist simply due to the fact that they were severely uneducated about the world outside of America. After talking about some of the racial and societal issues found within the American culture, we talked a lot more about the curriculum and educational system put into place. Ms. H's native language is French. AT our school she was the designated French teacher yet, somehow was now forced to teach financial literacy as well. As an educator this was very frustrating because she was thrown into it with no introduction and little to no quality preparation. This in turn, effected the quality of education we as students got. She explained that the educational system is so neglected and deserves more funding, teachers, and respect all around. As a student who was in the middle of this, it was hard to see my teacher struggle in this way, especially someone like Ms. H. This goes to show that quality education effects all parties involved, not just students.

Ms. H is someone I will hold close to my heart for the rest of my life. Almost everyday I have her voice in the back of my head motivating me to do my best not only as a student but as a human as well. I loved getting to know more about her and found her life very interesting. After this interview, I think others need to understand that while America may be a wealthy country and is seemingly well off, in reality we may not be. This is especially significant when it comes to the quality in education students in this country receive. I think people should know that the system and its funding are in dire need of reconfiguration so that students get the education they deserve and teachers get the appreciation and recognition they should have gotten a long time ago. I think that educators would benefit the most from this conversation because it shows them how much power they truly hold on society and how much they are appreciated and needed by their students.
I plan on using a photo and some audio from the interview for this conversation.

Alessandra Camacho - Oral History #2 focus on SDG #8

ale2406465 — 2023-05-02 02:31:35 UTC

I decided to interview our very own Instructor Dr. Liz Cantu. When I was writing up some interview questions pertaining to goal #8, which is the promotion of sustained, inclusive, and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment, and decent work for all, I was really curious about what the perspective of an educator would be, or how someone that is a first generation would view this issue, because it is a background I am familiar with. I was lucky enough to converse with someone who has experience in both worlds and much more.

We spoke briefly about her background. She discussed being the daughter of two Mexican immigrants and living in Arizona for almost 16 years, she came to earn her PhD at ASU. She takes pride in being raised in a border space culturally. She is proud of her Mexican heritage but has also learned a lot through the different lifestyles she has built for herself. She is a mom of two and an educator, so we discuss how all these aspects of her life affect her perspectives on promoting/creating sustainable and inclusive employment and economic growth.

The topic we discussed I found very interesting was finding ways to make actual positive changes in our communities, especially for students, in spite of the current climate of doom and gloom. We spoke about how one of the biggest challenges facing Americans in the pursuit of sustainable economic growth and decent work for all, is the fear of the unknown. By connecting students to the Global Solutions program and UN sustainable development goals Dr. Cantu can create a space where we can work with others to develop solutions in a collaborative way. She has also found it helpful as an educator to consider wellness. She has taken it upon herself to keep things inclusive as well as open to feedback to create an environment where students don’t have to be constantly overwhelmed.

I think more people should know that there is a big importance in thinking critically and asking questions, especially about how to get involved in the community. And just keep learning because things will constantly change and knowledge will always be power. She mentioned the 4 C’s of twenty-first century learning: communication, collaboration, critical thinking, and creativity, which I found to be very interesting since I see how in such a fast-paced world, it is easy to overlook these essential elements of our education, which can lead us to become better problem solvers.

There were several other topics that we touched on such as how she uses her role as a parent to support her own children’s education/career development and how that role would reduce youth not in education, employment or training. As well as how first generation Americans can play a role in ensuring all workers have access to decent work. I plan to use the audio taken from this interview to create a mini podcast about Dr. Liz Cantu’s perspectives and experiences on goal #8, with focus on target 8.6.

Reeves Holt - Oral History #2

2023-05-03 04:54:59 UTC

For this oral history assignment, I’ve decided to interview my girlfriend Jocelyn Bojorquez, a first-generation Mexican American who attended college in southern Utah, a predominantly Caucasian area with one of the lowest Latino populations in the country.

Jocelyn is a Phoenix native and up until she was 18, she had never lived anywhere else saying, “I was nervous. You hear the negative stereotypes of Utah and the people who live there and as a Latina woman it was very intimidating.” Jocelyn always had a very strong connection with her three younger siblings growing up so leaving them behind was a difficult decision but the cost to go to school in Arizona was much higher than the scholarships and support she would receive in Utah. She was determined to gain an education and achieve success as a first-generation college student. When she first arrived in Utah, she was nervous to say the least. “It was a whole new world to me; I had left home and everything behind but kept in mind that my parents had done the same when they made the decision to leave Mexico and pursue a better life in the US. I felt that I was carrying the torch now on a smaller scale.” As a way to combat culture shock, Jocelyn joined the campus Latino club her freshman year and went on to be the Vice-President of it, saying that she found comfort in being able to talk to people with similar life experiences and being able to speak Spanish again. This included learning slang from the Spanish dialects of other countries like Uruguay, Columbia, and Chile. She grew to love Utah and the people there, saying “I met so many amazing people in Utah. I got to spend lots of time in nature, the people in general are amazing, and I’ve made lifelong friends that we get to visit and that visit us.” After 4 years, Jocelyn graduated with her bachelor’s degree in biology and got to work for the USDA Forest Service. While working for the Forest Service in Utah for a few years, she earned an interdisciplinary master’s degree in information assurance, Cybersecurity, and Professional Communication. She now works at American Express, the 3^rd most ethical company in the US, as an executive assistant to 3 vice presidents and is training to be a Portfolio Manager. Hearing about Jocelyn’s experiences was interesting because I grew up so different. In some ways I could relate to the aspects of moving away from home, having to rely 100% on yourself, and having to start a new life. However, it was such a different experience leaving home for her as a Latina woman where in her family, marriage and children are viewed as the highest honor, but she believed in breaking generational curses and help contribute financial stability for her family first. Based on this interview, I think others should learn the difference that someone else may be from a different racial background but that shouldn’t limit what you can achieve for yourself. Even though something may be intimidating and may take you out of your comfort zone it leads to growth. Growth is sometimes painful but worth it in the end. I think this oral history could best be expressed in an essay because it can be easily broken up and written out with more colorful detail.

Tiana Gonzales ~ Oral History #2

tia2144806 — 2025-02-22 04:27:58 UTC

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The person in my community I chose to interview for this oral history was my mother’s boyfriend, George Wright Jr. I found his journey in the workforce really interesting, especially how he adapted when things didn’t go as planned. He originally wanted to become a lawyer, but when that didn’t work out, he found a different career path and worked his way up in the insurance industry. His determination and ability to succeed despite challenges stood out to me the most.

One of the most important lessons from the interview was how perseverance and confidence are necessary for success, especially for people from disadvantaged backgrounds. George faced racism and workplace discrimination early in his career, but he refused to let it stop him. Instead, he worked hard, proved his value, and eventually became the boss of people who once doubted him.

His story is valuable for anyone facingbarriers in their career, especially people from minority or disadvantaged backgrounds. Learning about his experiences can inspireothers to stay determined, work hard, and not let challenges discourage them.

To share his oral history, I plan to write an essay. This format will allow me to fully explore his experiences and the lessons he shared while making his story accessible to a wide audience.

Dean Bassett - Oral History #2

2025-02-24 21:54:41 UTC

For this assignment, I interviewed my dad’s friend, John Wallis. John served in the Marine Corps from 1991 to 1996 and now works for SRP. My family has known him for about 20 years since meeting at church. I’ve always looked up to him, not just for his military background but for his strong faith and the way he’s navigated life’s challenges.

During our conversation, we talked about his time in the Marines, his faith, and his struggles after leaving the military. He used his GI Bill to attend a motorcycle mechanics school for Harley-Davidson but struggled to make ends meet. Passion alone wasn’t enough to pay the bills. Praying for guidance, he was eventually offered a job as an HVAC technician. It wasn’t what he planned, but he took it as a blessing, worked his way up, and built a stable career.

One of the biggest takeaways from our conversation was how much trust he placed in God. He said, “I spent years chasing my own plans, but the second I surrendered to God’s plan, things started falling into place.” That reminded me that sometimes struggles are just stepping stones to something better.

His story made me reflect on my own challenges and how veterans struggle with transitioning to civilian life. I think anyone struggling with finances, faith, or purpose would benefit from hearing John’s journey. To share his oral history, I would to write an essay to fully explore his experiences and the lessons he learned.

Francisco Mejia-Oral History #2

2025-02-25 05:25:38 UTC

It was interesting to see how life in Mexico in the late 70s faced the same challenges they see today. The main topics I focused on were family values, education, transportation, and career choices. I chose to interview my aunt, Letecia Contreras. It would give me a different point of view since she was born and raised in Mexico, compared to my mom, who would eventually move to the US at a young age. Based on my interview, I would like to share my oral history with other family members in Mexico. This would help them see how our grandparents fought hard to instill values, educate, and guide the previous generation, although the resources at the time were limited. This oral history would create interest in the opportunities that are available for my family members in Mexico today. I plan on using an essay format to share my oral history with others.

Michelle Porras- Oral History #2

mic2311189 — 2025-02-26 03:18:41 UTC

For this assignment, I chose to interview my dad, Shohrab Shamoil. My dad is originally from Iran and fled his country in 1979, three months after the Iranian Revolution began, when he was about 20 or 21 years old.

The thing I found most interesting and one of the main reasons I chose to interview my dad was the major change he had to make in his life just to be able to live freely, as well as the strength and courage it took for him to move to a country he knew little to nothing about. In this interview, we discussed what led to this life-changing decision and how he had to adapt.

One thing I think people should take from this interview is that, although Iran has often been spoken of negatively, my father is a true witness that it was not always seen that way. When speaking with my father about life before the revolution, he described Iran as a free, rich, and beautiful country. I believe anyone who reads what my father has to say can benefit from understanding the culture shock he experienced and what he had to leave behind.

Christopher Jones-Vasquez: COM 110/13595-Oral History Assignment #2

2025-02-26 06:38:22 UTC

The person I choose to write about for this assignment is someone I have known for a long time. I admire her for the passion she has for the service that she provides in the community. This individual is my girlfriend, Jacqueline Lopez. Jacqueline was born in San Francisco, California in the late 80's. She is of Salvadoran descent with both of her parents being born in El Salvador. Jacqueline grew up in Utah with her mother, grandmother, and two siblings. However, she also spent a great deal of time in El Salvador. She mentions that while the country has gotten better, it is still a country with a prevalent poverty rate and crime rate. Back on the state side she seen the struggles of single mothers and the amount of help that is sometimes needed to assist. She knew that she wanted to help when she got older. Jacqueline would later relocate to Arizona after graduating high school. She put herself through college by working as an orthodontist assistant. Jacqueline would eventually earn a bachelor's degree in social work. She in the ten years since earning that degree has work in a variety of areas. Some of the positions Jacqueline held were shelter advocate, case manager, and children's specialist. Jacqueline recently accepted the role of a community outreach case manager. She says, "Helping families get through a situation and finding resources what makes my day". Additionally, she feels too often people in these situations are judged without knowing the circumstances of the person’s situation. Jacqueline believes that people need to be trauma informed and need to work on being empathic. I think people can take away is that empathy is a skill that people are lacking. As human beings, we should be able to relate and understand that everyone is or has gone through something. Helping our fellow neighbor, friend, co-worker, stranger, can be good for the soul and can strengthen communities. I plan to share her oral history as an essay or interview transcript.

Ashlyn McDermott - Oral History #2

2025-02-26 22:10:13 UTC

I decided to interview one of my best friends. Her name is Mindy Chavez. Mindy was born and raised in Arizona but her parents are from Mexico. She is an education major and hopes to one day be a teacher. Throughout her life, Mindy has faced many types of discrimination in the forms of racism, sexism, and homophobia. Due to this inequality is a topic that she is very passionate about. Mindy’s mom moved to the US when she was pregnant with Mindy, hoping to give her more opportunities to have a better life. The area of Mexico where she was from was not a particularly safe place to live, nor would living there have allowed Mindy and her mom to have the lives they have now. Mindy is very grateful to her mom for doing what she thought was best for her. Mindy is trying her best to make the most of it by going to college to further her education so that she may one day educate others and make a meaningful impact on the world. Mindy and I discussed the importance of education. Mindy believes that everyone should have the chance to get an education no matter who they are or where they come from. I think many people take their access to education for granted and that they should do research to learn and spread awareness for those who are not offered that same luxury. Mindy hopes that by becoming an educator she can make more people aware of the inequalities in education and discrimination that are happening around the world. Any person who is unaware of how much privilege they have, just to be given an education, would benefit from talking to Mindy. I plan to share this oral history with others through a poem.

Oral History #2

2025-02-26 23:13:18 UTC

Jamela Kahla

For this assignment, I decided to interview my grandmother. The topic that I chose to ask her about was goal # 4 which is quality education. I found this the perfect topic to ask her about because of the generation she is from and the place she grew up in. Education had developed so much over the years. Some places more than others. My grandmother was born and raised in the middle east where education is not the best, especially back then. This can also count as goal # 5 which is gender quality, which was also mentioned in this interview. She said that being a young girl in the middle east back in the day meant she stayed home and did housework. This was more important for her than her education. Men on the other hand focused on their education more and graduated while some women unfortunately couldn't. I found it very interesting to talk to my grandma because as much as I heard about the elder generation, I did not get as much detail with anyone compared to as much as I did with her. After this interview, I feel that people should really appreciate what it is they have offered to them, especially education in this case, because not everyone had or has the opportunities our generation has. I think by learning how to appreciate the education we have; people will get more motivated to do better in school and really bring up their grades and knowledge. I am overall glad I chose my grandma to interview because I really needed that motivation to do better in school and I hope everyone else feels the same as well.

Lilly Cacho - COM110 13595: Oral History #2

2025-02-26 23:30:04 UTC

For this assignment, I decided to interview my neighbor, Maria Delgado. Maria is a former cafe owner of 10 years, who grew up in a working-class immigrant family. She was motivated to advocate for fair wages and better working conditions from witnessing her parents work long hours in low-wage jobs and seeing firsthand how hard it was. She opened her cafe intending to create a space that "not only served great food but also treated workers with dignity." What I found most interesting and inspiring about Maria was that despite her financial and social challenges, her commitment to ethical business practices remained unwavering. Her story focused on the struggles of small business owners, especially women of color. Based on this interview, others should learn that progress is not always defined by economic growth. Practices such as fair wages, worker rights, and ethical businesses are essential for true development. Maria's story highlights the importance that comes with prioritizing the workers of small businesses and bringing awareness to better pay and conditions. The people who would benefit the most from this interview would be the workers in low-wage industries, young entrepreneurs, and especially the policymakers who outline labor laws. Maria is a great example of ethical leadership and resilience. To share this oral history, I intend to present a poem that captures her struggles, triumphs, and ultimately her story.

Loida Hernandez- Oral History #2

2025-02-26 23:52:22 UTC

For this assignment, I decided to interview a person who comes from a long chain of poverty and a very humble family. A family whose main goal was just to survive and sustain their family in good health. My Mother Hilda is an indigenous person from a place called, Chiapas in Mexico. My mother grew up in a large family and was the eldest of all her siblings. Experiencing first-hand the hardship of growing up in a place with little to no commodity. Their main sustain was their own land, their own crops, chickens, and horses. My mother being the eldest had to do the toughest chores, starting from before sunrise to sunset while her siblings went to school. When my mother got married at the age of only 18, she and my father decided to look for a different life. Migrating to the US in order to give their family a better life than the one they had was their main priority. Nothing mattered to them more than giving their children the life they couldn't have. Leaving the life, they knew to start in a brand-new place was a very risky thing to do, but they were not afraid. Before migrating to the US mother lost her first-born child to a malpractice intervention. This was the last straw for her, and her mind was set. She wouldn't have her other children live the way she did and would never put them in harm's way again. With a broken heart they left everything behind and migrated to what I can call, my home.

I believe that people should see how many people migrate with zero knowledge of what to expect, but in their minds, it is for sure a better place than where they were at. Going back to the place where my mother was born and raised, I can see why my mother did what she had to do, in order to give us a better life. Families still struggled to put food on the tables, and many of the eldest siblings do not have the opportunity to go to school. Adapting to a new life can be tough, but not leaving would have been the biggest regret for my mother. The most interesting part for me was how she described her leaving as "I already buried half of my heart there, why would I want to stay and bury the rest"? A poem will be a great way to describe my mother's journey, for others to read, and not give up on what they believe is the right "move"

Hope Burkholder Oral History #2

hop2146782 — 2025-02-27 00:01:44 UTC

My oral history project focuses on the importance of safety and being careful. Injuries can happen even when safety precautions are being taken. I had the pleasure of speaking to a fellow classmate at Estrella Mountain Community College, Mariah. She shared with me a story from her childhood about when she took safety precautions when riding her scooter but still ended up in the hospital. The part that stuck with me the most is that she thought she was completely safe because she was wearing a helmet when she was riding. She thought she was invincible. However, she made the mistake of turning her handlebars 90 degrees and hitting her chin. She will have visible scars on her face for the rest of her life due to this accident. I think there is a valuable lesson here for everyone. This doesn’t just apply to a kid on a scooter. Sometimes we think our safety precautions are bulletproof. We’ve taken a few steps to protect ourselves, but that doesn’t make us invincible. We still have to make careful and thought-out decisions, so we don’t hurt ourselves and others. I will be making an infographic to share this oral history with others.

Mia Kaiser COM 110 Oral History # 2

ame2152819 — 2025-02-27 02:38:55 UTC

In addition to being a teacher, my weights instructor at Mesa Community College is a mentor, an inspiration, and a genuine support system for her students. I realized she had a genuine influence on everyone she teaches, not just at the gym, so I decided to interview her. She teaches us discipline, self-confidence, and the value of taking care of our bodies in addition to teaching us how to lift weights. Her love of exercise encompasses not just physical prowess but also mental toughness and general wellbeing.

Her ability to connect with her kids is what really sets her apart. She takes the time to support each of us separately since she recognizes that everyone has unique objectives and difficulties. She believes in us even when we don't believe in ourselves, whether it's encouraging us to perform one more rep when we feel like we can't or helping someone regain strength after an accident. She contributes to the community outside of the classroom, encouraging others by promoting wellness and health. She is a role model as well as a teacher, and I am thankful that I have had the chance to learn from her.

Oral History #2 - Amiryah Mitchell

2025-02-27 02:41:43 UTC

For my second oral history project, I did an interview with a very close and long time friend of mine that I met online named Spencer. Spencer is an African-American who currently resides in Canada. He's lived there since he was born and, for a small amount of time, didn't experience any problems. During the interview, we went through the story of how, as he got older, he started noticing people treating him much differently than most other people. He recounted his experience of getting looks from people that looked like they thought they were suspicious of him, constantly being questioned by his white counterparts despite not being guilty of anything, getting asked insensitive questions pertaining to his ethnicity, etc. One of the most interesting things I noticed while we were talking was how he never seemed too bothered by the comments he got. To him, they were simply but a miniscule problem. After this interview, I believe others should consider educating themselves on POC history. It's an important part of our lives, especially because some of us had first-hand experience with it, and still remember it clearly. I think most POC, specifically other African-Americans, would benefit from learning about my friend's life. I feel it's a very inspiring story and it might inspire others. I also plan on making a comic strip out of this interaction so I can share it with others.

Oral History #2- Karen

2025-02-27 04:15:03 UTC

I interviewed Eric, he is a player from Benedictine University and I wanted to know a bit about how he got up there. I’ve known Eric since highschool, and I’ve just seen how dedicated he is to his sport, he takes any small opportunity and goes for it. Although he’s had his doubts about his skill he has been consistent from such a young age. I found it interesting how he said that he started at such a young age, and how long it’s been since he’s started and is still going! I think people should learn that although you aren’t climbing up the ladder asap, you should just be consistent. The people that would benefit most from this is people who are just feeling like they’re not enough, or people who want to give up on their dream because they are not seeing improvement. I will be making a video to share this interview with others.

Christa Romero-COM 110 Oral History Assignment #2

2025-02-27 04:22:13 UTC

The person that I decided to interview is a very dear and close friend of mine. We are around the same age, and although I am a bit older, she carries herself in a way that I forget she is the younger one. We met fairly recently, in 2021 in the midst of a global pandemic. I couldn’t tell you then how close we would become because I just couldn’t imagine it. She was immediately outspoken and welcoming and funny, and had one of those laughs that made you smile. She was so open about her life and how she grew up, it made me open up in return. We spoke about our childhoods, and how rough and similar they were to each other. She’s showed me all the places she grew up in around West Covina, California and the surrounding areas. She told me about how things were extremely difficult growing up and how her mother was abusive. I’ve cried for her many times listening to how rough it was for her when she and her sister were growing up. How she turned out is truly a testament to her strength and resilience, she could have easily become a product of her environment. I whole heartedly believe everyone who has an opportunity to be a part of her life, is a part of something amazing.

Reed Gomez - Oral History #2

2025-02-27 04:28:02 UTC

I performed an interview of my girlfriend's mom, Melissa. She is an outstanding woman who went through many years of adversity and setbacks to get to being the woman she is today. She is someone who I admired and learned so much from. She comes from a household that was not stable and had many forms of abuse that she had endured. Those people did not foster a loving home and that was something she wanted to set out to do for her future kids. She had worked really hard to make enough money to send herself to college and become a Nurse Practitioner through so many hard days and days that seemed as if they would not end. She had become a successful person even throughout all the troubles she had faced and did not let that trauma jade her. She is an amazing woman. I think that those who came from households that had different types of abuse can see that they too can be successful. I am thinking about writing a poem to show that even though life can be rough it can still be beautiful. She is an amazing person and a wonderful role model and someone who I look up to greatly. I was so happy for this assignment and being able to conduct this interview!

Oral History Assignment #2- Analyssa

2025-02-27 04:42:40 UTC

I already knew exactly who I was going to interview and I kind of knew what I could ask. The people I chose were my grandparents. I spend so much of my time with my grandparents and know so much about them but something I found interesting throughout the interview was how much more there is to my grandparents. Granted my grandparents having been a part of my entire life however I obviously haven’t been with them their whole life. They lived a whole life before they even became grandparents and there is such a deeper side to them together but also separately. I feel like realistically no one outside of my family would necessarily “benefit” from my grandparents stories beside my immediate family. As a family who would get to learn about our grandparents before they were even our grandparents. However, my grandfather was in the navy, and I feel like some people may benefit from that. That could be anyone who is also in the military or someone who is considering it, he could have great insight for them.

Oral History #2 Carter Shaw-Patterson

car2373750 — 2025-02-27 06:16:33 UTC

I have a great person to interview I decided to interview my mom, Asia she is a amazing women who has went through a lot of adversity in her life. From getting pregnant at a young age to not having her life fully together. My mom struggled in the beginning but she came out on top and I find that so interesting. I feel like people should know that I love and respect this women to death. I want people to know that she has saved many lives as an nurse and that just inspires me. I know that women would benefit from my moms story because they could see all the adversity that she went through. Especially as a single mom who ended up becoming successful. I'm thinking about writing a poem that expresses what my mom went through because I want people to read and understand what I'm putting into the poem.

Oral History #2 Danielle Stewart

2025-02-27 07:14:03 UTC

When I read about this assignment I knew I wanted to interview Hanshi Nico. He came to the US at nine years old. He had been studying Martial Arts with his family his entire life, which helped to defend himself physically from his peers who saw him as different, but it also helped him mentally. Martial arts teaches more than punching and kicking, it teaches that self discipline, strength, and true happiness comes from trusting yourself and believing in yourself. One of the most interesting things to me is his dedication to bullying prevention. He has trained world class champions in MMA, but his passion is teaching kids how to stand up to bullying; to stand tall, believe in themselves, and know their self worth. I would like to share his message because if it helps just one person in this class, he will have achieved his mission. Never give up, life will knock you down. It is your choice to stay down or keep fighting. No matter what pain or struggle you are going through, time will change the impact. Life is a journey, a marathon, and every hardship is a chapter, not the story. Communicate with your parents, respect your family. Family is not always blood, but the people who stand by you, guide you, and love you unconditionally. I believe every person can benefit from reading his messages to younger generations, and based on the interview with Hanshi, I believe everybody should learn about their own inner dojo. I plan on making a photo essay to share some of the work he does. I would like to include his upcoming bullying prevention seminar he is hosting alongside his incredible wife, who authored an incredible children's book about bullying.

Oral History #2- Chelsea Vanderville

2025-03-01 00:03:18 UTC

The first person that came to mind for this interview was my father. My father does not talk much about his life, but when he does, it is always something interesting and has been through so much. I want to share his story because he had the odds stacked against him and was able to grow into a successful husband, father and business owner. He grew up without much interaction with his parents, did not attend school past the 8th grade and was able to create a life where his past did not decide who he would become. His drive and ambition to always be learning and growing has been contagious to those around him and I feel anyone who has had a less than ideal upbringing should know that you can become whatever it is that you want to be. The stories that my father has told me sound like a graphic novel/ comic book so I will be taking his experience and making a comic strip.

Austin Homan Oral history #2

2025-03-01 03:50:49 UTC

When I first read this assignment's topic, I immediately knew I wanted to interview my grandfather, Guy. Born in June 1953, he grew up during one of the most influential periods in American history. His childhood was in the '50s, his teenage years in the '60s, and his young adulthood in the '70s—decades filled with historic change. Despite growing up poor and moving frequently, he recalls his childhood fondly. He vividly remembers the day John F. Kennedy was assassinated—he was faking sick to skip school and watching The Three Musketeers when the broadcast was interrupted. Even at ten, he understood the significance. As a teenager, he joined the Navy to support the Vietnam War effort. He worked as an ordnance handler, loading ammo onto ships bound for Vietnam. He described the blue water, the smell of the old boat, and how wet paint still takes him back to those days. After the war, he managed a small grocery chain in North Idaho, ABCO, later overseeing its Alaska franchise. His many awards prove his success, though he never boasts about it. When Safeway acquired ABCO, he moved his family to Arizona, where he has lived ever since. Now retired, he spends his days playing golf.

Oral History #2 Natalie Hardy

2025-03-01 05:15:59 UTC

I was going back and forth on who to interview for this and decided to interview my Mom and her relationship with her father. It was very complicated for her from her childhood all the way to her early adulthood until he passed away. Involving alcoholism, abuse and confusing feelings. I found to be most interesting was some aspects of my Moms life I had no idea about and don't think I would have ever known had I not done this interview. I think others will learn about the effects of alcohol and just how much emotional damage it can do to a family. I think anyone dealing with alcohol issues will benefit from reading about this interview so see just how much and how long it can affect your family members. It may even provide comfort for someone who has been affected my alcoholism within another family member of theirs. I think the medium I am going to share is within a poem.

Arthur Torrance - Oral History #2

atorrance3 — 2025-03-02 06:13:57 UTC

Speaking with Nicholas about his experiences in Rainbow Valley offered a compelling perspective on both the beauty and challenges of his community. One thing that stood out was his deep appreciation for the White Tank Mountains, which serve as a striking contrast to some of the more difficult aspects of living in the area. He spoke candidly about the frequent use of firearms in residential zones, a concern that he believes creates tension among residents and contributes to a sense of unease. This issue, alongside the need for better public infrastructure, such as cleaner roads, illustrates the broader need for investment in the community. What I found most interesting about our conversation was Nicholas’s commitment to being part of the solution. Rather than simply pointing out the flaws in his hometown, he has concrete aspirations to improve it. His plan to complete his degree and potentially enter politics highlights a forward-thinking approach to community improvement, and his desire to advocate for change is admirable. His perspective sheds light on the importance of civic engagement and local advocacy, topics that are relevant to anyone interested in public service or grassroots change. People who are passionate about urban planning, politics, or community activism would benefit from hearing Nicholas’s story. His insights provide a firsthand look at the challenges smaller communities face and how young leaders like him are stepping up. To share his oral history, I plan to present it as an essay, capturing the depth of his reflections and the motivations driving his future aspirations.

Oral History #2 Johann Haider

2025-03-02 06:40:44 UTC

What I have found most interesting about my grandfather Jewel Redman is that he has owned multiple businesses and ran them himself over his lifetime. He started businesses such as construction companies, gas stations and motels. I found it very interesting that he did these things himself and still currently has multiple businesses. He operates trucks and sells gravel while owning a motel. He is somebody who shocks and amazes me. He is somebody I have not seen anyone else like and I found all of that to be most interesting. He sold at least 3 gas stations that he owned himself. A gas station even has his own name on it and at the top of the station there is his name on the gas station. What I think others should learn from this interview is that working keeps you young. Being active, moving around, and having a job to do keeps you young and healthy and assists you to be alive. If you want to live longer you have to take care of yourself and be healthy as he said but you also want to stay active and stay moving around. My future kids and family would much benefit to learn about my grandfathers legacy and life. I believe that friends or other family members alive currently that have not heard about him and this interview would much benefit to hear. To anybody this interview can benefit and help them to learn. The medium that I plan to produce to share should be a essay.

Oral History #2 Raqib Alade

raq2147137 — 2025-03-06 05:42:50 UTC

For this assignment, I interviewed my dad, who works in a hospital, What I found most interesting was hearing about the challenges he faces every day in his job, such as the pressure of dealing with a high volume of patients and managing long hours. Despite these challenges, he remains passionate about helping others and finds purpose in his work. It was inspiring to learn how his dedication to his job has allowed him to grow professionally, even when the hospital environment can be demanding. Based on our conversation, I think others should know that economic growth and job opportunities in healthcare require not only hard work but also resilience and a commitment to helping the community. I believe anyone interested in understanding how healthcare jobs impact individuals and their families would benefit from learning about my dad's experiences. To share this oral history, I plan to write an essay. Writing an essay will help me explain the key points from the interview in detail and provide readers with a clear understanding of the challenges and rewards my dad faces in his career.