Making Meaning through Relationality: Amplifying Latino Immigrant Voices

A one-year interdisciplinary MA program training students in oral history method and theory. www.oralhistory.columbia.edu

Columbia Oral History MA Program

Making Meaning through Relationality in an Oral History Project: Amplifying Latino Immigrant Workers Voices in the Pandemic

Oral histories are often described as communicative events, as “a process of making history in dialogue” (Della Pollock). But beyond the co-creative nature of the oral history interview, and the relationship between the interviewer and the narrator, the oral history practice also exists within broader relational scenarios. This workshop navigates the chronology of relations of a recent community-led oral history project that explores the lives of low-wage Latino immigrant workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in the Denver (CO) metropolitan area. The project is a partnership between the <a href="https://www.centrohumanitario.org/about-us/" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Centro Humanitario para los Trabajadores</a>—a labor center in Denver, CO—and <a href="https://www.historycolorado.org/museum-memory-initiative" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Museum of Memory</a>—a public-history initiative at History Colorado. Project stakeholders—from the perspective of their unique social positions, motivations and needs—will reflect on the impetus, process and lessons learned while collaborating across organizations and between generations to co-create this project, from conception to public-facing. Together, presenters will reflect on what it has meant to relate to each other, themselves and their contexts of action through the process of recording, sharing, and amplifying under-heard voices. Special attention will be paid to how the project’s process draws on but also transforms social relationships as part of an ongoing process of making meaning together—but also apart. María Islas-López is a cultural sociologist with experience in field-based methodologies and community-engaged research and evaluation in culturally diverse and low-income communities, especially with immigrant families and youth. In her academic and community work she is concerned with how diverse communities build ideas about the past and the future together, and with the possibilities of storytelling for research, evaluation and community building. She has a history of collaboration across disciplines and sectors in community-based projects aimed at improving community wellbeing and community-wide partnerships, working with interdisciplinary research teams, community organizations, public agencies and private institutions in New Jersey, Colorado and Rhode Island. María has held teaching and research positions in institutions of higher education in Mexico and the United States. Born and raised in Mexico City, she received her Doctor of Philosophy degree in Sociology from Rutgers University. She completed Postdoctoral training as a fellow for the University of Denver Interdisciplinary Research Incubator for the Study of Inequality (IRISE). María is the Museum of Memory Manager at History Colorado, where she oversees a portfolio of community-based memory projects across the state for under-heard Colorado communities.Brittny Saldaña: I was born in El Paso, Texas, but lived in Juárez, Chihuahua with my whole family until 2009, when we migrated to Colorado. I graduated from Regis University in 2019 with a history degree and a minor in Spanish, and have been working at History Colorado bouncing around the education, philanthropy, guest services, and curatorial departments ever since. Currently, I am an AmeriCorps member working throughout History Colorado, and I was the indexer and interpreter for the Museum of Memory's Centro Humanitario project. I wanted to be part of this project to document and give visibility to the little-heard, but very familiar stories and experiences of COVID-19 from the Latine workforce in Denver. I want to continue sharing the stories and histories of my community in the future.Naomi Perez is currently a third-year student at the University of Denver and is a first-generation student. Naomi started her academic journey at DU in 2019 as a proud Davis New Mexico Scholar, as well as a New Mexico Simon Scholar, and hopes to graduate in 2023. She is majoring in Communication Studies and Spanish as well as minoring in Writing Practices and Critical Racial &amp; Ethnic Studies. Naomi is originally from Albuquerque, New Mexico, and spends her breaks back home with her family and friends. Her favorite thing about being in Denver is the weather and living on campus, but she does miss the food back home. She enjoys baking, discovering new foods, sunsets, and tending to her islanders on Animal Crossing. She has been an activist for immigrant and reproductive rights since she was 15 years old and hopes to pursue a career with nonprofit organizations after her graduation from DU. Sarahy Plazola is a first-generation Mexican immigrant born in Jalisco, Mexico, but raised in Denver, CO. She received a B.A in Psychology from Metropolitan State University in 2019 and is currently a program coordinator at Centro Humanitario. Sarahy is passionate about uplifting the immigrant community and has a goal to begin her own mental health facility. She is dedicated to raising awareness and educating individuals on topics that can help empower and create generational healing. Photography is a medium she uses as a form of self expression and aspires to give her community a voice through it. Her community work and immigrant experience have influenced the direction and meaning of her photography, career, and principles. As a daughter of non-english speaking immigrants, Sarahy feels a responsibility to create positive social change in her community and family. Tony Lemus is the Program Director of the Centro Humanitario para los Trabajadores. He oversees the design, development and execution of El Centro’s programs. He holds a law degree from Guatemala, as well as certificates in Public Management and Political Strategies acquired in Costa Rica and Taiwan. He brings an experience of more than 20 years in the non-profit and public sectors, where he has worked with multicultural and underprivileged communities in the fields of education, leadership training, and human development. His experiences, and the relationships he has developed over the years, have shaped a strong passion for social justice and fair treatment for all. A Guatemalan by birth, Tony has lived in Colorado for more than 15 years, where he enjoys spending time with his wife and daughter, exploring new restaurants, feeding his love for books and film, and traveling.Lucy Snow is a senior student at the University of Denver with a major in Anthropology and Art History. Born and raised in Colorado, she has been a volunteer at History Colorado since 2019 and joined the Museum of Memory initiative in 2020 as a digital media and access intern, now working as an AmeriCorps member. Lucy is interested in how art and digital media can support cultural heritage work with an emphasis on creating visibility and accessibility for diverse community voices. She is also a digital content manager for the University of Denver and Fort Logan National Cemetery’s More Than a Headstone project. Image Description: Pictured is a screen shot of grid view in Zoom from one of the oral history workshops for the Voices from Centro Humanitario: Labor, Barriers and Hope in COVID-19 Times memory project. From top left to right: Dámaso Ahumada, Tony Lemus, Sarahy Plazola, Sarah Shikes, María Islas-López, Brittny Saldaña, Marina Cruz, Guadalupe P. Martinez, Patty Grado, Alexsis Sánchez and Blanca Madrid. This workshop took place on February 8, 2021; all workshop participants are smiling. Below the grid are the logos of the project’s partners, from left to right: History Colorado (with the legend: We are Colorado. Somos Colorado), Museum of Memory and Centro Humanitario. These events are open to all. You can use <a href="https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSf_dqlzjv7DAaypptOguQHafOyLcmCkM47OssjndWtOQcSkdw/viewform" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">this quick survey</a> to let us know how we could make these events more accessible for you. Note that we are able to provide ASL interpretation for any event, but need two weeks' notice. Please contact Rebecca McGilveray at rlm2203@columbia.edu with specific access requests or questions.

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Making Meaning through Relationality: Amplifying Latino Immigrant Voices

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