Current Research and Creative Writing Projects
Alma Garcia in the Sociology Department and I are working on a research project titled, “Memories & Remembrances: Mexican American Community Builders in San Jose, California, 1960-1990.” We are establishing and developing an oral history archive, documenting the lives of community builders whose activism in pursuit of social justice issues shaped the development of the Mexican American community of San Jose. A historical archive of these community-builders will highlight for future generations the lives of people whose stories have not been heard or recorded. These interviews will be transcribed, placed in a historical context, and edited into an oral history monograph.
I am currently working with students on translating Historias para tener presente (University of Central America, 2002) from Spanish into English. This book consists of testimonials of five adults who as children were lost or separated from their families during the war in El Salvador (1980-1992), and who were found and reunited with their families after the war. Their stories take us on a painful journey to the past, leading us to an emotional re-unification with their families.