Interviewer
Rosy Chivardi
Project
Bracero Oral History
Biographical Synopsis of Interviewee
Filomeno Burciaga was born on October 1, 1930, in Namiquipa, Chihuahua, México; he was the youngest of his four siblings, and he was formally educated through the fourth grade; when he was eleven years old, he began working in the fields; in 1955, he enlisted in the bracero program; he worked in Nebraska and Texas, and continued with the program until 1962; although he was ultimately able to arrange for residency in the United States, he continued working on a farm in Texas.
Summary of Interview
Mr. Burciaga briefly recalls his childhood and family; in 1955, he enlisted in the bracero program at a contracting center in Chihuahua, Chihuahua, México; at the time, he was married and had a son; from Chihuahua, he traveled to Rio Vista, a processing center in Socorro, Texas, and he chronicles the various procedures he underwent while there; as a bracero, he labored in the beet fields of Nebraska and the cotton fields of Texas; he goes on to describe living and working conditions, wages, contract amendments and extensions, provisions, recreational activities, and community interactions; Filomeno continued working with the program until 1962, at which point he was able to arrange for his legal residency; in spite of this, he chose to remain gainfully employed at a farm in Canutillo, Texas; he was later able to help his family immigrate to the United States.
Date of Interview
11-12-2005
Length of Interview
32 minutes
Listen to the Interview
Tape Number
No. 1087
Transcript Number
No. 1087
Length of Transcript
29 pages
Interview Number
No. 1087
Terms of Use
Unrestricted
Recommended Citation
Interview with Filomeno Burciaga by Rosy Chivardi, 2005, "Interview no. 1087," Institute of Oral History, University of Texas at El Paso.
Comments
Interview in Spanish.