Interviewee

Guadalupe Durán

Interviewer

Danielle Healey

Project

Bracero Oral History

Biographical Synopsis of Interviewee

Guadalupe Durán was born March 9, 1942, in Jalpa, Zacatecas, México; his father worked in the fields growing beans and corn, and his mother was a housewife; he had four brothers and three sisters; by the time he was eight years old, he began laboring in the fields; he helped care for his younger siblings, and consequently, he received very little education; later, he enlisted in the bracero program, and he worked in the fields of California cleaning, pruning and picking beets, cantaloupes, chiles, lettuce and tomatoes; in 1967, he married, and the following year he obtained legal status in the United States; in 1996, he became a U.S. citizen; he and his wife went on to have three children and four grandchildren.

Summary of Interview

Mr. Durán briefly talks about his parents and siblings; growing up, he worked in the fields, but he eventually had to go to Sonora, México, because there was not enough work at home; while there, he picked two thousand kilograms of cotton, and he was able to obtain the necessary documents to enlist in the bracero program; he went through the contracting center in Empalme, Sonora, México; from there he was transported to Mexicali, Baja California, México and then to Calexico, California, where he was stripped, examined and deloused; he comments that he was treated badly when he crossed into the United States; as a bracero, he worked in the fields of California cleaning, pruning and picking beets, cantaloupes, chiles, lettuce and tomatoes; he goes on to detail the various worksites, camp sizes, housing, provisions, duties, routines, treatment, payment, remittances, correspondence and recreational activities, including trips into town; moreover, he explains that he had to pack over one hundred boxes of tomatoes a day just to make between fifteen and twenty dollars; although he did send money home often, he also liked to buy clothes and shoes for himself; he also discusses his life after the program, including obtaining a local passport; in 1967, he married, and the following year he obtained legal resident status in the United States; in 1996, he became a U.S. citizen; he and his wife went on to have three children and four grandchildren.

Date of Interview

11-18-2008

Length of Interview

48 minutes

Tape Number

No. 1411

Transcript Number

No. 1411

Length of Transcript

18 pages

Transcriber

GMR Transcription Service

Interview Number

No. 1411

Terms of Use

Unrestricted

Comments

Transcript is a Draft copy

Interview is in Spanish

Included in

Oral History Commons

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