Interviewer
Cesar Villarreal
Project
Bracero Oral History
Biographical Synopsis of Interviewee
Jose Mata Alvarez was born on March 20, 2010 in Guanacevi, Durango, Mexico. His parents divorced when he was a child. Mata lived with his grandparents since he was a child. He only studied for two years when he was young. Mata worked as a bracero when he was eighteen years old picking cotton in Texas and California.
Summary of Interview
Jose Mata Alvarez started working at a very young age. He traveled to Tamaulipas, Mexico to get hired as a bracero for the first time. In 1960 he worked in Texas and in 1961 he moved to California. Mata worked picking beetroot and cleaning beans. He renewed his contract and worked for the last time as a bracero in 1964 in Denver, Colorado. He also worked picking grapes and lemon. Sometime, he worked six days a week and more than eight hours per day. The salary was based on the quantity not on the hours worked per day. He was very happy when he worked as a bracero.
Date of Interview
3-20-2010
Length of Interview
37 minutes
Listen to the Interview
Tape Number
No. 1469
Transcript Number
No. 1469
Length of Transcript
24 pages
Transcriber
Unknown
Interview Number
No. 1469
Terms of Use
Unrestricted
Recommended Citation
Interview with Jose Mata Alvarez by Cesar Villarreal, 2010, "Interview no. 1469," Institute of Oral History, University of Texas at El Paso.
Comments
Interview in Spanish.