Interviewer
Anaís Acosta
Project
Bracero Oral History
Biographical Synopsis of Interviewee
Luis Zamudio was born on November 4, 1938, in Moroleón, Guanajuato, México; he is one of seventeen children, though nine died at a young age; he had formal schooling until the sixth grade; at age eleven, he began to work with his father in the fields; he joined the Bracero Program in 1957, and worked in Arkansas, California and Texas; there he picked cotton and lettuce.
Summary of Interview
Mr. Zamudio recalls his childhood in Moroleón, Guanajuato, México, and how he started working with his father in agriculture at age eleven; he states that, at age eighteen, he joined the Bracero Program; as a bracero he worked in Arkansas, California and Texas picking cotton and lettuce; additionally, he remembers what life was like in the bracero camps, how they had to cook their own food, and the hardships they endured in the fields; he describes how he renewed his contract, and the treatment he received from foremen; furthermore, he details how he was able to secure residency in the United States after the program was terminated, and how he returned to California to work for the company that helped him get his papers; he concludes by stating that he is now retired after working thirty-seven years for a glass factory, and that he is very grateful for the opportunities he received due to the Bracero Program.
Date of Interview
7-27-2005
Length of Interview
53 minutes
Listen to the Interview
Tape Number
No. 1109
Transcript Number
No. 1109
Length of Transcript
40 pages
Interview Number
No. 1109
Terms of Use
Unrestricted
Recommended Citation
Interview with Luis Zamudio by Anaís Acosta, 2005, "Interview no. 1109," Institute of Oral History, University of Texas at El Paso.
Comments
Interview in Spanish.