Social & Behavioral Sciences 362-02

Qualitative Methods

Professor Figueroa

______________________________________________________________________

Bringing a family back to life: Bracero Program and the people of Viejo Chupicuaro

By

Miguel Barron

12/20/19

Fall 2019

California State University Monterey Bay

Social and Behavioral Sciences, Concentration

Abstract:

My topic is on the Bracero Program and I want to find out the causes that led many immigrants to join this program from 1942 to 1964. My research was done in a historical method since this program ended 55 years ago. I started my project by going to the CSUMB library. Then I went online and looked for resources. After this, I asked my sister if I can take photos of my father being in the Bracero Program along with a few other ones. Finally, I interviewed my sister to see if she knew a little more about my father being a Bracero. When I started my research on the Bracero Program, I did find the answers to my questions but when it came down to the photos that my sister showed me, I started to have questions about them.

Introduction:

What is the Bracero Program and why was it important? Labor migration has been a big issue in the United States since the early 1900’s especially during World War II. Many historians discuss the impacts this war had on Europe and Asia but many historians do not discuss the impacts this war had on the United States. Once the United States entered World War II many people wanted to help out with the war and this impacted the United States because there was a labor shortage on people that used to work in farming and railroad industry (Osorio, 2005). Due to this impact the United States and Mexico came to an agreement to send temporary workers to help with the labor shortage and this program would be called the “Bracero Program” which started from 1942 to 1964 (Castro, 2016).

The purpose of my paper is to learn more about the Bracero Program. By doing this research, I want to know the causes that led many migrants to participate in the Bracero Program from 1942-1964. Once I have completed my research, will know why this program was established by the United States and Mexico, why this program lasted longer after World War II and why this part of the United States and Mexico history is very important to this day and should never be forgotten.

All my life I did not know anything about the Bracero Program until I came to CSUMB. After enrolling in a course and learned about the Bracero Program, I became very interested in this topic because of all the stories I have heard about families and my family coming to the United States. I do not know much about my father so I asked my oldest sister if my father was in the Bracero Program. This is when she took out old photos of my father from the 1950’s to the 1960’s.

The other reason why I choose this topic is for my daughter so she could know my side of my family history. My parents have passed away and these days my daughter calls my oldest sister and her husband grandma and Tata. She only 3 years old but she already has asked me how my parents past away. By doing this project my daughter can learned why the people from Viejo Chupicuaro were force to relocate to Nuevo Chupicuaro because of the Presa Solis that was finished in 1949. Once the people were in Nuevo Chupicuaro they were force to relocate again because there was no work, some lost their land in Viejo Chupicuaro and there was no food or water when they arrive to their new destination (Cervantes, 2012). This is an example on why many people migrated to other parts of Mexico and the United States during that time and why they join the Bracero Program.

There are many people that have done research on the Bracero Program but I focused on 3 theorist since they are more aware of this topic. Also, I will use their theory on why people migrated. The first theorist is Everett S. Lee. This theorist makes a good point with the push and pull theory. People can be push away from a certain area due to lack of jobs, low wage, poverty, religion or a political issue the country has with its people and people can be pull away people to other areas were the wage is higher, less poverty, more opportunities and less political issue the government has with its people (Gurieva, Aleksandr, 2015). After the Mexican Revolution, many people continued to be poor did not have work so they relocated to other parts of Mexico even the United States which the Bracero Program was happening during that time (Castillo, 2013).

The second theory is the segmented labor market theory by Piore. This theory explains how governments recruited other people from different countries for their labor needs. This theory explains why the Bracero Program was established. When the United States enters World War II, many us citizens went to help with the war while certain parts of the U.S. economy needed people and especially in agriculture were the labor demand was short (Massey, 2015).

The third is the theory of state by Massey. This theorist makes a good point when the economy is doing well in a certain area for a certain time, many people will migrate to that area in which the Bracero Program is a prime example because from 1942 to 1964 many people migrated to the United States (Massey, 2015).

There are many article that are related to the Bracero Program so there has been data collected. While doing my research, some of the articles had photos of Braceros working in the fields, Braceros being lonely because the family would stay behind in Mexico, data showing how many Braceros would come to the United States by year and how Braceros were being discriminated by the end of this program.

Literature Review:

Since the Bracero Program ended many people have wrote about this topic. An article titled “The Bracero Program” California is a big state and it’s big in the agriculture industry but the only problem is that is short of labor. Back then the farmers depended on the people that came from China to do the work but as the years went by a new program was established called the Bracero Program (Ray N. Gilmore and Gladys W. Gilmore, 1963). As the agriculture industry plants different types of crops and it continues to use more land the demand for labor was needed. By 1951 the demand for labor was needed again so the United States Government and Mexican Governments sign the P.L. 319 Labor act in which it contains specific details on how to get workers, how much these workers were going to get paid and who is going to pay for their transportation to come to the United States (Ray N. Gilmore and Gladys W. Gilmore, 1963). There was a problem with this program since the employer and labor did not pay any taxes none of this money would go unemployment tax. Other problems this program had is that the farmers did not comply with the rules. The farmer did not know how long the worker was needed and how much the Bracero was going to get paid. By the end of the 1950’s the demand for Braceros was declining due to many restrictions that were in placed, people from the U.S. started work in the agriculture and the demand for higher pay (Ray N. Gilmore and Gladys W. Gilmore, 1963). While the Gilmores let us know why they were needed and what the problems were with Braceros, Massey and Zai article let us know the consequences on having Braceros in the United States.

In this article “The Long-Term Consequences of a Temporary Worker Program: The US Bracero Experience.” The article explain how temporary work programs do not work and eventually the person that comes to the United States end up staying in the Country (Massey, Liang, 1989). Which the author starts with the Bracero Program. At the beginning of this program many Mexicans did not come to the United States but by the end of the 1950’s there was a mass migration coming to the United States because of the stories that were told by the Braceros once they returned back to Mexico (Massey, Liang, 1989). After this many Braceros started bringing their families with them which made them not to go back (Massey, Liang, 1989). This is when the American government started “Operation Wetback” but at the end the United States continued to be short on labor to work in the agriculture industry (Massey, Liang, 1989). While Mexicans migrated to the United States what happen to them?

An article "Using and Abusing Mexican Farmworkers: The Bracero Program and the INS" this author uses 2 books. The “Mexican Labor and World War II Braceros in the Pacific Northwest 1942- 1947” by Erasmo Gamboa and the other book titled “Inside the State: The Bracero Program, Immigration, and the I.N.S.” by Kitty Calavita. In this book the I.N.S. treated the Braceros, Illegal immigrants and Chicanos the same. They were sent back to the farmer so the farmer could have workers to work his land. Also, the Braceros can be sent back since they were so many men that wanted to work. In Gamboa book the Braceros were treated better because it cost more to have them up north due to the transportation, food, and housing and there was less Braceros. Also, women that were married to a Bracero stayed in Mexico because the farmer and the government did not want to pay for their transportation. The last thing is many Braceros were discriminated anywhere they went and especially if they had a relationship with a white women (Zatz,1993). Now If the Bracero Program was never established how much would cotton cost?

Back then cotton became an important crop and in an article "The Mexican Farm Labor Program, 1942-1964: Government-Administered Labor Market Insurance for Farmers." The farmers always complained about high labor cost, when workers are needed the weather can be a big impact because it can stop everything for that day. When The Bracero Program was established during World War II, this help the farmers and especially in the farmers that were growing cotton in the Southwest. By having this program many farmers would get together and decided how much a person was going to get paid or sometimes the farmers paid below wage because there was too many Braceros that wanted to work (Grove, 1996). By the end of this article the P.L 78 was established that extended the Bracero Program. By the end of this article the Bracero Program ended in 1964 due to government and unions that having Braceros was not going to be a good thing (Grove, 1996). Did all immigrants join the Bracero Program and worked in agriculture?

Not every everyone worked in the agriculture an article titled "Caught in the Middle: The Mexican State's Relationship with the United States and Its Own Citizen-Workers, 1942-1954." In this article Bracero Program started in 1942 in which many men would leave their families behind to work in the United States work in the United States. Many Braceros worked in factories, day care and other jobs because companies can pay cheap labor (Cohen, 2001). How did Braceros lived and who kept documentation of them being in the Bracero Program.

Jennifer Osorio article explains it. "Proof of a Life Lived. The Plight of the Braceros and What it Says About How We Treat Records." The problem with this is the most of the Braceros did not keep any records when they work, what year, what employer and how much did they get paid. Without this information the Mexican and American government cannot pay the Braceros what they were owed (Osorio, 2005). Also, while Braceros were in the United States they were treated differently and especially with the border patrol (Osorio, 2005). By the 2000’s many Braceros that had children demanded to get paid but without any luck. At the end the author lets us knows why it’s important to keep track or records because we can fall under the same problem as the Braceros did. Once the Braceros were working in the United States were they discriminated?

Barbara Schmitter Heisler article "The "Other Braceros": Temporary Labor and German Prisoners of War in the United States, 1943-1946. In this article the Braceros were treated differently during World War II. When the Program was established many Mexicans were discriminated while the Germans that were Prisoners of War were treated better that them. This was due to the Geneva Convention from 1929 on how the prisoners of war were going to be treated (Heisler, 2007). Now who was President Truman?

In the article "Taking The Fair Deal to the Fields: Truman's Commission on Migratory Labor, Public Law 78, and the Bracero Program, 1950–1952." In this article President Truman wanted to extend the Bracero Program in the 1950’s in which the administration established Migratory Labor of 1950’s. By doing this it will help the Truman Administration to gather information and make recommendations to the farmers and Mexicans that came to the United States (Robinson, 2010). The only problem with this is that this program was going to discriminate on who can come to this country. At the end a new law called Public Law 78 help the Bracero Program to be extended until 1964 (Robinson, 2010). By extending this program did any Bracero get injured in an accident?

Flores article has an example on what happened. "A Town Full of Dead Mexicans: The Salinas Valley Bracero Tragedy of 1963, the End of the Bracero Program, and the Evolution of California's Chicano Movement". In 1963 (58) Braceros were killed in the railroads tracks by Chualar Ca. After this incident, the Braceros became headlines around the United States on what was happening to them in which these people were looked at cheap labor for the farmers and especially here in Salinas Ca were agriculture is a big business (Flores, 2013). After the incident the farmers silence the survivors so people cannot know what really happened in which many activist started or should I say unions wanted the Bracero Program to end. Especially the Mexican Americans because these people were taking jobs. After all this happened Chualar became to be known as the town full of dead Mexicans and the Chicano movement started (Flores, 2013). Which made a lot of people forget on what really happened to the Braceros which they were treated worse than an animal and these people were discriminated because they came to work in the United States (Flores, 2013). Finally, were Bracero important part of the U.S economy?

An article titled "Mexican Braceros and Arkansas Cotton: Agricultural Labor and Civil Rights in the Post-World War II South" Castro explains how Mexicans were needed during cotton harvest season because farmers were short on labor. Many of Mexicans came under the Bracero Program but after the World War II many more Mexicans came to work in the cotton industry (Castro, 2016). This is just a brief history on what happened to the people that decided to join the Bracero Program.

Methodology:

The Bracero Program started in 1942 to 1964 so I had to do it in a historical method. The way I found my information is through the CSUMB website. I search for any articles relating to the Bracero Program, after I did this I went to the CSUMB library and started to search for book related to the Bracero Program. After I found all the information I needed from the library, I talk to my sister about the photos she has saved from my father and the other people that were in the Bracero Program. I took photos of them because I am afraid of losing them. Now that I had all this information I put it together in N-Vivo. By using N-Vivo I can easily find the information I have gathered for my project. I also put videos and newspaper articles in N-Vivo. I know this is a big project but in the future I would like to interview the last person in my family that was a Bracero. By doing all this now, I can use qualitative or quantitative methods with people that work in the fields to show evidence on what they are going through now.

Results:

After doing this research, I learned why having the Bracero Program was important from 1942-1964. The United States was short on labor during World War II so the United States got the people it needed during that time. While the people of Mexico found work in the United States due to the economic situation that was happening during that time. After the war ended many U.S. citizens did not want to do the hard labor in the fields so the farmers got used to having Mexicans do this type of work because Mexicans did not have any choice due to their situations at home. Other things Braceros experience is a new culture, got more knowledge in agriculture and the Bracero send money back home to feed their families. Also, the photos and artifacts that my sister has kept for over 60 years. Before I did this project, those photos and artifacts did not have any meaning to our family but now they do. Also by doing this project my sister and I have started to connect the history of the old photos with the training l have learned.

When it came to interviews my uncle and Maribel grandmother it became very difficult. When I started this project, the first person I wanted to interview was my uncle because he is the last person in our family that was involved in the Bracero Program but due to my aunt passing away at the end of the summer, I did not feel it was the right time to interview him because the questions I might asked my will bring back memories of my aunt.

I did not want to interview Maribel grandmother. She is in her early 90’s but due to her health issues she had during the semester, I did not want to interview her as well because she had on things in her mind. Now she feels much better but it was too late because we came to the end of the semester. I could have interviewed her but due to other priorities I had, I did not had any time. One thing I could say about her is that I made her happy on Thanksgiving Day. When I mentioned my father named that made her smile. This brought back memories of her husband when he was alive. She was telling all of us about her husband and my father when they used to get drunk. Every time they would get drunk, they would walk each other half ways home. She also told us about my mother and herself talking care of all the children. These are just 2 things she talk about. If I have time during the winter break, I will interview her because I did enjoy the stories that she told us. I never realized that our family was that closed to her family. After she told us this, I wonder if my father and Maribel grandfather wanted us to be together. In the end, I interview my oldest sister and I asked her how it was when she came to the United States in the early 1970’s which I also did a transcript.

Copy of transcript (Translated from Spanish to English):

Me: Miguel Barron

Juana: Juana Barron (oldest sister)

Interview Setting: I did an interview with my sister Juana and this took place in Santa Elena at 11:00am on Saturday 12/7/19. This is the trailer were she has been leaving since the 1970’s. Also, this is the trailer where my family lived and settled after many years of migrating back and forth to Mexico. Since many people have passed on, she is one of the few people that I know that could help me understand what people went through went they came to this country.

Me: What year did you come to the United States mom? 

Juana: I came to the United States in 1970.

Me: Do you remember where you crossed border in California?

Juana: We pass through the border of Calexico in the month of May and we arrive at Soledad, California.

Me: Was this the first place you went?

Juana: Yes.

Me: Where did they go to live in Soledad?

Juana: In a ranch here in Soledad that was John Pryor.

Me: Where is this place at?

Juana: North of Soledad?

Me: What memories do you have when my father was a Bracero and came to California?

Juana: I was a girl I don't remember much.

Me: Why did you come to the United States?

Juana: Because my dad brought us here to work and he was already here.

 Me: Everyone?

Juana: not everyone because his income tax was not enough to bring everyone. He could only bring 3 of us and my mother.

Me: who would take care of my brothers and sisters in Mexico?

Juana: A girl she was the baby sitter.

Me: And that girl took care of them?

Juana: Yes.

 Me:  When you arrived in California what was the first job?

Juana: My first job was using a short hoe in the fields.

 Me: and did they let you work and how old were you at that time? 

Juana: I was 16 or 17 years old. They let me work 8 hours.

Juana: Did you had to go to school?

Juana: I worked 6 or 8 hours and I had to go to school on Saturdays for 4 hours so I can get permission to work.

Me: What memories do you have of your work and which ones did you liked?

Juana: Well, some jobs were very heavy. Tomato and garlic the work of the field is heavy almost everything.

Juana: Once the season was over, did you go back to Mexico?

Juana: We would go back to Mexico because the work was over at that time and then we were back.

Me: and the next year? 

Juana: we would look for work and home again to live rent.

 Me: Do you remember the places where you lived?

Juana: Some. Yes. We live in Soledad and in Greenfield.

Me: Soledad and Greenfield?

 Juana: Yes but in different houses but different parts of the town.

Me: What year did you come to live trailer in Santa Elena?

Juana: We came in 1977 and bought the trailer. It used to be called the Pinnacles and now it's called Coperativa Santa Elena.

Me: How was it here before to the trailers?

Juana: There were only a few trailers and there was no pavement like now. Until we made cooperative Santa Elena so we can pay less. Some people got to work on this and made it cooperative so that we will pay less.

Me: and at that time what race lived here?

Juana: there were a few Americans, but almost all Mexicans.

Me: In the 1980’s were their people living in the trailers?

Juana: When we arrived here, people were already here, we bought it in 77 and there were many that we knew. 

Me: Were their people from Chupícuaro?

Juana: There were a lot of people from Chupícuaro but then they left and eventually they bought a house and we stayed here.

 Me: And why did you decide to stay here and not buy a house?

Juana: Because here you pay very little as it is a cooperative. Over time we took out a loan but it’s already paid off and now we just pay the maintenance here.

Me: How was the experience working on the Dole when you started?

Juana: I always worked in the field but in 1995 they worked at Dole.

 Me: Did our mom work with you or stay in the trailer?

Juana: My mom worked a little bit but most of the time she stayed in the trailer.

Me: What about my brothers?

Juana: They work with my dad.

Me: In what year did I come?

Juana: In 1978.

Me: what are your memories working in the field compared today has changed?

Juana: Yes it has changed a lot. Now they tents in the fields. People that work in the field back then suffer more than they do today.

Me: What time of crops did they plant before?

Juana: Before there was lettuce, tomato, beet, and celery. There was a lot of tomato and lettuce but no grapes now there is a lot of grapes.

Me: Other things you liked when you came to the United States or other memories?

Juana: I liked it when all the family got reunited because we would never together some of us would be in Mexico and other would be in the United States.  

Me: Other things you can tell me?

Juana:  There were supervisors some were more demanding than others.

Me: What are your memory of working in the tomato?

Juana: When we worked on the tomato. The tractor was in the middle and people were on each side. There was two of us and we would help each other pick tomatoes.

Me: Do you remember anything when you live in Greenfield?

Juana: There was a year when we lived in the “Central” and there were many cats.

Me: Did you like them?

Juana: No.

Me: Where there camps or communities?

Juana: In Greenfield we live in a field called Vicente García. There were two rooms just the room and the kitchen. The bathroom was outside. We had to bathe outside the house. 

 Me: Who lived there in those times?

Juana: Well, family and friends.

Me: All together?

Juana: Yes.

Me: Other memories you can tell me?

Juana:  No.

Me: Well, thank you very much for your time (See Appendix 1).

Other difficulties were the field notes I done on the photos about my family, I looked at one of the photos, I notice that this photo was taken in October of 1958. While I was looking at these Braceros some of them were carrying an empty white sack, another Bracero was holding his hand on some pieces of wood, a bracero was standing on something white on a truck and I saw females on the photos. I went online and found sources related to that time. What I learned from those sources is the large white sack that these men were carrying were sack where they put their cotton. The Bracero that was holding to some sticks is how they weight the cotton. The person on top of the truck was transferring the cotton once it was weight. The only thing I still can’t understand is the women in the photo. The way I found out about this information is by going online and I Goggle and I also used Pinterest and type in the Bracero Program.

The other photo that I found very interesting is the photo of my father. This photo was taken in 1958 and my oldest sister told me it was taken in the San Juaquin Valley during the cotton season. I needed more evidence to prove that he did work during that time so the closes to the time was a newspaper from 1964 stating that the Bracero Program was ending in Sacramento and one of the major crops that was going to be hurting was cotton because there was nobody that was going to harvest the cotton after the Bracero Program ended which the demand for workers was needed (Blaik M. William 1964).

Now that I know this information on my father harvesting the cotton in 1958 what caused him to migrate? After the Presa Solis was built in 1949 many people that lived in Viejo Chupicuaro were moved to Nuevo Chupicuaro. During the first 3 years, no one had work so many people migrated to other parts of Mexico and other people migrated to the United States because of the Bracero Program (Cervantes, 2012).While I was reading this part of the book, I found another family member that decided to be in the Bracero Program. His name is Gonzalo Ibarra Trujillo and he describe what he went through just to be in the Bracero Program. The Mexican government would let the President of Acambaro know how many people were needed in the United States and from there people would take a medical exam then would take another medical exam in the border (Cervantes, 2012).Tio Gonzalo mentions many more things about the Bracero Program but the thing I found interesting is that he had to take a medical exam before he got to the border and once at the border he had to take another exam.

Now that I mentioned all this what about my mother? My sister showed me an old photo of her and this photo looks like it was taken in the early 1950’s. When I saw this photo many more questions came to my mind which I asked my sister but she could not answer them. When I have time next year during the summer this is my new project. I will learned the history of my mother and what did mothers did while their men were in Bracero Program.

Conclusion:

Now that I have gathered information about the Bracero Program, I have more questions than answers. This is due to the findings I have done.

· If Cesar Chavez eliminated the short handle. Why did my showed me a photo of my father using a long handle from 1958.

· Another interesting thing I found is women being Braceros. If the many men were Braceros why did my sister showed me a photo if women being Braceros and this photo was taken in 1958?

· I found a poster that showed Braceros being lonely and not happy when they were in the United States then why did sister show me a photo of people being happy?

· I was reading Lori Flores book and on page 97 I found an old photo of a Bracero by the name of Ismael Nicolas Osorio and this Bracero was an uncle of a friend from work.

· While I was reading Lori Flores article some of the sources are not accurate. While I was reading this article in the source it stated that 14 men from Salinas died in a gas explosion near Salinas while the Bracero History Archive stated it happened in Soledad. How is 34 miles considered near Salinas? I know how many miles is from Soledad to Salinas because I grew up in Soledad and I work in Salinas.

References

Blaik M. William. Western States Face Need for New Farm Worker. Newspaper. 1964.

Castillo-Muñoz, Verónica. "Historical Roots of Rural Migration: Land Reform, Corn Credit, and the Displacement of Rural Farmers in Nayarit Mexico, 1900–1952." Mexican Studies/Estudios Mexicanos 29, no. 1 (2013): 38.

Castro, J. (2016). Mexican Braceros and Arkansas Cotton: Agricultural Labor and Civil Rights in the Post-World War II South. The Arkansas Historical Quarterly, 75(1), 27-46.

Cervantes Ayala, Maria del Carmen. Nuevo Chupicuaro Una Historia, Un Museo. Impreso en los talleres de: Factoria de Textos, S.A. de C.V. Estafetas 137-c Col. Postal, C.P. 03420 Del B. Juárez, D.F. 2012. 52-55.

Cohen, D. (2001). Caught in the Middle: The Mexican State's Relationship with the United States and Its Own Citizen-Workers, 1942-1954. Journal of American Ethnic History, 20(3), 110-132.

Gilmore, N., & Gladys W. Gilmore. (1963). The Bracero in California. Pacific Historical Review, 32(3), 265-282.

Grove, W. (1996). The Mexican Farm Labor Program, 1942-1964: Government-Administered Labor Market Insurance for Farmers. Agricultural History, 70(2), 302-320.

Gurieva, Lira K.; Dzhioev, Aleksandr V. Economic Theories of Labor Migration. Mediterranean Journal of Social Sciences, [S.l.], v. 6, n. 6 S7, p. 101, Dec. 2015. ISSN 2039-2117. Available at: . Date accessed: 15 Nov. 2019. 102.

Heisler, B. (2007). The "Other Braceros": Temporary Labor and German Prisoners of War in the United States, 1943-1946. Social Science History, 31(2), 239-271.

Lori A. Flores. (2013). A Town Full of Dead Mexicans: The Salinas Valley Bracero Tragedy of 1963, the End of the Bracero Program, and the Evolution of California's Chicano Movement. Western Historical Quarterly, 44(2), 124-143.

Martinez, D. J "Bracero Memorial highway," in Bracero History Archive, Item #3220, http://braceroarchive.org/items/show/3220 (accessed November 24, 2019).

Massey, D., & Liang, Z. (1989). The Long-Term Consequences of a Temporary Worker Program: The US Bracero Experience. Population Research and Policy Review, 8(3), 199-226.

Massey, Douglas S. “A Missing Element in Migration Theories.” Migration Letters 12, no. 3 (2015): 281-282.

Osorio, J. (2005). Proof of a Life Lived: The Plight of the Braceros and What it Says About How We Treat Records. Archival Issues, 29(2), 95-103.

Robinson, R. (2010). Taking The Fair Deal to the Fields: Truman's Commission on Migratory Labor, Public Law 78, and the Bracero Program, 1950–1952. Agricultural History, 84(3), 381-402.

Zatz, M. (1993). Using and Abusing Mexican Farmworkers: The Bracero Program and the INS. Law & Society Review, 27(4), 851-863.

Appendix: What I found by doing this project.

Photos:

This 1938 tortilla maker has been in our family for over 81 years and it still being used by my oldest sister to this present day. After my oldest sister and I are gone, my daughter will take over this.

My father as a Bracero in 1958 in the San Juaquin Valley along with another worker.

From right to left: That my grandmother Antonia, Tia Alicia, Great Grandmother Anastacia or just (Chata). In the bottom are the children of Tia Alicia.

Right to left: Umencido Perea, Grandmother Antonia Mejia, Great Grandmother Anastacia. Bottom is Esteban Delgado (relative from Minnesota).

My father in the Bracero Program.

Right to left: My uncle Jesus, Great Grandmother Anastacia, My mother Celia and her children. This photo was taken in the early 1970’s in Mexico City to give thanks to the Virgen Mary for finally allowing some of my family members to come to the United States. My father was not in this photo during this time because he was working in the United States.

My mother and I estimate that this photo was taken in the late 1940’s.

Unknown of person.

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