College of Arts & Humanities

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The collections in this community comprise faculty research works, as well as graduate theses and dissertations.

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Juvenal Valeriano Lastarria Interview
(2014-05) Lastarria, James; Valeriano, Juvenal
After looking back at the interview, I see some themes that could probably be explored more on a follow up interview. Mr. Lastarria places a lot of importance on education. He did not succumbed to the ideas of the senderistas or corrupt officers and politicians because he was well educated. It is demonstrated during the first couple of minutes in the interview when he spoke about his mother and the importance and sacrifices she did in order for her children to get an education. My uncle became an attorney, my dad an undercover agent, and my other uncles and aunts obtained blue collar jobs. Another major theme in this interview is family. The decisions that Mr. Lastarria made were for the sake of his family. He may have taken his job to heart, which is noted during his long absence from his family, but there is also a sense of regret on his part. As he stated during the last minutes of the interview, he wished that he would’ve enjoyed his family more. Who knows, maybe if he had, the problems that are now facing my family would have gone away. My own personal view of his may have been different from what it is today. After this interview it did change a little; however, it is going to take a lot more time to mend the gap that 17 years of absence has caused. Corruption in the government is another theme that could definitely be explored further on another interview. Due to our limitations to an hour and a half, I could not fully explore the corruption within the Peruvian government. I realize that the goal of this interview was to get a narrative of the interviewee’s journey to the US, but events like corruption and distrust in the government play key role for certain individuals to come to the US.
Oral History Interview - Vivian Ojo: Namibia
(2014-05) Saldana, Stephanie; Ojo, Vivian
The interview I conducted was of Vivian Ojo. Vivian is a senior at Georgetown University. She is from Windhoek, Namibia which is the capital of the country. Vivian came to the U.S. to attend college making her immigration story unique in that she is an example of someone who can possibly transition into the complete immigrant experience. I see Vivian’s story as one of the new, modern immigrant that we see evolving in the United States. Themes that ran throughout our interview were development, transnationalism, religion, and education. Vivian’s opportunities and why she has ended up in the United States is based largely on her parent’s education which has influenced her desire to pursue higher education. Education has also provided Vivian with much of the mobility and agency needed to achieve a lot of the things she has in terms of migration. Development is reflective of Vivian’s desire to help her home country. Similarly, where I met Vivian plays a role in explaining her passion for development. I met Vivian this semester as a fellow intern of the ONE Campaign, a non-profit founded by Bono in 2004 that advocates to alleviate poverty and hunger in Africa. This mission of ONE is reflective of Vivian and what she hopes to accomplish through her career one day. Vivian’s ability to travel and experience new cultures are representative of transnationalism another theme in the interview. Vivian is a global citizen and has made choices in her education and life in general to assure she maintains as much of a global view as possible. Religion is another aspect of Vivian’s life that she embraces in the United States as well as her home country. Throughout the interview she credits God for providing her with the opportunities she’s had. Therefore, religion plays a role in her everyday life in shaping her values as well as a practice she’s maintained through her immigrant experience.