Interview with Nelson Cabezas

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Date
2014-05Author
Jimenez, David A.
Cabezas, Nelson
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The interview with Nelson Cabezas, a Chilean-American, is about his work history. His
occupation as a tailor defines who he is. His pursuit to expand his tailoring education is what
brought him to the United States. Even though he was unable to acquire an education in design
he made due by working labor intensive jobs such as catering and delivery services. At the same
time he was able to practice his craft as a tailor by working part time on the side until he was
able to work for U.S. Navy as a tailor. An interesting aspect of this interview is the relationship
of Nelson to the interviewer. He is my stepfather. This posed some challenges for the questions I
had prepared beforehand because I wanted to explore topics Nelson has never covered with me
before and I was unsure on how to respond to information that I already knew beforehand.
Therefore, the abrupt transitions from topic to topic are not the result of my disinterest, but are
the result of my desire to know information I never knew before.
Notes
Undergraduate final project submitted to Professor Thomas A. Castillo of the History Department, College of Arts and Humanities for a course sponsored by the Center for the New America, University of Maryland, College Park. Final project for HIST428N Immigrant Life Stories: An Oral History Practicum (spring 2014).