Comentario



Carol,

 

From what you say, my intuition may be right about why my folks ended
up near Kansas and working on the railroads.  Also, my father, after the
railroad work and doing farm labor for others, settled in Brush (Snyder,
actually) and raised wheat and sugar beets!  He must have done that work,
why else we he choose to settle down and do that?  In what census did you
find all those Mexican families in Texas?  Were there any Olague (my
father's surname), Tinajero, Alvarado, Garcia?  What immigration papers did
you research?  At my mother's request (she was an American citizen) my
father became a naturalized citizen and all I have is the naturalization papers
from 1941.  As far as I know, the government did not track him.  He
immigrated from Mexico through the El Paso checkpoint in 1916 and he died in
1966 in California, but I found no immigration papers other than the
naturalization papers, a copy of which I obtained from a courthouse in
Denver. 

 

Emilie


style="PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px">
----- Original Message -----



Sent: Friday, January 20, 2006 2:25
PM

Subject: Re: [ranchos] Cultural
Identity


Emilie:

My grandfather actually came through El Paso
in 1908
and lived in Canadian, Texas, worked for the
Panhandle
Railroad.  I have the census for Canadian, TX and at
that
time there were about 50 to 60 Mexican families
just starting out in this
small railroad town, they
moved north up through New Mexico and then into
KS,
they also worked the beet fields in Nebraska during
the summer
months, but always came back home to Kansas
City.  However, my
grandfather had brothers after
leaving Canadian, TX that also went West to
CA., to
live.  It's interesting to always find out but usually
when
they came across it was with their neighbors they
had in Mexico that later
became their neighbors in
Canadian, TX and so on, they kept their
neighbors
close to them. 

I would say their migration was
about survival and
their jobs, wherever their jobs took them, they had
to
pack up and follow and for my grandfather it was the
railroad. 
Emilie, try research immigration papers for
your family if you haven't
already tried this; I got
my grandfather's information and it gave me
his
whereabouts from the time he was in El Paso 1908 until
he died in
1968.  This will give you more insight of
their migration pattern and
why they moved around.  It
answered many questions for me. 



--- Emilie Garcia <auntyemfaustus@...>
wrote:

> Carol,
>
> My story could have been very much
like yours.  You
> see, I was born in Brush, Colorado, in
Morgan
> County, way up in the northeast corner by Kansas.
> When
WWII started, my father got a job working in
> the shipyards in Richmond
CA and sent my mother, my
> sister and I to my mother's relatives in
southern NM
> near El Paso TX, then after the war he sent for us
>
and we settled in what is now known as Silicon
> Valley.   My
father was brought to Colorado from
> Jerez in 1916 at the age of 13 by
his father who I
> believe arrived earlier.  In the census records,
I
> find no other Spanish surnames.  When my husband was
>
helping me search census records before they were
> all online, he kept
telling me, "No hay ni un frijol
> aqui! [I don't see a single beaner
here!] Why did
> your folks end up there?".  I often wonder why
they
> ended up way up there; maybe you can tell me why
> some
Mexicans ended up so far north then (we are all
> over now). 

>
> My father surprised me one day when he told me he
>
had been to Wyoming as a young man.  We had been
> talking about
why he and my mother never went out to
> eat, and he said he didn't like
restaurant food,
> that my mother fixed everything just the way
he
> liked it; but he said there was one place in Wyoming
> (I
wish I had asked where and what took him there)
> that served excellent
"chile".  I imagine it was
> what they later called chili con
carne, or just
> "chili".  He said he and some fellow workers
would
> go there and just say "Chile!" (I don't think they
> could
speak much English if at all) and they would
> be served a bowl of
delicious chili with crackers.
> He said he loved it and would never
forget it, that
> he wished he could have some right there and
then. 
>
> So I hope you can shed some light as to why
some
> Mexicans so early in the 20th Century went directly
> way
up to northeast Colorado and Kansas, rather than
> to Texas, NM, CA,
AZ.  Maybe they didn't go there
> directly.  I think perhaps
they got jobs on the
> railroads in Texas after crossing over (they came
on
> trains from Mexico and maybe inquired about jobs)
> and
perhaps it was railroad jobs that took them so
> far north.  I do
recall my father telling me that he
> had once worked in a railroad
roundhouse (where they
> clean and service locomotives) and that it was
the
> hardest work he had ever done in his life and he
> left that
work as soon as he could.
>
> Emilie Garcia
> Port
Orchard, WA --
>
>
>   ----- Original Message
-----
>   From: Margarita
>
Vallazza<mailto:TeaCozyGran@...&gt;
>  
To:
>
ranchos@yahoogroups.com<mailto:ranchos@yahoogroups.com&gt;
>

>   Sent: Friday, January 20, 2006 8:00
AM
>   Subject: Re: [ranchos] Cultural Identity
>

>
>   Carol, I loved hearing about your research
and
> results. You are a true inspiration to me and to
> others. I
enjoyed our having coffee after doing
> research.
Marge:)
>   On Jan 20, 2006, at 9:02 AM, Carol Turner
wrote:
>
>
>     My story - I always
wondered why do I live in
> Kansas?
>    
Growing up in the late 60's and early 70's
> wasn't
easy
>     at times.  My paternal grandparents
were here by
> 1916
>     and my maternal in
the early 1920's in the state
> of
>    
KS.  In doing my research and going back in
> time,
I
>     found many stories that touched my heart of
what
> my
>     grandparents had sacrificed,
suffered and what
> their
>     lives were
like when they first got here...it
>
wasn't
>     easy.  My parents were told they
couldn't speak
>     Spanish in school and that we
need to try to
> "fit in"
>     with the
others.  I went from Mexican to being a
>    
Chicana to being Mexican American or Hispanic is
>
what
>     they call us now.  We lived on the
Westside
> Community
>     until I was 4 and
then moved to Rosedale in KS
> which
>     at
that time was predominately Anglo.  They sent
> me
to
>     St. Agnes and I grew up in this community
and
>     basically still in this community. 
Things
> change over
>     the years, St.
Agnes is now 35% Hispanic and the
>     numbers are
going up.  We have more Hispanic
>    
celebrations now in in the City because of the
>
growth
>     of the Hispanic population.
>

>     Being married to an Anglo, I felt the need in
my
> 30's
>     and 40's to embrace my culture
which lead me to
>     research our family history,
volunteer my time
> at the
>     Hispanic
Heritage booth at the Fiestas, support
>
our
>     Hispanic veterans here in KC among many
other
> meetings
>     or groups I have some
involvement in.  However I
> would
>    
have to say doing our research has brought me
to
>     embracing our culture because we our
embracing
> our
>     ancestors and their
stories.  Well I guess I
> need to
>    
journal more so someone can read these stories
> of
how
>     I feel...I doubt my kids will save my
emails. -
> Carol
>     Muro
Turner
>     --- Emilie Garcia
<auntyemfaustus@...>
> wrote:
>

>     > Alicia,
>    
>
>     > Your story of growing up in a
multi-ethnic
> community
>     > sounds so
much like mine.  My husband and I
>
were
>     > brought to San Jose as small
children in 1947,
> me
>     > from New
Mexico and my husband from El Paso,
> TX,
and
>     > we grew up in an Italian neighborhood
(the old
> Goose
>     > Town area -that
flooded often---near Sacred
> Heart
>     >
church--between Willow Street and Alma
> Street),
went
>     > to school with Japanese and
Filipinos; I later
>     > worked with new Cuban
and Vietnamese
> immigrants when
>     >
our country opened up to refugees from those
>    
> countries.  I still feel close to Italian
and
>     > Japanese culture, and remember fondly
all
> their
>     > customs and festivals
there in the Valley.
> Perhaps
>     > that
is why we learned everything Italian, and
>
we
>     > consider it our second adopted
ethnicity.
> Although
>     > not all the
Italians initially were friendly
> to
us,
>     > they more than the Anglos eventually
embraced
> us due
>     > to being
Catholic, and the similarity between
>
our
>     > languages.  We know of some of
those Italians
> who
>     > snubbed not
only Mexicans but their own people
> and
>    
> even dropped the final vowel at the end of
>
their
>     > surname to make it sound more
Anglo--Diridondi
>     > became Diridon). 
That is very sad in a
> culture that
>    
> is normally very family-oriented and proud of
>
their
>     > ethnicity, as are the other groups
I
> mentioned.
>     >

>     > Emilie
Garcia
>     > Port Orchard, WA
--
>     >   ----- Original Message
-----
>     >   From: Alicia
>
Carrillo<mailto:alliecar@...&gt;
>    
>
>     >  
To:
>     >
>   

>
ranchos@yahoogroups.com<mailto:ranchos@yahoogroups.com&gt;
>    
>
>     >   Sent: Wednesday,
January 18, 2006 10:38 PM
>     >  
Subject: [ranchos] Cultural Identity
>     >

>     >
>    
>   Linda,
>     >

>     >   Just to put in my dos
centavos. I personally
> could
>
=== message truncated
===


__________________________________________________
Do You
Yahoo!?
Tired of spam?  Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection
around
href="http://mail.yahoo.com">http://mail.yahoo.com

Comentario


Hola alguien tendra información sobre
la familia sanchez no se como buscar información mi ultimo registro esta
en este archivo del paf si alguien puede ayudarme se los agradeceria

 

face="Times New Roman">

De: face=Tahoma> ranchos@yahoogroups.com
[mailto:ranchos@yahoogroups.com] En nombre de
latina1955@...

Enviado el: Viernes, 20 de Enero
de 2006 06:02 p.m.

Para: ranchos@...m

Asunto: Re: [ranchos] Cultural
Identity

 

Emilie:

It was the "pisca" - you go
where the next harvesting is needed - at least that is what my grandparents did
- they also traveled throughout the US - all the way to Washington state before
ending up in the middle of Michigan.  My aunts/uncles/mom never shared
their hardship,except for bits and pieces - the stinging hands from picking
peppers, the potato sacks converted to dresses/shirts, etc....

    My fondest memory
was from my oldest uncle Alfred - he always wanted to have his own piece of
land to harvest and grow crops, and he was able to meet his goal in Carson
City, Michigan - they were the only Mexican family there as well.

    Except for two of
their siblings, the rest of the 10 siblings settled in Detroit - also not very
populated with Mexicans - but at least they did have a torillera.  Their
preparation of food had to be accommodated to existing and available
ingredients - so for example, they made enchiladas out of chile powder and
flour - not bad tasting, but not the same as made with chile ancho.

 

Esperanza

 

Attachment:
Genealigía Raúl Sánchez Rosas.paf


Description: Binary data

Comentario


face=Arial color=#000000 size=2>

Emilie:

It was the "pisca" - you go where the next harvesting is needed - at least
that is what my grandparents did - they also traveled throughout the US - all
the way to Washington state before ending up in the middle of Michigan.  My
aunts/uncles/mom never shared their hardship,except for bits and pieces - the
stinging hands from picking peppers, the potato sacks converted to
dresses/shirts, etc....

    My fondest memory was from my oldest uncle Alfred -
he always wanted to have his own piece of land to harvest and grow crops, and he
was able to meet his goal in Carson City, Michigan - they were the only Mexican
family there as well.

    Except for two of their siblings, the rest of the
10 siblings settled in Detroit - also not very populated with Mexicans - but at
least they did have a torillera.  Their preparation of food had to be
accommodated to existing and available ingredients - so for example, they made
enchiladas out of chile powder and flour - not bad tasting, but not the same as
made with chile ancho.

 

Esperanza

Comentario





Carol,

 

My story could have been very much like yours.  You see, I was born in
Brush, Colorado, in Morgan County, way up in the northeast corner by
Kansas.  When WWII started, my father got a job working in the
shipyards in Richmond CA and sent my mother, my sister and I to my mother's
relatives in southern NM near El Paso TX, then after the war he sent for us and
we settled in what is now known as Silicon Valley.   My father was
brought to Colorado from Jerez in 1916 at the age of 13 by his father who I
believe arrived earlier.  In the census records, I find no other Spanish
surnames.  When my husband was helping me search census records before they
were all online, he kept telling me, "No hay ni un frijol aqui! [I don't see a
single beaner here!] Why did your folks end up there?".  I often wonder why
they ended up way up there; maybe you can tell me why some Mexicans ended up so
far north then (we are all over now). 

 

My father surprised me one day when he told me he had been to Wyoming as a
young man.  We had been talking about why he and my mother never went out
to eat, and he said he didn't like restaurant food, that my mother fixed
everything just the way he liked it; but he said there was one place in Wyoming
(I wish I had asked where and what took him there) that served excellent
"chile".  I imagine it was what they later called chili con carne, or just
"chili".  He said he and some fellow workers would go there and just say
"Chile!" (I don't think they could speak much English if at all) and they
would be served a bowl of delicious chili with crackers.  He said he loved
it and would never forget it, that he wished he could have some right there and
then. 

 

So I hope you can shed some light as to why some Mexicans so early in the
20th Century went directly way up to northeast Colorado and Kansas, rather than
to Texas, NM, CA, AZ.  Maybe they didn't go there directly.  I think
perhaps they got jobs on the railroads in Texas after crossing over (they came
on trains from Mexico and maybe inquired about jobs) and perhaps it was railroad
jobs that took them so far north.  I do recall my father telling me that he
had once worked in a railroad roundhouse (where they clean and service
locomotives) and that it was the hardest work he had ever done in his life and
he left that work as soon as he could. 

 

Emilie Garcia

Port Orchard, WA --

 

 

style="PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px">
----- Original Message -----



Sent: Friday, January 20, 2006 8:00
AM

Subject: Re: [ranchos] Cultural
Identity


Carol, I loved hearing about your research and results. You are
a true inspiration to me and to others. I enjoyed our having coffee after
doing research. Marge:)
On Jan 20, 2006, at 9:02 AM, Carol Turner
wrote:


My story - I always wondered why do I live in Kansas?

Growing up in the late 60's and early 70's wasn't
easy

at times.  My paternal grandparents were here by
1916

and my maternal in the early 1920's in the state
of

KS.  In doing my research and going back in time,
I

found many stories that touched my heart of what
my

grandparents had sacrificed, suffered and what
their

lives were like when they first got here...it
wasn't

easy.  My parents were told they couldn't
speak

Spanish in school and that we need to try to "fit
in"

with the others.  I went from Mexican to being
a

Chicana to being Mexican American or Hispanic is
what

they call us now.  We lived on the Westside
Community

until I was 4 and then moved to Rosedale in KS
which

at that time was predominately Anglo.  They sent me
to

St. Agnes and I grew up in this community
and

basically still in this community.  Things change
over

the years, St. Agnes is now 35% Hispanic and
the

numbers are going up.  We have more
Hispanic

celebrations now in in the City because of the
growth

of the Hispanic population. 

Being
married to an Anglo, I felt the need in my 30's

and 40's to
embrace my culture which lead me to

research our family history,
volunteer my time at the

Hispanic Heritage booth at the Fiestas,
support our

Hispanic veterans here in KC among many other
meetings

or groups I have some involvement in.  However I
would

have to say doing our research has brought me
to

embracing our culture because we our embracing
our

ancestors and their stories.  Well I guess I need
to

journal more so someone can read these stories of
how

I feel...I doubt my kids will save my emails. -
Carol

Muro Turner
--- Emilie Garcia
<auntyemfaustus@...> wrote:


>
Alicia,

>
> Your story of growing up in a
multi-ethnic community

> sounds so much like mine.  My
husband and I were

> brought to San Jose as small children in
1947, me

> from New Mexico and my husband from El Paso, TX,
and

> we grew up in an Italian neighborhood (the old
Goose

> Town area -that flooded often---near Sacred
Heart

> church--between Willow Street and Alma Street),
went

> to school with Japanese and Filipinos; I
later

> worked with new Cuban and Vietnamese immigrants
when

> our country opened up to refugees from
those

> countries.  I still feel close to Italian
and

> Japanese culture, and remember fondly all
their

> customs and festivals there in the Valley.
Perhaps

> that is why we learned everything Italian, and
we

> consider it our second adopted ethnicity.
Although

> not all the Italians initially were friendly to
us,

> they more than the Anglos eventually embraced us
due

> to being Catholic, and the similarity between
our

> languages.  We know of some of those Italians
who

> snubbed not only Mexicans but their own people
and

> even dropped the final vowel at the end of
their

> surname to make it sound more
Anglo--Diridondi

> became Diridon).  That is very sad in
a culture that

> is normally very family-oriented and proud
of their

> ethnicity, as are the other groups I
mentioned.

>
> Emilie Garcia
>
Port Orchard, WA --

>   ----- Original Message
-----

>   From: Alicia
Carrillo<mailto:alliecar@...&gt;

>

>  
To:

>
ranchos@yahoogroups.com<mailto:ranchos@yahoogroups.com&gt;
>

>   Sent: Wednesday, January 18, 2006 10:38
PM

>   Subject: [ranchos] Cultural
Identity

>
>
>  
Linda,

>
>   Just to put in my dos
centavos. I personally could

> not tell anyone else how or
what they should tell

> someone their nationality is, each
one of us is

> responsible for that very personal reply.

>   From a personal persepctive If I were US born
I

> would say I was a US citizen and only if I chose
to

> go into more detail would I feel compelled to
tell

> anyone anything other than
that.

>   I was not US born and was born in Mexico
and

> brought here when I was two. Most people don't
think

> of asking when I am alone but when with my
husband

> who is moreno they might ask. We then both
reply

> that we are Mexican if asked. Whenever we go
to

> restaurants, hardware store, grocery store or
any

> other place where we interface with Mexicans
or

> latinos we always go out of our way to speak
spanish

> or to deal with them in our first language.
Aside

> from making us feel better as well as making
them

> feel good that they are spoken to in their
language,

> we get preferential treatment. Occasionaly we
are

> mistaken regarding their ethnichity or
sometimes

> some people who are of Mexican/Latino descent and
do

> not speak spanish will get offended that we spoke
to

> them in Spanish.
>

>   Again, I don't believe there are any hard
fast

> rules. I am more than happy to say that I
am

> Mexican, my oldest daughter is not so happy
about

> it. We know that she would rather not let
people

> know she is Mexican. Her name is Cristina Maria
and

> she puts it down as Christina Marie. Nothing we
can

> do about that, it is her choice. Our middle
daughter

> I think straddles the fence, sometimes Mexican
and

> sometimes not and our son the youngest embraces
his

> Mexican heritage. So you see, to each his own,
who

> am I to dictate what they should say and how
they

> should feel. Of course I would rather they
were

> proud of their ancestry and their heritage but
that

> is not always the case.
>   I
personally feel such pride in my people,

> language, food,
music, family, land etc that

> sometimes I can feel it
bursting inside of me. Just

> like with anything in life
there are certain things

> where I do not feel pride, when I
see the culture of

> heavy drinking, spousal abuse and
ignorance but

> those are things I despise in any culture be
they

> Mexican, American or otherwise.
>

>   If we each get comfortable with who we are, we
may

> not feel the need to explain it. If we do need
to

> explain it do so in a way that feels right for
you

> and don't let anyone dictate to you who you
should

> be and how you should say it.
>

>   Our culture is not the only one struggling
with

> these issues it happens in all cultures. I have
a

> very dear friend who is American born of
Italian

> immigrant parents. Her parents were Peach and
Almond

> ranchers in the Central Valley of California.
They

> worked very hard all their lives to raise their
two

> children a boy and a girl. They gave them both
a

> very good education and they lived very
comfortably

> in an old farmhouse in Modesto. The son grew up
to

> be a local politician in Modesto and was
always

> ashamed of his parents and distanced himself
from

> them as much as possible. The daughter embraced
her

> Italian ethnicity to the max.
>

>    When the parents died they owned much
land along

> with the old farmhouse. Because of the
estrangement

> from the son and daughter-in law everything
was left

> to the daughter. The father died first
with

> Parkinson's disease and in his will he had
left

> everything to his wife so she could leave it to
the

> son upon her death, after all he was the only
living

> male heir.
>

>    The son would not be caught dead with
his father

> in public. His dad was a farmer till the day
he

> died, rough hardworking hands, flannel shirts,
jeans

> and workboots. He made his own wine which the
son

> would not drink.
>

>   Keep in mind that the son had been favored
over

> the daughter most of his life because he was
the

> only male heir but ultimately when the mother had
a

> stroke and just before she died she transferred
all

> her assets to her daughter to do with as
she

> pleased. The daughter has two children a son and
a

> daughter. Her daughter who is tall and beautiful
was

> sent to Italy before finishing high school to
model

> in Milan. Upon her return she attached herself
to

> her uncle because he had more prestige and
she

> assumed would soon have more money as
the

> grandmother was very ill and near death. They
all

> assumed they would inherit big
bucks..........boy

> were they wrong. My girlfriend who is
the happiest

> Italian I know and who does not really need
the

> money had the last laugh. She always attended
the

> Italian Feasts with her mother in the church
and

> Italian clubs, family events etc. and has never
felt

> anything but pride in being who she is. Of
my

> girlfriend's two children her son is like her
and

> her daughter is like the brother.....go figure,
so

> you see Linda, it happens in all
cultures.

>
>   I know I made this
too long but all my life most

> of my friends have been of
different ethnicities. Of

> my dearest friends one is
Italian, the other

> Japanese, Vietnamese, East Indian,
Persian and

> Chinese. I have always been told by all of them
and

> by many other people that I am very accepting
of

> their accent, language, foods and traditions. When
I

> was still working they always came to me for
advice

> and for assistance with issues that were new
or

> different to them. I guess that comes from being
an

> immigrant myself and having to assist family who
was

> coming in from Mexico as an interpreter, filling
out

> forms and documents and as a child even going
to

> court and to doctors appointments with them as
an

> interpreter. I grew to know them as people first
and

> secondly as immigrants.
>

>   Ya Basta.....I will stop
now............Alicia

>
>   Edward
Serros <ed@...> wrote:

>    
--- In ranchos@yahoogroups.com, "Erlinda

>
Castanon-Long"

>    
<longsjourney@y...> wrote:

>    
>

>     > I want to thank everyone
for the input on

> double surnames...Many
of

>     us did not marry Hispanic but
would have kept

> our

>     > maiden name regardless. Just
like someone

> said, it's a matter
of

>     > family
pride..

>     >

>     > One more question.. which is
'politically'

> correct to designate our

>     > nationality of origin if we
or our ancestors

> were from
Mexico...

>     > Hispanic, Latino,
Mexican-American or

> American-Mexican?  I find I

>     > really upset some people when
I call myself

> Hispanic. I'm told that

>     > excludes my Indio blood...
People ask me what

> my nationality is

>     > because I'm just brown enough
to not be Anglo

> but have light green

>     > eyes, my sister get's the
same thing and she

> has blue eyes and

>     > freckles. I still laugh when
told I don't look

> like a Mexican... what

>     > does a Mexican look
like!!!!

>     >

>     > Linda in
Everett

>
>    
Linda,

>
=== message truncated
===



__________________________________________________
Do
You Yahoo!?

Tired of spam?  Yahoo! Mail has the best spam
protection around

http://mail.yahoo.com


YAHOO! GROUPS
LINKS


?
 Visit your group "ranchos"
on the web.

 
?  To unsubscribe from this
group, send an email
to:

 ranchos-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
 

?  Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service.



?>
Comentario

Carol, Emilie, Margie and Linda,
 
Yes, each one of us has our own unique story and just like each of us there are millions of immigrant's stories out there just waiting to be told and to be heard. I think that rather than feeling guilt about what we should have done and said, we should make peace with ourselves and with our ancestors. We are doing right by making contact with our ancestors via our family research.
 
In my very distorted brain I have a dream that someday I will write a book for my family regarding my research into Nochistlan and Tlachichila Zacatecas. If all goes well we will go to Nochistlan again this year for the feast of the patron saint of Tlachichila, the feast of San Agustin on Sept 28. I will take my laptop and if possible a scanner to scan family photos and records. I also plan on searching for maps, old or new of the region and bringing them back, searching for reference and history books and
taking photos of the present day ranchos. Sooooo much to do and so little time and money!
 
Gotta go.......lots to be done................Alicia Avelar Olmos de Carrillo...San Jose, Ca
 
In one year I believe that I have gathered a considerable amount of data to share with families still residing in those towns. Maybe by sharing my data it will jog some memories of the local people and of those returning to the fiestas.

Carol Turner <cmuroturner@...> wrote:
My story - I always wondered why do I live in Kansas?
Growing up in the late 60's and early 70's wasn't easy
at times.  My paternal grandparents were here by 1916
and my maternal in the early 1920's in the state of
KS.  In doing my research and going back in time, I
found many stories that touched my
heart of what my
grandparents had sacrificed, suffered and what their
lives were like when they first got here...it wasn't
easy.  My parents were told they couldn't speak
Spanish in school and that we need to try to "fit in"
with the others.  I went from Mexican to being a
Chicana to being Mexican American or Hispanic is what
they call us now.  We lived on the Westside Community
until I was 4 and then moved to Rosedale in KS which
at that time was predominately Anglo.  They sent me to
St. Agnes and I grew up in this community and
basically still in this community.  Things change over
the years, St. Agnes is now 35% Hispanic and the
numbers are going up.  We have more Hispanic
celebrations now in in the City because of the growth
of the Hispanic population. 

Being married to an Anglo, I felt the need in my 30's
and 40's to embrace my culture which lead me to
research our family history,
volunteer my time at the
Hispanic Heritage booth at the Fiestas, support our
Hispanic veterans here in KC among many other meetings
or groups I have some involvement in.  However I would
have to say doing our research has brought me to
embracing our culture because we our embracing our
ancestors and their stories.  Well I guess I need to
journal more so someone can read these stories of how
I feel...I doubt my kids will save my emails. - Carol
Muro Turner
Comentario

Carol, I loved hearing about your research and results. You are a true inspiration to me and to others. I enjoyed our having coffee after doing research. Marge:)

On Jan 20, 2006, at 9:02 AM, Carol Turner wrote:


My story - I always wondered why do I live in Kansas?

Growing up in the late 60's and early 70's wasn't easy

at times.  My paternal grandparents were here by 1916

and my maternal in the early 1920's in the state of

KS.  In doing my research and going back in time, I

found many stories that touched my heart of what my

grandparents had sacrificed, suffered and what their

lives were like when they first got here...it wasn't

easy.  My parents were told they couldn't speak

Spanish in school and that we need to try to "fit in"

with the others.  I went from Mexican to being a

Chicana to being Mexican American or Hispanic is what

they call us now.  We lived on the Westside Community

until I was 4 and then moved to Rosedale in KS which

at that time was predominately Anglo.  They sent me to

St. Agnes and I grew up in this community and

basically still in this community.  Things change over

the years, St. Agnes is now 35% Hispanic and the

numbers are going up.  We have more Hispanic

celebrations now in in the City because of the growth

of the Hispanic population. 



Being married to an Anglo, I felt the need in my 30's

and 40's to embrace my culture which lead me to

research our family history, volunteer my time at the

Hispanic Heritage booth at the Fiestas, support our

Hispanic veterans here in KC among many other meetings

or groups I have some involvement in.  However I would

have to say doing our research has brought me to

embracing our culture because we our embracing our

ancestors and their stories.  Well I guess I need to

journal more so someone can read these stories of how

I feel...I doubt my kids will save my emails. - Carol

Muro Turner

--- Emilie Garcia <auntyemfaustus@...> wrote:



> Alicia,

>

> Your story of growing up in a multi-ethnic community

> sounds so much like mine.  My husband and I were

> brought to San Jose as small children in 1947, me

> from New Mexico and my husband from El Paso, TX, and

> we grew up in an Italian neighborhood (the old Goose

> Town area -that flooded often---near Sacred Heart

> church--between Willow Street and Alma Street), went

> to school with Japanese and Filipinos; I later

> worked with new Cuban and Vietnamese immigrants when

> our country opened up to refugees from those

> countries.  I still feel close to Italian and

> Japanese culture, and remember fondly all their

> customs and festivals there in the Valley. Perhaps

> that is why we learned everything Italian, and we

> consider it our second adopted ethnicity. Although

> not all the Italians initially were friendly to us,

> they more than the Anglos eventually embraced us due

> to being Catholic, and the similarity between our

> languages.  We know of some of those Italians who

> snubbed not only Mexicans but their own people and

> even dropped the final vowel at the end of their

> surname to make it sound more Anglo--Diridondi

> became Diridon).  That is very sad in a culture that

> is normally very family-oriented and proud of their

> ethnicity, as are the other groups I mentioned.

>

> Emilie Garcia

> Port Orchard, WA --

>   ----- Original Message -----

>   From: Alicia Carrillo<mailto:alliecar@...>

>

>   To:

>

ranchos@yahoogroups.com<mailto:ranchos@yahoogroups.com>

>

>   Sent: Wednesday, January 18, 2006 10:38 PM

>   Subject: [ranchos] Cultural Identity

>

>

>   Linda,

>

>   Just to put in my dos centavos. I personally could

> not tell anyone else how or what they should tell

> someone their nationality is, each one of us is

> responsible for that very personal reply.

>   From a personal persepctive If I were US born I

> would say I was a US citizen and only if I chose to

> go into more detail would I feel compelled to tell

> anyone anything other than that.

>   I was not US born and was born in Mexico and

> brought here when I was two. Most people don't think

> of asking when I am alone but when with my husband

> who is moreno they might ask. We then both reply

> that we are Mexican if asked. Whenever we go to

> restaurants, hardware store, grocery store or any

> other place where we interface with Mexicans or

> latinos we always go out of our way to speak spanish

> or to deal with them in our first language. Aside

> from making us feel better as well as making them

> feel good that they are spoken to in their language,

> we get preferential treatment. Occasionaly we are

> mistaken regarding their ethnichity or sometimes

> some people who are of Mexican/Latino descent and do

> not speak spanish will get offended that we spoke to

> them in Spanish.

>

>   Again, I don't believe there are any hard fast

> rules. I am more than happy to say that I am

> Mexican, my oldest daughter is not so happy about

> it. We know that she would rather not let people

> know she is Mexican. Her name is Cristina Maria and

> she puts it down as Christina Marie. Nothing we can

> do about that, it is her choice. Our middle daughter

> I think straddles the fence, sometimes Mexican and

> sometimes not and our son the youngest embraces his

> Mexican heritage. So you see, to each his own, who

> am I to dictate what they should say and how they

> should feel. Of course I would rather they were

> proud of their ancestry and their heritage but that

> is not always the case.

>   I personally feel such pride in my people,

> language, food, music, family, land etc that

> sometimes I can feel it bursting inside of me. Just

> like with anything in life there are certain things

> where I do not feel pride, when I see the culture of

> heavy drinking, spousal abuse and ignorance but

> those are things I despise in any culture be they

> Mexican, American or otherwise.

>

>   If we each get comfortable with who we are, we may

> not feel the need to explain it. If we do need to

> explain it do so in a way that feels right for you

> and don't let anyone dictate to you who you should

> be and how you should say it.

>

>   Our culture is not the only one struggling with

> these issues it happens in all cultures. I have a

> very dear friend who is American born of Italian

> immigrant parents. Her parents were Peach and Almond

> ranchers in the Central Valley of California. They

> worked very hard all their lives to raise their two

> children a boy and a girl. They gave them both a

> very good education and they lived very comfortably

> in an old farmhouse in Modesto. The son grew up to

> be a local politician in Modesto and was always

> ashamed of his parents and distanced himself from

> them as much as possible. The daughter embraced her

> Italian ethnicity to the max.

>

>    When the parents died they owned much land along

> with the old farmhouse. Because of the estrangement

> from the son and daughter-in law everything was left

> to the daughter. The father died first with

> Parkinson's disease and in his will he had left

> everything to his wife so she could leave it to the

> son upon her death, after all he was the only living

> male heir.

>

>    The son would not be caught dead with his father

> in public. His dad was a farmer till the day he

> died, rough hardworking hands, flannel shirts, jeans

> and workboots. He made his own wine which the son

> would not drink.

>

>   Keep in mind that the son had been favored over

> the daughter most of his life because he was the

> only male heir but ultimately when the mother had a

> stroke and just before she died she transferred all

> her assets to her daughter to do with as she

> pleased. The daughter has two children a son and a

> daughter. Her daughter who is tall and beautiful was

> sent to Italy before finishing high school to model

> in Milan. Upon her return she attached herself to

> her uncle because he had more prestige and she

> assumed would soon have more money as the

> grandmother was very ill and near death. They all

> assumed they would inherit big bucks..........boy

> were they wrong. My girlfriend who is the happiest

> Italian I know and who does not really need the

> money had the last laugh. She always attended the

> Italian Feasts with her mother in the church and

> Italian clubs, family events etc. and has never felt

> anything but pride in being who she is. Of my

> girlfriend's two children her son is like her and

> her daughter is like the brother.....go figure, so

> you see Linda, it happens in all cultures.

>

>   I know I made this too long but all my life most

> of my friends have been of different ethnicities. Of

> my dearest friends one is Italian, the other

> Japanese, Vietnamese, East Indian, Persian and

> Chinese. I have always been told by all of them and

> by many other people that I am very accepting of

> their accent, language, foods and traditions. When I

> was still working they always came to me for advice

> and for assistance with issues that were new or

> different to them. I guess that comes from being an

> immigrant myself and having to assist family who was

> coming in from Mexico as an interpreter, filling out

> forms and documents and as a child even going to

> court and to doctors appointments with them as an

> interpreter. I grew to know them as people first and

> secondly as immigrants.

>

>   Ya Basta.....I will stop now............Alicia

>

>   Edward Serros <ed@...> wrote:

>     --- In ranchos@yahoogroups.com, "Erlinda

> Castanon-Long"

>     <longsjourney@y...> wrote:

>     >

>     > I want to thank everyone for the input on

> double surnames...Many of

>     us did not marry Hispanic but would have kept

> our

>     > maiden name regardless. Just like someone

> said, it's a matter of

>     > family pride..

>     >

>     > One more question.. which is 'politically'

> correct to designate our

>     > nationality of origin if we or our ancestors

> were from Mexico...

>     > Hispanic, Latino, Mexican-American or

> American-Mexican?  I find I

>     > really upset some people when I call myself

> Hispanic. I'm told that

>     > excludes my Indio blood... People ask me what

> my nationality is

>     > because I'm just brown enough to not be Anglo

> but have light green

>     > eyes, my sister get's the same thing and she

> has blue eyes and

>     > freckles. I still laugh when told I don't look

> like a Mexican... what

>     > does a Mexican look like!!!!

>     >

>     > Linda in Everett

>

>     Linda,

>

=== message truncated ===





__________________________________________________

Do You Yahoo!?

Tired of spam?  Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around

http://mail.yahoo.com





YAHOO! GROUPS LINKS



 Visit your group "ranchos" on the web.

 

 To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:

 ranchos-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com

 

 Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service.




Comentario

My story - I always wondered why do I live in Kansas? 
Growing up in the late 60's and early 70's wasn't easy
at times.  My paternal grandparents were here by 1916
and my maternal in the early 1920's in the state of
KS.  In doing my research and going back in time, I
found many stories that touched my heart of what my
grandparents had sacrificed, suffered and what their
lives were like when they first got here...it wasn't
easy.  My parents were told they couldn't speak
Spanish in school and that we need to try to "fit in"
with the others.  I went from Mexican to being a
Chicana to being Mexican American or Hispanic is what
they call us now.  We lived on the Westside Community
until I was 4 and then moved to Rosedale in KS which
at that time was predominately Anglo.  They sent me to
St. Agnes and I grew up in this community and
basically still in this community.  Things change over
the years, St. Agnes is now 35% Hispanic and the
numbers are going up.  We have more Hispanic
celebrations now in in the City because of the growth
of the Hispanic population.  

Being married to an Anglo, I felt the need in my 30's
and 40's to embrace my culture which lead me to
research our family history, volunteer my time at the
Hispanic Heritage booth at the Fiestas, support our
Hispanic veterans here in KC among many other meetings
or groups I have some involvement in.  However I would
have to say doing our research has brought me to
embracing our culture because we our embracing our
ancestors and their stories.  Well I guess I need to
journal more so someone can read these stories of how
I feel...I doubt my kids will save my emails. - Carol
Muro Turner
--- Emilie Garcia <auntyemfaustus@...> wrote:

> Alicia,
> 
> Your story of growing up in a multi-ethnic community
> sounds so much like mine.  My husband and I were
> brought to San Jose as small children in 1947, me
> from New Mexico and my husband from El Paso, TX, and
> we grew up in an Italian neighborhood (the old Goose
> Town area -that flooded often---near Sacred Heart
> church--between Willow Street and Alma Street), went
> to school with Japanese and Filipinos; I later
> worked with new Cuban and Vietnamese immigrants when
> our country opened up to refugees from those
> countries.  I still feel close to Italian and
> Japanese culture, and remember fondly all their
> customs and festivals there in the Valley. Perhaps
> that is why we learned everything Italian, and we
> consider it our second adopted ethnicity. Although
> not all the Italians initially were friendly to us,
> they more than the Anglos eventually embraced us due
> to being Catholic, and the similarity between our
> languages.  We know of some of those Italians who
> snubbed not only Mexicans but their own people and
> even dropped the final vowel at the end of their
> surname to make it sound more Anglo--Diridondi
> became Diridon).  That is very sad in a culture that
> is normally very family-oriented and proud of their
> ethnicity, as are the other groups I mentioned.
> 
> Emilie Garcia
> Port Orchard, WA --
>   ----- Original Message ----- 
>   From: Alicia Carrillo<mailto:alliecar@...>
> 
>   To:
>
ranchos@yahoogroups.com<mailto:ranchos@yahoogroups.com>
> 
>   Sent: Wednesday, January 18, 2006 10:38 PM
>   Subject: [ranchos] Cultural Identity
> 
> 
>   Linda,
> 
>   Just to put in my dos centavos. I personally could
> not tell anyone else how or what they should tell
> someone their nationality is, each one of us is
> responsible for that very personal reply. 
>   From a personal persepctive If I were US born I
> would say I was a US citizen and only if I chose to
> go into more detail would I feel compelled to tell
> anyone anything other than that.
>   I was not US born and was born in Mexico and
> brought here when I was two. Most people don't think
> of asking when I am alone but when with my husband
> who is moreno they might ask. We then both reply
> that we are Mexican if asked. Whenever we go to
> restaurants, hardware store, grocery store or any
> other place where we interface with Mexicans or
> latinos we always go out of our way to speak spanish
> or to deal with them in our first language. Aside
> from making us feel better as well as making them
> feel good that they are spoken to in their language,
> we get preferential treatment. Occasionaly we are
> mistaken regarding their ethnichity or sometimes
> some people who are of Mexican/Latino descent and do
> not speak spanish will get offended that we spoke to
> them in Spanish. 
> 
>   Again, I don't believe there are any hard fast
> rules. I am more than happy to say that I am
> Mexican, my oldest daughter is not so happy about
> it. We know that she would rather not let people
> know she is Mexican. Her name is Cristina Maria and
> she puts it down as Christina Marie. Nothing we can
> do about that, it is her choice. Our middle daughter
> I think straddles the fence, sometimes Mexican and
> sometimes not and our son the youngest embraces his
> Mexican heritage. So you see, to each his own, who
> am I to dictate what they should say and how they
> should feel. Of course I would rather they were
> proud of their ancestry and their heritage but that
> is not always the case.
>   I personally feel such pride in my people,
> language, food, music, family, land etc that
> sometimes I can feel it bursting inside of me. Just
> like with anything in life there are certain things
> where I do not feel pride, when I see the culture of
> heavy drinking, spousal abuse and ignorance but
> those are things I despise in any culture be they
> Mexican, American or otherwise.
> 
>   If we each get comfortable with who we are, we may
> not feel the need to explain it. If we do need to
> explain it do so in a way that feels right for you
> and don't let anyone dictate to you who you should
> be and how you should say it. 
> 
>   Our culture is not the only one struggling with
> these issues it happens in all cultures. I have a
> very dear friend who is American born of Italian
> immigrant parents. Her parents were Peach and Almond
> ranchers in the Central Valley of California. They
> worked very hard all their lives to raise their two
> children a boy and a girl. They gave them both a
> very good education and they lived very comfortably
> in an old farmhouse in Modesto. The son grew up to
> be a local politician in Modesto and was always
> ashamed of his parents and distanced himself from
> them as much as possible. The daughter embraced her
> Italian ethnicity to the max.
> 
>    When the parents died they owned much land along
> with the old farmhouse. Because of the estrangement
> from the son and daughter-in law everything was left
> to the daughter. The father died first with
> Parkinson's disease and in his will he had left
> everything to his wife so she could leave it to the
> son upon her death, after all he was the only living
> male heir.
> 
>    The son would not be caught dead with his father
> in public. His dad was a farmer till the day he
> died, rough hardworking hands, flannel shirts, jeans
> and workboots. He made his own wine which the son
> would not drink. 
> 
>   Keep in mind that the son had been favored over
> the daughter most of his life because he was the
> only male heir but ultimately when the mother had a
> stroke and just before she died she transferred all
> her assets to her daughter to do with as she
> pleased. The daughter has two children a son and a
> daughter. Her daughter who is tall and beautiful was
> sent to Italy before finishing high school to model
> in Milan. Upon her return she attached herself to
> her uncle because he had more prestige and she
> assumed would soon have more money as the
> grandmother was very ill and near death. They all
> assumed they would inherit big bucks..........boy
> were they wrong. My girlfriend who is the happiest
> Italian I know and who does not really need the
> money had the last laugh. She always attended the
> Italian Feasts with her mother in the church and
> Italian clubs, family events etc. and has never felt
> anything but pride in being who she is. Of my
> girlfriend's two children her son is like her and
> her daughter is like the brother.....go figure, so
> you see Linda, it happens in all cultures. 
> 
>   I know I made this too long but all my life most
> of my friends have been of different ethnicities. Of
> my dearest friends one is Italian, the other
> Japanese, Vietnamese, East Indian, Persian and
> Chinese. I have always been told by all of them and
> by many other people that I am very accepting of
> their accent, language, foods and traditions. When I
> was still working they always came to me for advice
> and for assistance with issues that were new or
> different to them. I guess that comes from being an
> immigrant myself and having to assist family who was
> coming in from Mexico as an interpreter, filling out
> forms and documents and as a child even going to
> court and to doctors appointments with them as an
> interpreter. I grew to know them as people first and
> secondly as immigrants.
> 
>   Ya Basta.....I will stop now............Alicia
> 
>   Edward Serros <ed@...> wrote:
>     --- In ranchos@yahoogroups.com, "Erlinda
> Castanon-Long"
>     <longsjourney@y...> wrote:
>     >
>     > I want to thank everyone for the input on
> double surnames...Many of
>     us did not marry Hispanic but would have kept
> our 
>     > maiden name regardless. Just like someone
> said, it's a matter of 
>     > family pride..
>     > 
>     > One more question.. which is 'politically'
> correct to designate our 
>     > nationality of origin if we or our ancestors
> were from Mexico... 
>     > Hispanic, Latino, Mexican-American or
> American-Mexican?  I find I 
>     > really upset some people when I call myself
> Hispanic. I'm told that 
>     > excludes my Indio blood... People ask me what
> my nationality is 
>     > because I'm just brown enough to not be Anglo
> but have light green 
>     > eyes, my sister get's the same thing and she
> has blue eyes and 
>     > freckles. I still laugh when told I don't look
> like a Mexican... what 
>     > does a Mexican look like!!!!
>     > 
>     > Linda in Everett
> 
>     Linda,
> 
=== message truncated ===


__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Tired of spam?  Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around 
http://mail.yahoo.com 

Comentario

Emilie:

My grandfather actually came through El Paso in 1908
and lived in Canadian, Texas, worked for the Panhandle
Railroad.  I have the census for Canadian, TX and at
that time there were about 50 to 60 Mexican families
just starting out in this small railroad town, they
moved north up through New Mexico and then into KS,
they also worked the beet fields in Nebraska during
the summer months, but always came back home to Kansas
City.  However, my grandfather had brothers after
leaving Canadian, TX that also went West to CA., to
live.  It's interesting to always find out but usually
when they came across it was with their neighbors they
had in Mexico that later became their neighbors in
Canadian, TX and so on, they kept their neighbors
close to them.  

I would say their migration was about survival and
their jobs, wherever their jobs took them, they had to
pack up and follow and for my grandfather it was the
railroad.  Emilie, try research immigration papers for
your family if you haven't already tried this; I got
my grandfather's information and it gave me his
whereabouts from the time he was in El Paso 1908 until
he died in 1968.  This will give you more insight of
their migration pattern and why they moved around.  It
answered many questions for me.  


--- Emilie Garcia <auntyemfaustus@...> wrote:

> Carol,
> 
> My story could have been very much like yours.  You
> see, I was born in Brush, Colorado, in Morgan
> County, way up in the northeast corner by Kansas. 
> When WWII started, my father got a job working in
> the shipyards in Richmond CA and sent my mother, my
> sister and I to my mother's relatives in southern NM
> near El Paso TX, then after the war he sent for us
> and we settled in what is now known as Silicon
> Valley.   My father was brought to Colorado from
> Jerez in 1916 at the age of 13 by his father who I
> believe arrived earlier.  In the census records, I
> find no other Spanish surnames.  When my husband was
> helping me search census records before they were
> all online, he kept telling me, "No hay ni un frijol
> aqui! [I don't see a single beaner here!] Why did
> your folks end up there?".  I often wonder why they
> ended up way up there; maybe you can tell me why
> some Mexicans ended up so far north then (we are all
> over now).  
> 
> My father surprised me one day when he told me he
> had been to Wyoming as a young man.  We had been
> talking about why he and my mother never went out to
> eat, and he said he didn't like restaurant food,
> that my mother fixed everything just the way he
> liked it; but he said there was one place in Wyoming
> (I wish I had asked where and what took him there)
> that served excellent "chile".  I imagine it was
> what they later called chili con carne, or just
> "chili".  He said he and some fellow workers would
> go there and just say "Chile!" (I don't think they
> could speak much English if at all) and they would
> be served a bowl of delicious chili with crackers. 
> He said he loved it and would never forget it, that
> he wished he could have some right there and then.  
> 
> So I hope you can shed some light as to why some
> Mexicans so early in the 20th Century went directly
> way up to northeast Colorado and Kansas, rather than
> to Texas, NM, CA, AZ.  Maybe they didn't go there
> directly.  I think perhaps they got jobs on the
> railroads in Texas after crossing over (they came on
> trains from Mexico and maybe inquired about jobs)
> and perhaps it was railroad jobs that took them so
> far north.  I do recall my father telling me that he
> had once worked in a railroad roundhouse (where they
> clean and service locomotives) and that it was the
> hardest work he had ever done in his life and he
> left that work as soon as he could. 
> 
> Emilie Garcia
> Port Orchard, WA --
> 
> 
>   ----- Original Message ----- 
>   From: Margarita
> Vallazza<mailto:TeaCozyGran@...> 
>   To:
>
ranchos@yahoogroups.com<mailto:ranchos@yahoogroups.com>
> 
>   Sent: Friday, January 20, 2006 8:00 AM
>   Subject: Re: [ranchos] Cultural Identity
> 
> 
>   Carol, I loved hearing about your research and
> results. You are a true inspiration to me and to
> others. I enjoyed our having coffee after doing
> research. Marge:)
>   On Jan 20, 2006, at 9:02 AM, Carol Turner wrote:
> 
> 
>     My story - I always wondered why do I live in
> Kansas? 
>     Growing up in the late 60's and early 70's
> wasn't easy
>     at times.  My paternal grandparents were here by
> 1916
>     and my maternal in the early 1920's in the state
> of
>     KS.  In doing my research and going back in
> time, I
>     found many stories that touched my heart of what
> my
>     grandparents had sacrificed, suffered and what
> their
>     lives were like when they first got here...it
> wasn't
>     easy.  My parents were told they couldn't speak
>     Spanish in school and that we need to try to
> "fit in"
>     with the others.  I went from Mexican to being a
>     Chicana to being Mexican American or Hispanic is
> what
>     they call us now.  We lived on the Westside
> Community
>     until I was 4 and then moved to Rosedale in KS
> which
>     at that time was predominately Anglo.  They sent
> me to
>     St. Agnes and I grew up in this community and
>     basically still in this community.  Things
> change over
>     the years, St. Agnes is now 35% Hispanic and the
>     numbers are going up.  We have more Hispanic
>     celebrations now in in the City because of the
> growth
>     of the Hispanic population. 
> 
>     Being married to an Anglo, I felt the need in my
> 30's
>     and 40's to embrace my culture which lead me to
>     research our family history, volunteer my time
> at the
>     Hispanic Heritage booth at the Fiestas, support
> our
>     Hispanic veterans here in KC among many other
> meetings
>     or groups I have some involvement in.  However I
> would
>     have to say doing our research has brought me to
>     embracing our culture because we our embracing
> our
>     ancestors and their stories.  Well I guess I
> need to
>     journal more so someone can read these stories
> of how
>     I feel...I doubt my kids will save my emails. -
> Carol
>     Muro Turner
>     --- Emilie Garcia <auntyemfaustus@...>
> wrote:
> 
>     > Alicia,
>     > 
>     > Your story of growing up in a multi-ethnic
> community
>     > sounds so much like mine.  My husband and I
> were
>     > brought to San Jose as small children in 1947,
> me
>     > from New Mexico and my husband from El Paso,
> TX, and
>     > we grew up in an Italian neighborhood (the old
> Goose
>     > Town area -that flooded often---near Sacred
> Heart
>     > church--between Willow Street and Alma
> Street), went
>     > to school with Japanese and Filipinos; I later
>     > worked with new Cuban and Vietnamese
> immigrants when
>     > our country opened up to refugees from those
>     > countries.  I still feel close to Italian and
>     > Japanese culture, and remember fondly all
> their
>     > customs and festivals there in the Valley.
> Perhaps
>     > that is why we learned everything Italian, and
> we
>     > consider it our second adopted ethnicity.
> Although
>     > not all the Italians initially were friendly
> to us,
>     > they more than the Anglos eventually embraced
> us due
>     > to being Catholic, and the similarity between
> our
>     > languages.  We know of some of those Italians
> who
>     > snubbed not only Mexicans but their own people
> and
>     > even dropped the final vowel at the end of
> their
>     > surname to make it sound more Anglo--Diridondi
>     > became Diridon).  That is very sad in a
> culture that
>     > is normally very family-oriented and proud of
> their
>     > ethnicity, as are the other groups I
> mentioned.
>     > 
>     > Emilie Garcia
>     > Port Orchard, WA --
>     >   ----- Original Message ----- 
>     >   From: Alicia
> Carrillo<mailto:alliecar@...>
>     > 
>     >   To:
>     >
>    
>
ranchos@yahoogroups.com<mailto:ranchos@yahoogroups.com>
>     > 
>     >   Sent: Wednesday, January 18, 2006 10:38 PM
>     >   Subject: [ranchos] Cultural Identity
>     > 
>     > 
>     >   Linda,
>     > 
>     >   Just to put in my dos centavos. I personally
> could
> 
=== message truncated ===


__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Tired of spam?  Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around 
http://mail.yahoo.com