Interview of Violeta Rivas.

Interview of Violeta Rivas.

In this oral history interview, Violeta Rivas discusses her experience as an American immigrant. Born in Nicaragua in 1960, Violeta and her husband came to the U.S. in 1984 to escape the Sandinista regime and to build a new life. Thirty years later, they are still here. Although Violeta had originally intended to return to Nicaragua, she and her family stayed, and throughout the course of the interview, she displays an acute awareness of her life in retrospect. Leaving her home was a sacrifice, but she did it for her family; every obstacle she faced and every cultural barrier she had to overcome was for her family. That is the essence of the interview, and throughout the course of this oral history, Violeta guides her listeners through the things that matter the most to her: religion, tradition, and moral values. Violeta’s story is not just one of many Central American immigrant narratives; it is a part of a whole, and without it, the picture is not complete.

This interview was conducted as part of an undergraduate final project for the University of Maryland, College Park course HIST428N Immigrant Life Stories: An Oral History Practicum (spring 2014). This course was led by Professor Thomas A. Castillo of the History Department, College of Arts and Humanities, and was sponsored by the Center for the New America.

Center for the History of the New America

March 26, 2014

The full rights of this oral history interview were given by the interviewee to the University of Maryland, College Park. This interview may be quoted from, published, or broadcast in any medium that the University of Maryland, College Park shall deem appropriate.

Audio file with ID3 version 2.3.0, contains: MPEG ADTS, layer III, v1, 192 kbps, 44.1 kHz, JntStereo

English, Spanish

Oral History, Audio Interview

1:00:19

Mallory B. Herberger

Violeta Rivas

Silver Spring, Maryland