Interview with Jorge Medina, December 2, 2009

Interview Summary

He introduces himself and discusses his arrival in the United States and his education from high school in California to his graduate studies at the University of Kentucky. He talks about his decision to go to the United States, his early years in a foreign country, problems with his family in California and the earthquake of 1989. He speaks of the difficulties he had with the language and the isolation he felt. He describes an unforgettable story that demonstrates the difficulties he had with English upon arriving in the United States. He talks about the normalization of his life after his first years in the United States. He describes the 1989 earthquake in San Francisco and how it affected his decision to transfer to Chico, California. He talks about his family in Puerto Rico and his "American" family in the United States. He describes the mixture of languages that his family speaks at home. He talks about his first experiences working in the United States and the difficulties that he had with the language. He describes his experience as an educator in graduate school and later with the Hispanic community in Lexington at a center for displaced people. He describes the changes in the Hispanic community in Lexington over the years. He comments on the necessity to keep working to enhance and enrich the Hispanic culture to promote its integration and representation. He comments on his experiences teaching Hispanic culture to American students at the University of Kentucky. He describes his "Americanization" or his departure from the Puerto Rican/Hispanic cultures due to his residence in the United States and the difficulties of integrating with the Hispanic community of Lexington. He comments on his current bicultural and bilingual life and how he has managed the transition from Puerto Rico to the United States.

Interview Keyword

Earthquakes. Temblores. Families. Familias. Teaching Ense?ando Teachers--Kentucky Maestros--Kentucky Education. Educaci

Interview LC Subject

Immigrants--Kentucky Emigration and immigration. Language. Hispanic Americans--Kentucky. Culture.

Interview Rights

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Interview Usage

Interviews may be reproduced with permission from Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, Special Collections, University of Kentucky Libraries.