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Mexican Labor and World War II: The Bracero Program
An excerpt from a 2011 oral history interview with a father who worked as a bracero in Arizona and his son (in Spanish).

An excerpt from a 2011 oral history interview with a father who worked as a bracero in Arizona and his son (in Spanish).

An English translation of this clip from the original oral history in Spanish with Luis Marquez and Jose Marquez. Translator: Audrey Whitebloom.

JM: Jose Marquez (father)
LM: Luis Marquez (son)

Interviewer: I understand that Mr. Jose also started working as a manual laborer.

JM: Yes.

LM: Dad, do you remember when you used to tell us that you used to work as a bracero and illegally? Do you remember telling us about it?

JM: When I was illegal I was in Texas. I was in ranch that was called the 90, because it was very big...

LM: And what year was that? Do you remember?

JM: No, I don't remember.

LM: It was before we were born, remember?

JM: Yes, all of you were born after I was already there.

LM: So it was around 1956 or 57 in those years when you were an illegal worker and after being an illegal worker you got a contract in a bracero program.

JM: Yes, I got a contract to come to work in California.

LM: Do you remember what that job was?

JM: They used to make a list then they would take you, not everyone, one here and there, to the center of contracts in Guadalajara and they...

LM: The commissario would make the list, he would look for the candidates, he would look for the people...

JM: Yes, but he wouldn't include everyone...

LM: No, not everyone, only certain people...

JM: Once they made the list they would take them to Guadalajara and they would do the contracts there.

LM: How would they send you there when they contracted you...in cars, in airplanes, in donkeys...in trains…?

JM: In trains.

LM: Ah, in trains. So you went from Balded Sonora to the United States…

JM: Yes and from there they would give you the passports.

LM: Who would decide where u were going to work? Who would decide that…?

JM: In Parma and Sonora, a lot of them would go to different places...and some would be sent to Arizona and I imagine they wanted to go because it was very hot over here...

LM: So the bosses would arrive, looking for manual laborers, and braceros from Mexico would arrive. So, would they say, I have some work Texas or I have work in California or I have work in Arizona...

JM: It depended, some wanted twenty, thirty, forty, or fifty people.

LM: So was it voluntary, and you could say, I want to go to California, or I want to go to Texas?

JM: Many wanted to go to Arizona because it is very hot there and that was what they were used to.

LM: What did you used to do in San Jose?

JM: Picked cucumbers and zucchini.

LM: And how did they used to pay you, by hour or by contract?

JM: Per hour.

LM: Do you remember how much they used to pay you?

JM: I used to get paid $1.25 an hour.

LM: And why did you decide to come here, because mom brought you here or what?

JM: Once the contract was over in Sonoma, then we came here.

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Citation Information
Marquez, Luis and José Marquez, “Oral History with Luis Marquez and José Marquez,” Digital Public Library of America, https://dp.la/item/810aad4d4402c50919a1a31af41ea729.
Note: These citations are programmatically generated and may be incomplete.
Courtesy of Yuma County (AZ) Library District via the Arizona Memory Project and Mountain West Digital Library.

Tips for Students

For this source, consider:

  • the author's point of view
  • the author's purpose
  • historical context
  • audience

Item 11 of 15 in the Primary Source Set Mexican Labor and World War II: The Bracero Program

Previous ItemNext Item
A photo of officials standing with a group of braceros by a Southern Pacific train in California, 1942.
A photo of braceros arriving in Salinas, California, in a Pacific Greyhound Line bus, 1942.
A photo of braceros sitting on the back of a flatbed truck holding hoes, 1942.
A photo of a farm owner supervising braceros as they harvest sugar beets and toss them in the back of the truck, 1942.
A photo of braceros eating in the labor camp dining hall, 1942.
A photo of a man walking among the labor camp buildings at Spreckels Sugar Company in Woodland, California, 1942.
A photo of a group of braceros entering a church with the priest at the door and officials supervising, 1942.
A photo of braceros receiving paychecks in Skagit Valley, Washington, 1943.
A photo of braceros before a return to Mexico, 1963.
Government report responding to Strangers in Our Fields, a book critiquing conditions for laborers in the Bracero Program, 1956.
An excerpt from a 2011 oral history interview with a father who worked as a bracero in Arizona and his son (in Spanish).
A 2011 oral history interview with a man who grew up on a farm in Arizona recounting how hard the braceros worked in the fields.
A 1951 letter to a Dallas newspaper, detailing the author’s opposition to “wetback labor.”
A denied request for “300 Mexican nationals” to harvest pears, issued by the US Department of Labor, 1960.
A transcription of a 1962 Los Angeles Times news story: “U.S. Charges Falsifying of Bracero Pay Books.”

These sets were created and reviewed by teachers. Explore resources and ideas for Using DPLA's Primary Source Sets in your classroom.

To give feedback, contact us at info@dp.la. You can also view resources for National History Day.

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