2. Thinned Attachment: Heritage is Slipping through Our Fingers
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Date
2011
Authors
Vasquez-Tokos, Jessica
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
New York University Press
Abstract
Sixty-five-year-old Maria Montes is a devout Catholic, bilingual in English and Spanish, and the matriarch of her family.1 One of six siblings, Maria emigrated from Mexico when she was four years old with her mother and sister, while her brothers stayed in Mexico. Maria’s mother chose to immigrate in part because one of her brothers and her eldest son were already in the United States and encouraged her to move. They crossed the Rio Grande River and took the train into the United States. Upon arrival, she worked in the fields picking potatoes and green beans and then at the packing house. Maria would join her mother in the fields when she was young or would be under the care of her older sister, a “second mother” caretaker for her. Twelve years later Maria’s mother brought two of her other sons over to the United States.
Description
31 pages. From the book "Mexican Americans Across Generations."
Keywords
heritage, first-generation, Mexico, siblings, family, emigration