Amelia Ruiz Ruiz is a farmer in Maricao. Since she was a child, agriculture has been a big part of her life. She is the tenth of eleven siblings. Since there were so many siblings and her father was the only source of income, they experienced poverty. But despite everything, they always managed to find something to fill their stomachs. Their main livelihood came from agriculture; from what his father grew on the farm.
Amelia is a mother of four and grandmother of eleven. Throughout her life she has always carried on the recipes she learned from her mother. Recipes mostly made with ingredients she can find on her farm. Among her favorite recipes are: "vianda con bacalao”, "pasteles", coffee made from scratch, and "sorullos”. Amelia also tells us about the difficulties faced, as a farmer on the island. How difficult it is to work the land and how little they get monetarily. In addition to all this, there is the farmers' terror: weather phenomena, such as hurricanes and storms. With their strong winds and rain, they destroy the hard work, sweat, effort and take away the livelihood of many farmers. "The life of a farmer is difficult, very difficult." Note: The interview was conducted in Spanish.
Carmen Mojíca Quiñones is a retired art teacher living in Barrio Voladoras Moca. She lives alone with her dog “Blacky”. Currently her favorite hobbys are going to the casino and going to eat with her family in different municipalities in Puerto Rico. Sometimes when she is alone in her house, she takes out her canvas, art brushes and paint and starts painting. When Carmen was young, she always loved school but when she fell in love, she was obligated to leave school for a while. Now at 81 years of age her perspective has changed since times have changed. Back then kids had to obey their parents in everything they said, so Carmen had to leave school so that she could learn what a housewife does for her future husband. Now she understands that what happened in high school, her leaving school just because she fell in love it was sexism by her mother. This was because back then women were supposed to stay home taking care of the household chores and taking care of their kids while their men worked. Nowadays we can see that a woman can do the same things a man can do and a man can do the same things the woman can.
Elizabeth Vera Gonzales has been a nurse for approximately 30 years. She lives in sector El Gringo in San Sebastián, Puerto Rico. For the past few years, she has been working at the EDP (Electric Data Processing) university as a nursing professor. During her time as a nurse, she has been witness to many social justice issues but some stuck out to her more then others. The issues that will be discussed may include the transition from public healthcare to private, the flu epidemic, the Coronavirus Pandemic and lastly the implementation of the health reform. We will be addressing these problems from the perspective of someone who has had a chance of being on both sides of the spectrum. As she also worked for an insurance company auditing the doctors’ offices in quality issues. She beards witness to many unfair and unjust things during these times. Some significant and interesting anecdotes from this nonfiction oral history piece is the under appreciation for the healthcare workers. It is a shame that we had to undergo a Pandemic to truly see nurses and appreciate the sacrifices they do for us on a daily basis. Not to be confused with heroism, because they shouldn’t have to sacrifice themselves at the expense of others. Elizabeth’s life experiences fit into larger societal trends, social movements, and social justice issues because it gives us a new perspective and further understanding of the social justice issues we face as citizens and as the nurses suffer the consequences.
The narrator’s name is Sheyla Arleen Mercado Sanchez, from Añasco, her birthday is on August 19, 1975. The interview takes place in Añasco. The date was September 8, 2022. Sheyla was born and raised in Añasco throughout her life. She has always been very responsible, dedicated, and hardworking. She has always been fond of working in finance and that is why all the jobs she ever had have been related to that. The interview focuses on social aspects regarding hurricane Maria, Electric Energy Company, COVID, abortion, and the government. In the interview the time periods go from 2017 to 2022. Starting from Hurricane Maria all the way to COVID and recently the situation regarding gas prices. The interview mostly focuses on the events that happened on the island and with the narrator. The narrator's experiences do have a relation with diverse social issues because it relates to their health, their economic status, and their daily life. They deal with political failure, overall structural care in most of the island and with managing to work on the minimum wage. The point is that there are many issues that need to be addressed that have not been done yet properly. All these things shaped and made the interview that later became a story possible.
