“I am a junior at the University of Oregon majoring in Journalism and minoring in Ethnic Studies. The Latino Roots course has helped me define my career goals and I am strongly considering focusing on documentary production. I moved from Guadalajara, Mexico five years ago and I would like to work for the Spanish speaking community in Oregon because that is the language I feel more comfortable working in”.
See her portrayal of Dagoberto Morales
“This class allowed me to produce research that is visually and aurally interesting. Academic products tend to be overly textual and documentaries are alternative formats for research.” –James Daria, Latino Roots class 2013–
“Esta clase me ha dado la oportunidad de producir una investigación interesante a nivel visual y auditivo. Usualmente los productos académicos tienden a ser muy textuales, pero los documentales son un formato alternativo de investigación.” — James Daria, Latino Roots clase 2013–
See his portrayal of Leo Vallejo
“I am a first year graduate student in the International Studies program and I plan to work with Latino and Brazilian communities after I graduate. The Latino Roots class has been very influential for me in gaining a better understanding of the history of Latino immigration to Oregon. Both Professors Lynn Stephen and Gabriela Martinez have inspired me to consider doing documentary shorts for my thesis research in Brazil. The skills I am acquiring in doing ethnographic research and oral testimony will be especially helpful in my fieldwork as I will be interviewing young adults from the shantytowns of Rio de Janeiro. This project will give people a glimpse into the lives of some of the Latinos who have immigrated to Oregon and will tell of their amazingly diverse stories we have come across”.
See her portrayal of Janet Mendoza
“I am a first year doctoral student in the Media Studies program. I study international and development communication, and my research focus is on the use of online and mobile phone games as development tools. As part of my master’s thesis I created a 20-minute documentary on a non-profit organization in Ghana. Since then I’ve looked for ways to blend research with production work and hope to continue to do so in the future”.
See her portrayal of Jamie Broady
“Working on this project has furthered my knowledge about the diversity of the Latino population, and how ambiguous the term ‘Latino’ is. I have also learned that there is a large history of Latino presence in Oregon. This project has been one of my favorite endeavors at the University of Oregon because I had a chance to create a relationship with my subject as well as conduct undergraduate research.” –Emily Greene, Latino Roots class 2013–
“Trabajando en este proyecto he desarrollado mi conocimiento sobre la diversidad de la población Latina, y me he dado cuenta de que tan ambiguo es el término ‘Latino’. También he aprendido que hay una larga historia de Latinos en Oregón. Este proyecto ha sido uno de mis favoritos en la Universidad de Oregón porque me dio la oportunidad de entablar una buena relación con la persona que entrevisté, y también de hacer trabajo de investigación.” –Emily Greene, Latino Roots clase 2013–
See her portrayal of Gerardo Herrera
“My name is Mike Goris and I am a 2nd year Master’s Student in the Media Studies program at the School of Journalism and Communication. I have worked with photography and film since high school and have always been fascinated with people and their stories. I focus mostly on photography, but have produced several short documentaries during my time at the University of Oregon”.
See her digital booklet on Misael Rojas
“The Latino Roots project has broadened my perspective of how access to education serves as a vehicle to empower Latino communities to disrupt inequitable, socially-constructed systems based on race, ethnicity, gender, etc.” –Toby Hansen, Latino Roots class 2013–
“El proyecto de Latino Roots ha ampliado mi perspectiva de cómo el accesso a la educación sirve como un vehículo para empoderar a las comunidades Latinas y para interrumpir sistemas no equitativos, construidos socialmente y basados en raza, etnicidad, género, etc.” — Toby Hansen, Latino Roots clase 2013–
See his portrayal of Javier Lara
“The experience in the class has been eye opening in terms of the historical issues of race, class and discrimination in Oregon. Understanding how these elements has occurred, and seeing how it affects individual lives is staggering. Learning to tell stories in a creative way is both challenging and rewarding. I feel so inspired by Blanca’s story and this class provided me a framework to tell it.” –Sunny Rae Harrison, Latino Roots class 2013–
“Las experiencias en la clase nos han abierto los ojos en cuanto a la historia de raza, clase y la discriminación en Oregón. El entender cómo se han producido estos elementos históricos y ver cómo afectan a las personas es asombroso. Aprender a contar historias de una manera creativa es desafiante y gratificante. Me siento muy inspirada por Blanca, y la clase me ha proporcionado un marco teorético para poder contar su historia.” –Sunny Rae Harrison, Latino Roots clase 2013–
See her portrayal of Blanca Gutierrez
“I am a senior anthropology major. I wasn’t expecting documentary film making to be so enjoyable. I originally took this class because of the subject matter. Once I got behind the camera though I realized this is something I might want to pursue further. I love this class. I have learned so much in such a short amount of time from across a wide range of skill sets. I wish this is a class that I could have taken earlier in my college career because it has influenced me greatly”.
See his portrayal of Rosa Camarena
“I am a junior broadcast journalism and Spanish major at the University of Oregon. The Latino Roots series combines both of my fields of study and I have used some of the ethnographic interview methods we were taught in my work with Duck TV News. This class has helped me analyze my own roots as well, since I am a Mexican-American who also moved to Oregon like many of the subjects of this video series”.
See his portrayal of Jeffrey Mercado
“The Latino Roots class has helped me explore the links between personal stories and larger social and historical narratives related to the Latino experience in Oregon. Thorough the class, I have learned how to utilize new media technologies in ways that enhance the accessibility of my research far beyond the academic context.” –Samantha King, Latino Roots class 2013–
“La clase de Latino Roots me ha ayudado a explorar los vínculos entre historias personales y grandes narrativas sociales e históricas relacionadas con la experiencia Latina en Oregón. A lo largo de la clase, he aprendido a utilizar nuevas tecnologías que ayudan a la accesibilidad de mi trabajo de investigación mucho más allá del contexto académico.” –Samantha King, Latino Roots clase 2013–
See her portrayal of Gabriel Sanchez
“The Latino Roots course has been beneficial in providing me the tools and support for carrying out fieldwork through a visual medium. The course has given me a larger understanding of the history and culture of Latinos in Oregon, and its hands-on approach with oral history is beneficial to capturing the narratives of Latinos in Oregon.” — Andres Ariel Miranda-Katz, Latino Roots class 2013–
“El curso de Latino Roots ha sido beneficioso porque me ha dado las herramientas para llevar a cabo trabajo de campo a través de un medio visual. El curso me ha dado una mejor comprensión de la historia y cultura de Latinos en Oregón, y la practica con historias orales que son beneficiosas para capturar las historias de los Latinos en Oregón.” — Andres Ariel Miranda-Katz, Latino Roots clase 2013–
See a portrayal of his self-reflexive story
“I have enjoyed the opportunity to develop my journalism and multimedia skills working on my first long-term documentary project. Learning how to gather archival footage as well as establish a strong and trusting relationship with my subject will be helpful in my future aspirations to become a documentary filmmaker. The most valuable part of this project has been hearing perspectives from my subject, Jill Torres, and other members of Eugene’s Latino community. It has allowed me to understand more about the needs and aspirations of the community, which I believe is important because the Latino community is very much a part of the Eugene community in which I live”.
See her portrayal of Jill Torres
“I am a senior majoring in Journalism and Communication, with a focus in multimedia storytelling. The Latino Roots course has allowed me to apply my love for storytelling with my curiosities toward anthropologic research. This experience has allowed me to expand my skills as a documentary storyteller, both personally and technologically. I feel grateful for having the opportunity to work with Lidiana Soto, whose story has both inspired me and increased my understanding of the history of Latino roots in Oregon. Upon graduation, I hope that I can continue to produce documentary stories that provide insight into the history of another culture or lifestyle”.
See her portrayal of Lidiana Soto
“I am a second year PhD student in Cultural Anthropology. Since taking this class and working on this project I have developed a far greater understanding of how much the perceptions of others can have on one’s own identity and development over time and inform their perceptions of history. Identity and personal narratives are the main themes of my project and the forces that help shape them, both internal and external”.
See his portrayal of Kristen De La Rosa
“As an undergrad student studying Ethnic Studies, I am grateful to have had the opportunity to be a part of such a special project that highlighted the history of Latinos in Oregon. It has been an amazing experience learning about Oregon’s history and connecting with Izza Porter who emigrated with her family from Monterrey to Oregon. I’m excited to use the skills that I learned while making this documentary later in my life”.
See her portrayal of Izza Porter