Interview with Joey Martinez (2024-10-11)
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Interviewees
Joey Martinez
Interviewer
Maria Saliby
Study ID
089
Description
Joey Martinez shared his multicultural background, with his grandparents immigrating from Colombia, Italy, Argentina, and Spain. He grew up in a predominantly Hispanic neighborhood in Florida before moving to Northern Virginia, where he attended West Springfield High School. Joey is pursuing a bachelor's in International Studies with a concentration in Latin American Studies. He discussed his Catholic upbringing, his father's conversion to Islam, and his involvement in the Latinx Student Association at VCU, where he serves as president. Joey also highlighted the challenges of job hunting and balancing work and school, and reflected on the impact of COVID-19 on his family and the Latino community. Joey expresses his sense of belonging in Richmond, attributing it to his positive experiences and community he made through organizations and not from the school's resources directly. He shares his views on the issue of immigration, criticizing fear-mongering by politicians and the lack of focus on legal immigration processes. Joey emphasizes the importance of understanding and embracing diverse cultures and not relying solely on media portrayals.
Note
Please note: This interview includes mention of death by suicide.
This interview was conducted in English, and the transcript is in English only.
Topical Subject
Colombian Americans; Argentine Americans; Italian Americans; Spanish Americans; Hispanic Americans; Latin Americans; Colombia; Argentina; Italy; Spain; Florida; Massachusetts; Virginia; Education; Virginia Commonwealth University; Religion; Catholic Church; Conversion; Islam; Student activities; College students; Emigration and immigration; COVID-19 Pandemic, 2020-2023; Vaccination; Belonging (Social psychology); Group identity
City/Location
Richmond (Va.)
Genre
oral histories (literary genre)
Local Genre
oral history; sound recording; text
Type
Sound; Text
Digital Format
audio/mp3
Language
eng
Rights Statement URL
Rights
This material is protected by copyright, and copyright is held by Joey Martinez. You are permitted to use this material in any way that is permitted by copyright. In addition, this material is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 4.0 International license (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0). Acknowledgment of Latino Virginia Project and Virginia Commonwealth University Libraries as a source is required.
Collection
Latino Virginia Oral Histories
Contributors
Latino Virginia Project
Source
Interview with Joey Martinez (2024-10-11), Latino Virginia Oral History Project, Virginia Commonwealth University.
File Name
lvoh089_MartinezJoey_interview.mp3
Disciplines
Latin American History | Latin American Languages and Societies | Oral History | Public History | Social History | United States History