Voces Oral History Project Archive

Part 1: Oral Histories

Part 1 of the Voces Oral History Archive is organized into three subseries: a) Interview Files, b) Audiovisual Material from Interviews, and c) Material from Veterans.

Interview Files subseries includes the written files or subject files generated during the interview process. The written files may include release forms, pre-interview forms, interview index, interview transcript, letters, photographs, photocopies, newspaper clippings, tributes written by family members, and other donated material by interview subjects. The Interview Files are organized by interview subject number.

Audiovisual Material from Interviews subseries is organized by media type and thereunder by interview subject number. Formats include: VHS videotapes, Betacam-SP, 8mm/Hi8 videotapes, DVCam videotapes, DVCPro videotapes, VHS-C videotapes, audiocassettes, MiniDisk (Digital Audio), MiniDisc (MD74) audio, and MiniDV videotapes. Access copies to digitized audiovisual material is listed in the Interview Files subseries.

Material from Veterans subseries includes the WWII Navy uniform of Antonio F. Moreno (Interview # 145), a photograph album and medals from Arnold F. Garcia (Interview # 622), and an Escuadrón 201 baseball cap from Mercurio Martinez (Interview # 717).

Part 2: Collected Materials

The archive also includes press and publications related to the Voces Project, as well as research materials related more generally to Latinos and war. Included with these materials are press related to the Ken Burns documentary The War, and criticism of that production by many Latinos, including Maggie Rivas-Rodriguez.

Part 3: Additions of Administrative Files

The Part 3 Voces additions consist of administrative and organizational records which reflect how the Voces Oral History Project operates as an organization. Part 3 additions are organized into twelve series: Administrative, Correspondence, Clippings, Voces Events, Events, Interview Material, Projects, Voces Publications, Educational Material, Collected Publications and Material, Photographs and Audiovisual Material, and Oversize.

The Administrative series includes material such as finances, funding, meeting materials, notes, information about Voces as an organization, IT material, and material relating to Maggie Rivas-Rodriguez, the founder of Voces. This series mainly consists of funding material that includes partnerships, grants, sponsors, and donations.

The Correspondence series includes general and miscellaneous correspondence as well as correspondence with potential interview subjects. This series also includes correspondence concerning the Defend the Honor Campaign and Ken Burns' The War. The last part of this series contains Christmas cards that were sent between Voces and interviewees, veterans, and others who were involved in the oral history project.

The Clippings series contains miscellaneous clippings from primarily Texas, but also the United States spanning from the 1940s through the beginning of the 21st century. The series also contains tributes and obituaries of Latino and Latina war veterans.

The Voces Events series contains material from Voces events such as conferences, forums and symposia, workshops and trainings, contests, and other miscellaenous events.

The Events series contains material from events that were not hosted or coordinated by Voces. This includes memorials, summits, conferences, symposia and presentations.

The Interview Material series includes material used to conduct and plan interviews for the oral history project. This includes information about locations, planning and logistical material, forms, and training material.

The Project series includes Voces projects, oral history projects, StoryCorps projects, surveys, and projects about Voces such as the play, Voices of Valor.

The Voces Publications series contains Voces newsletters, newsletter planning material, publications and promotional material, and material from books published by Maggie Rivas-Rodriguez and Voces. This series includes material from the Voces newsletter titled Narratives which was renamed Narratives Insider in 2005. The Narratives newspaper series was created to showcase interviews gathered and to keep supporters updated on the progress of the project. A total of 8 issues were published between fall 1999 and summer 2004. Includes the following issues: Vol. 1, No. 1-2, Vol. 2, No. 1-2, and Vol. 3, No. 1. Several of the newsletters are oversized and are located in Box 38.

The Educational Material series contains educational publications and tools and course material relating to the oral history course affiliated with Voces.

The Collected Publications and Material series contains published material that was collected by Voces such as articles, magazines, programs, journals, and newsletters.

The Photographs and Audiovisual Material series contains photographs donated by veterans and their families as well as photographs of events. The audio visual material in this collection contains VHS tapes on World War II as well as the Voces production Legacy of Honor. This series also contains a tribute VHS tape to the Galindo Brothers who all served in the military. The CDs in this collection are primarily produced and created by Voces as well as staff files and material.

The final series in this collection is the Oversize Material series. This series contains oversize newsletters, photographs, art work, and a Voces bag.

Part 4: Jesús Treviño Recordings

Additions received in 2017, include Latinopia/Voices of Aztlán and Visions of Aztlán video recordings produced by Barrio Dog Productions. Jesús Salvador Treviño was born in 1946 in El Paso, Texas and is the owner and copyright holder of Barrio Dog Productions Inc. Mr. Treviño originally planned to produce a documentary titled Voices of Aztlán, the project was not finished, and he eventually combined that content under the Latinopia project. Latinopia.com is a website where material on Latino arts, history, music, literature, cooking and cinema is shared and discussed. Visions of Aztlán (2010) documents the Chicano art movement in America told through the voices of Mexican American artists inspired by the generation of Chicana and Chicano artists of the 1960s and 1970s.

Treviño is a film and television director, known for Prison Break (2005), Lifestories: Families in Crisis (1992), and Seguín (1982).

Part 5: Cynthia Orozco Recordings

Cynthia Orozco recordings from 1970s to 1990s includes interviews with people and organizations involved in Mexican American civil rights. Individual interviewees include John C. Solis, M.C. Gonzales, Louis and Ofelia Wilmot, Edmundo Mireles and Jovita González Mireles, Ed Idar, Jr., among others. Organizations represented in the recordings include the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), Texas State LULAC, and the National Association for Chicana and Chicano Studies (NACCS).

Part 6: Aida Barrera Collection

The Aida Barrera collection includes audio and video recordings for the following programs: Checking It Out (television program), Checking It Out Radio, Sabor del Pueblo (radio), and Somebody Else’s Place (television program). The material is dated from 1970s to 1990 and includes several undated items. The majority of the programs were produced by the Southwest Center for Educational Television (SCET), an Austin, Texas non-profit founded by Aida Barrera. One videorecording titled Spanish for Spanish Speakers was produced by Telemar Communications, an Austin, Texas non-profit founded by Barrera.

The Barrera recordings are divided into two subseries. The Audio Recordings subseries is made up entirely of open reel audiotapes and is organized alphabetically. The numbered programs listed at the beginning of this subseries are probably the edited programs for Checking It Out Radio (although the program titled is not written on the open reel containers). The Audio Recordings subseries also includes several episodes of Sabor del Pueblo. The Video Recordings subseries includes episodes of Checking It Out and episodes of Somebody Else's Place. Video formats include Betacam-SP, 3/4-inch videotape, 2 rolls of 35mm film, and 1-inch videotape.

Part 7: Ricardo Romo Recordings

In early 2020, Dr. Ricardo Romo gave to the Voces Center a set of audio recordings of past interviews he conducted and by other interviewers. Interviewees include: Ernesto Cortes, Anastacio Torres, Juan Hernandez, Oscar J. Martinez, Carlos Velez, Paul Moreno, Dr. Wayne Cornelius, David Avalos, Jose Roberto Juarez, Maria Antonia M. Juarez, Jose Flores, Rick Solano, Ramon and Olivia Ruiz , Malaquías Montoya, Octavio Saenz Sr., Ernesto Paredes, Manuel Ramirez, Tomás Rivera, Frank Chavez, J. Glen, Valente Ramirez, Macario Rocha, Jose M. Talavera, Robert (Bob) Brischetto, Andy Hernandez, Rey Gaytan, Alice Sandoval, Américo Paredes, Pablo Poveda, Raul Soto, and Jesús Treviño. Topics include: academics, murals, visual artists, political and civic engagement, immigration, and Chicano literature.

After accepting the recordings, Voces Center staff assigned interview subject numbers for some of the recordings and those are noted in the inventory level. The Ricardo Romo cassette tapes were transferred to the Benson in 2024.