1
50
1
-
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Filipino Immigrant Oral History Project
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
Bulosan Center for Filipino Studies
Description
An account of the resource
<strong><br />Note: Collection upload in process</strong>
Oral History
A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge.
Interviewer
The person(s) performing the interview.
Katrina Ongtengco
Interviewee
The person(s) being interviewed.
Mitas Cuenca
Transcription
Any written text transcribed from a sound.
[Begin Audio File]<br />Katrina: Alright so today is May 26, 2019 and this is Katrina<br />Ongtengco interviewing a Filipina immigrant for the oral history<br />project for the Welga Filipino American Labor archives and the<br />Welga! Project. Okay, first question is where and when were you<br />born?<br />Mitas: I was born in Manila on October 13, 1950.<br />Katrina: Where and when were your parents born?<br />Mitas: My parents were born also in the Philippines in Manila.<br />And my mother was born in 1910, and my father was born in 1911.<br />Katrina: They were both born in Manila or . . .<br />Mitas: They were both born outside of Manila in the suburbs of<br />Manila.<br />Katrina: Okay, what jobs did your parents do?<br />Mitas: My mom was an elementary school teacher for over 40 years<br />and my father was a mechanic.<br />Katrina: How long did they work for?<br />Mitas: My father worked, I think at least over 30 years in his<br />last company and he retired just because the retirement age<br />during his days was 55 years old. My mother worked until she had<br />to retire at the age of, I believe, 60 years old.<br />Katrina: How many siblings do you have?<br />Mitas: I have six siblings. There are seven of us in the family.<br />There are five girls and two boys. And I am the youngest in the<br />family.<br />Katrina: Did any of your family members move to America before<br />you?<br />Mitas: Yes, I had one sister who moved to Canada and one sister<br />who moved here in California.<br />Karina: What type of Visa did they arrive with?<br />Mitas: They were both . . They had the green card holder or<br />immigrant.<br />Katrina: What was your academic experience in the Philippines?<br />Mitas: My academic experience was that I graduated in the<br />Philippines at a Philippines women university with a degree in<br />B.S Psychology.<br />Katrina: And did you have a professional experience?<br />Mitas: My professional experience there was just short lived. I<br />may have just worked less than total of six months before<br />immigrating to Canada. When I started working, I was just a new<br />graduate from college and about six months later, I already<br />immigrated to Canada and then I went back after a year and a<br />half from Canada and I worked again for another three months in<br />the Philippines before deciding to move back to Canada on a more<br />permanent basis.<br />Katrina: When did you decide to move out of the Philippines?<br />Mitas: I decided to move out of the Philippines after I<br />graduated in 1973 . . Oh in 1972. And six months later, because<br />the processing during the time was a lot faster than what it is<br />now, I was in Canada within six to seven months.<br />Katrina: And when did you move to the United States?<br />Mitas: I moved to the United States in 1980.<br />Katrina: What were your thoughts about America before you moved<br />here?<br />Mitas: Well as you know the Philippines is very much . . . has a<br />close relationship with America so we think of America as<br />something that’s just like a better place and better<br />opportunities and better working condition than what it is in<br />the Philippines. And also because of the stories I hear<br />especially from my sister when she first moved to Canada. And so<br />Canada being close to America, they about have the same<br />opportunities that I thought I could have. So when I graduated<br />from college I asked my sister, from Canada, to sponsor me and<br />so I became also an immigrant in Canada. And then six and a half<br />. . . about seven years later, then my parents who already<br />immigrated here in the states, have sponsored me to come here<br />and stay with them.<br />[5:11]<br />Katrina: What kind of job did your parents work here in America.<br />Mitas: Uhh no . . . well, work a little bit yes, but because<br />they were already retirees then, so what they did was that since<br />they lived close to a school, so they baby sat only a few kids<br />though and they had maybe about two or three kids that they<br />babysat and no more than that. They did a lot volunteer work in<br />the church and my mom was very active in the church where they<br />lived and they were umm she was part of sort of the pioneers in<br />the church where they worshiped and were often asked to be<br />translating some materials, church materials, from English to<br />Tagalog which is our native language<br />Katrina: Did your thoughts about America change after you<br />arrived?<br />Mitas: Not really. I thought it was what I thought it would be.<br />That there were better opportunities and less traffic of course<br />and the weather is nicer especially here in California and you<br />know that is one of the reasons I stayed here. When I left the<br />Philippines in 1973 and lived in Toronto, I was not sure whether<br />that was the place where I wanted to stay, so about a year and a<br />half after I lived there, I went back to the Philippines to<br />figure out if that’s where I should be with my parents. Being<br />the youngest and unmarried child in the family I thought it was<br />my responsibility to be with my parents. But after that I knew<br />that they were going to be immigrating to the US so that's when<br />I went back first to Canada again. Until I immigrated to the US<br />in 1980.<br />Katrina: So you worked in Canada too?<br />Mitas: Yes. I did work in Canada. I worked not in my field but I<br />worked first in a bank and then after that, I worked in the<br />research psychology department of Clarke Institute of Psychiatry<br />and that was in Toronto.<br />Katrina: and how long did you work there?<br />Mitas: Well, I worked there for about maybe five years?<br />Katrina: Did you live on your own or did you live with a family<br />member?<br />Mitas: I lived with my family member. I lived with my sister who<br />sponsored me and so that’s what my situation was.<br />Katrina: Where did you first live in the United States?<br />Mitas: I lived with my parents first and I stayed with them in<br />their house and the reason why I stayed there was because I<br />wanted to give myself a year to figure out whether I would call<br />the US as my home or I would go back again to Canada because I<br />was having a wonderful time also in Canada. I didn’t have any<br />problem there. I had a good job and also at the same time I had<br />friends there too and family but when my parents sponsored me<br />again the responsibility . . . I thought of the responsibility<br />of being the youngest and being the unmarried child to take care<br />of my parents. They were very open to it so I just like I stayed<br />with them for a year and then after a year I moved back to<br />Canada to visit, to at least give myself a chance to say “okay,<br />which of the two countries would I want to settle in?” and<br />without any hesitation I said “It’s going to be California for<br />me.” So that’s when I already moved then I knew in my mind that<br />I would like to live here permanently and so then that's when I<br />started looking for a place of my own close to my parents, so I<br />lived in an apartment on my own, before I got married.<br />[10:06]<br />Katrina: So what made you decide to stay in America instead of<br />Canada?<br />Mitas: Well the opportunity was much better, I had a better<br />paying job here in the US and also the weather had something to<br />do with it. I was tired already of just like . . . during the<br />winter season when you have to go through so many hardships of<br />just like, you know, walking in the snow and the cold weather<br />was just nahhh. You know after experiencing the California<br />weather you know people would just like (laughs) will not have<br />any second thought about the opportunity of being able to move<br />here in California.<br />Katrina: And did you have friends and family here? Oh, well you<br />parents were here . . .<br />Mitas: My parents were here . . .<br />Katrina: Who else?<br />Mitas: And then also my three siblings were already here. So I<br />have my nephews and nieces and my sisters and my brothers in<br />law. And I also have some friends, childhood friends back home<br />in the Philippines who also were here. So it was a wonderful<br />experience and so . . .<br />Katrina: So you didn’t have trouble adjusting?<br />Mitas: Not at all. Not at all. I didn’t have trouble adjusting.<br />I really enjoyed my job and so you know it was a better<br />opportunity so there we go.<br />Katrina: What jobs did you perform when you moved to America?<br />Mitas: When I moved to America, my first job was an assistant in<br />a research psychology, a research department of a a major<br />hospital organization here in the bay area. However, six months<br />or less than three months into the job, another company who<br />responded to my application called and so I thought you know I’d<br />go for an interview and all that stuff so and since it was based<br />in San Francisco, they offered me a higher paying job. And so I<br />decided to forgo my position at this hospital and even though<br />the position that I went into was no longer in the line of work<br />that I got, but I thought that it was something that was, you<br />know, was an okay position for me as well.<br />Katrina: Did you apply to these jobs on your own or did you have<br />like someone to recommend you?<br />Mitas: My sisters when I moved here they gave me a list of the<br />more renowned companies here both in San Francisco and bay area.<br />So those were the companies that I targeted. The job that I got,<br />I got because I responded to their ad in the newspapers. So when<br />I went to the interview, the day of the interview they already<br />gave me the offer. So since the other companies have not<br />responded to my application so I accepted it however three weeks<br />into my working in the hospital then this company that I worked<br />for that answered to my resume called me for an interview so . .<br />Katrina: Did your professional/academic experiences help you get<br />the job?<br />Mitas: The first, the one in Canada, yes it did and the one in<br />here in the hospital also did. However, the one that I ended up<br />in San Francisco, which is a multinational apparel company, it<br />was yes and no. It’s because of the fact that later on my three<br />years after I started with the company, I was sort of borrowed<br />so to speak to be part of the executive office of this company<br />supporting the president and CEO and the chairman as their<br />executive assistant and I figured you know, my experience or<br />just like my academic experience with my degree sort of helped<br />me navigate working with different levels of people and so it's<br />just one of those things that I thought maybe helped me<br />understand the different levels of positions of the hierarchy<br />within the company and allowed me to really .. . what I learned<br />helped me to navigate the . . . how I [inaudible] be dealing<br />with this people. And even though it did . . . so that was<br />indirectly I think what helped me but in order to be in touch<br />with the profess . .. or academic experience that I had in the<br />Philippines, I volunteered to organizations. One of them is . .<br />I served as a counselor, phone counselor at the Suicide<br />Prevention and Crisis Intervention group and so I did that for a<br />few months.<br />[16:21]<br />Katrina: Did you go back to school here in America?<br />Mitas: I did try. I did try because of the fact that I . . .<br />before I worked in the executive office at the company I worked<br />for for over thirty four years, I didn’t know whether . . . I<br />worked there as an administrative assistant to a director of a<br />company. However it’s just like, you know, I didn’t know whether<br />that was where I want to . . . where I would like to spend the<br />rest of my life doing what I was just doing there. I shouldn’t<br />say just, but it was also a very, you know, a very high paced .<br />. . fast paced position. So I went and studied at the community<br />college here and I but in the area of information technology.<br />Even though I passed, you know, the two the subjects I took, and<br />got good grades I did realize that it wasn’t for me and so I<br />decided to just not pursue it and at the same time that’s when I<br />started volunteering at the suicide prevention because that’s<br />still where I wanted to be connected with the psychology part of<br />my academic experience.<br />Katrina: Did you notice anything different between first<br />generation immigrants and the Filipino American community?<br />Mitas: Okay . . . say that again.<br />Katrina: Did you notice anything different between first<br />generation immigrants and the Filipino American community?<br />Mitas: First generation immigrants and the Filipino American<br />community. During the days of the first generation immigrant?<br />I’m talking about the first generation immigrant and they are<br />the children of the . . . ?<br />Katrina: I think the first generation is like the first . . your<br />parents I guess, the first people that . . . from your family<br />that migrated here.<br />Mitas: I see, okay. What . . is in the Filipino community? Well,<br />my . . . because my parents were really more like very active in<br />their . . . and they came here as retirees and they didn’t have<br />to work, I didn’t see much of a difference like what I said my<br />mom was very active in her church, she sort of had the<br />leadership role with the organizing community, the Filipino<br />communities. And so I did not think much of a difference that<br />was experienced by my parents. So I don’t know about other<br />families but even though my parents immigrated here in their<br />sixties, they were able to assimilate into the lifestyle here.<br />They didn’t have any issues that sometimes I’ve heard from other<br />friends who said that their parents would always want to go back<br />to the Philippines, or do this, or you know, the longing of<br />going back to the Philippines, I never, my parents never<br />mentioned anything like that. I don’t know if it was because<br />most of us were already here, so that’s maybe the difference.<br />They were . . . they felt right at home right away.<br />[20:11]<br />Katrina: And did you assimilate okay here in America<br />Mitas: Oh yah. I didn’t have any problem.<br />Katrina: No problem?<br />Mitas: Nope.<br />Katrina: Or how about your siblings? Same?<br />Mitas: They . . . the same yah. I think it’s because we lived in<br />a big city in the Philippines. We lived in Manila and so . . .<br />no. My siblings had very stable jobs as well. They were also had<br />college degrees, and so they were able to find good jobs here.<br />So I don’t think there was any issue among us about that.<br />Katrina: When your siblings went to school in the Philippines,<br />did they earn like . . . what type of degree. . . Did they earn<br />a degree in the Philippines?<br />Mitas: Yes. Yes, my oldest brother, I mean you know, he got a<br />degree in engineering. I have two sisters who umm business<br />administration. One sister who had a degree in education and one<br />sister who is a CPA.<br />Katrina: Did the job that they have here . . or the level . .<br />or the job that they have here in America, is that like. . .<br />Did their degree help them?<br />Mitas: I think so. Yah. I think so. I think that their degree<br />helped them.<br />Katrina: Because some people earn a degree in the Philippines<br />and then they don’t use that degree here because of the . .<br />Mitas: Correct, right. But sometimes on the other hand I can say<br />that I mean if you looked at it in terms of what I did, my<br />degree helped me adjust to my position very well. I worked an<br />executive assistant to chairman, the president, and CEO but I<br />mean if you look at it, even my degree in B.S psychology would<br />not have been good in the Philippines if I just not have any<br />masters degree or PhD degree, so to be able to work in that<br />field. So yah no . . . it helped me, it helped me, but it's just<br />like is it something that I you know, directly . . .you know if<br />I become a psychologist here? No I did not. I was doing okay in<br />my job and I didn’t feel that there was something . . . a need<br />at that point to go to a grad school or something like that. I<br />mean, I was fulfilled both professionally and also my psyche was<br />fulfilled as well. So I didn’t think I was missing anything<br />since I was able to make all the adjustments.<br />Katrina: Alright. I think that is it for the interview. Thank<br />you for doing this interview.<br />Mitas: You’re very welcome. I hope this is helpful to you and to<br />the organization that’s going to be using this information.<br />[End Audio File 23:50]
View/Download File(s)
Link to download files
<a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1eKlqMRb6nvRtN1dDcU1Yd-JFBso6KKtb/view?usp=sharing">https://drive.google.com/file/d/1eKlqMRb6nvRtN1dDcU1Yd-JFBso6KKtb/view?usp=sharing</a>
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Oral History Interview with Mitas Cuenca
Subject
The topic of the resource
Manila, Bachelor of Science in Psychology, Tagalog, volunteering, volunteers, Canada, research psychlogy, San Francisco Bay Area, First Generation Immigrants
Description
An account of the resource
Oral History Interview with Mitas Cuenca
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
26-May-19
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
The Bulosan Center for Filipino Studies and the UC Davis Asian American Studies department holds intellectual control of these recordings. Usage is restricted for educational, non-commercial purposes only. For other uses, please contact archivist Jason Sarmiento at ajsarmiento@ucdavis.edu
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Transcript
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
ucdw_wa014_s001_0033
Bachelor of Science in Psychology
Canada
first generation immigrants
Manila
research psychlogy
San Francisco Bay Area
Tagalog
volunteering
Volunteers