StoryCorps Historias: Raúl and Marisa Grijalva

From: StoryCorps
Series: StoryCorps
Length: 01:43

Congressman Raúl Grijalva talks to his daughter Marisa about his mother's influence on his education. Read the full description.

Piece Audio

Playing: StoryCorps Historias: Raúl and Marisa Grijalva
From: StoryCorps

Grijalva_240x240_prx_small Arizona Representative Raúl Grijalva came to StoryCorps and recorded an interview with his daughter Marisa as part of our Historias initiative.

Here, Marisa asks her father about growing up with his parents in Tuscon, Arizona and the influence his mother had on his education.

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Piece Description

Arizona Representative Raúl Grijalva came to StoryCorps and recorded an interview with his daughter Marisa as part of our Historias initiative.

Here, Marisa asks her father about growing up with his parents in Tuscon, Arizona and the influence his mother had on his education.

Broadcast History

Latino USA 10.30.09

Transcript

Marisa Grijalva (MG): What are your memories of growing up in Nana and Tata's house?

Raúl Grijalva (RG): I was the only boy--I mean, I'm a mama's boy and I'm not ashamed of it--but school was always the friction point with my mother. She--

MG: But you liked school, didn't you?

RG: I loved it, I was a schoolboy. But I didn't like her to press me on it all the time.

MG: How did she feel about report cards?

RG: She didn't speak English but she understood "A"--and only looked for A's and B's. Anything less than that would mean that you would be studying for the rest of your life. So you'd kind of strive to get one of those two. And, I remember getting an award--I think that it was seventh or eighth grade--I was one of four students in the whole class who was getting an award. And they said, make sure you invite your parents. And I didn't tell my mom. I felt embarrassed of her because...
Read the full transcript

Intro and Outro

INTRO:

Next, Representative Raúl [Rah-OOL] Grijalva [Gree-Hah-Vah] of Arizona talks to his daughter Marisa. Like the Salazars [Salla-Zarrs], Grijalva found political success close to

home. And here Marisa interviews him about growing up with his parents in Tuscon...

OUTRO:

That's Raúl Grijalva with his daughter Marisa at StoryCorps in Washington DC. Their interview along with the Salazar's will be archived at the American Folklife Center at Library of Congress.