“He comes back… and he said, ‘I have a permanent position for you.’” Edited by Nick Ladeau. Transcript for I Wanted to Work I started looking for a job. You know, I worked in Germany. I wanted to work. You know, I liked to bring in money. I never wanted to be like my mom […]
industry
Some of the Best Ground in the World
“Nowadays, most of these farms have ripped all the fences out and they can take the 40-acre fields and they make them into 200 and 300.” Welcome Project at Valparaiso University · Some of the Best Ground in the World Edited by Nick Ladeau Transcript for Some of the Best Ground in the World I’m […]
Eliminated by Technology
“It was really a grim reaper for jobs…sweeping away thousands at one time.” Edited by Welcome Project Intern Ella Speckhard Transcript for Eliminated by Technology First time I went in the steel mill was 1969. I came home from college to work in Christmas break. I worked at Republic Steel where my dad was. It […]
The Patch
“Anybody who was not well-connected, you go to the Patch.” Edited by Welcome Project Intern Ella Speckhard Transcript for The Patch My grandmother, my mother’s mother, was a twin. And they left Poland and they didn’t speak English. They had a note on their—pinned to their thing: Chicago. And so, they, you know, landed in […]
Fascinated by the Steelmills
“It was really something, it was kind of like the movies!” Edited by Welcome Project Intern Ella Speckhard Transcript for Fascinated by the Steelmills When I was a kid, we heard the mills, we could see the sky light up because it was a different process then. It was a lot of open flames and […]
The Concerned Latins Organization
“And they really—under the umbrella of education, housing, and employment—try to confront a lot of the discrimination and issues that the community has faced in the region.” Historian Emiliano Aguilar, doctoral student Northwestern University Transcript for The Concerned Latins Organization One: The Introduction of Latinx Communities to Northwest Indiana I think one of the most […]
Block and Pennsy
“These communities have been erased.” Nicole Martinez-LeGrand, Multicultural Collections Coordinator, Library and Archives Division, Indiana Historical Society. Transcript for Block and Pennsy In the 1920s you have this curious, fabulous mix of people from all different backgrounds – middle class, low class – all coming and mixing in the confines of Block and Pennsy. This […]
Not Newcomers
“The Latinx communities have been instrumental both as workers, as community members, as beacons of cultural institutions.” Historian Emiliano Aguilar, doctoral student Northwestern University Transcript for Not Newcomers I think one of the most important things to know about the Latinx communities in Northwest Indiana is that these are not newcomers. This is not a […]
How We Ended Up Coming to Gary
“It was the dirtiest place in the mill. But I guess they made a decent salary. So he encouraged my father to leave Florida and move to Gary.” Transcript for How We Ended Up Coming to Gary We grew up in the neighborhood that was near Pulaski School. My grandfather lived in the neighborhood. He […]