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Identifier
AremasSusan_2011_CRP
Description
Susan Aremas describes her life as a Filipino American growing up in Salinas California in the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s. The only daughter of Ricardo and Sherry Aremas, her father was a merchant Marine with the US Army and her mother was a housewife. Susan is a native Salinas resident and her family was one of the first Filipino families to settle in the Salinas area. She attended the local schools and earned her AA degree from Hartnell College. She then went on to San Jose State and earned her B.A. in Spanish, then got an Elementary teaching credential. She is currently retired but taught for 33 years in 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 5th grades. Susan starts off by talking about her parents and how they came to the area in the 1920s. She talks about how her father and mother met and how they came to the US. She relates a lot of the stories to the cameraman, since his family was very close with her own and apparently, her parents and his grandparents came over on the same ship and they ended up in the same part of the Salinas as well. Susan was born a year after they arrived in Salinas. Susan goes on to describe her life and a little bit about some discrimination her family experienced early on in Salinas. She talks about the community and how the Filipinos had to create their own community and had a great sense of it, as well as the Filipino families being very intertwined, like one big family. She constantly mentions how the Filipinos had to make their own community and how they stuck together and supported each other. She also talks a lot about her teaching career and how she taught in the same community she grew up in. She also talks about the difficulty of teaching in the community, struggles with community and kids and gang problems. She then talked extensively about the Filipino community and her role in it, both as a child and as an adult. She also touched on the social boxes and the dances and queen contests as well. She was, and still is, very involved in the Filipino community and has always felt very connected to her Filipino heritage and wants to make sure her culture continues on with others. She also talks about the brief times she spent in Chinatown and how she remembers going to the Republic Café. She concludes the interview by talking about the importance of preserving the Filipino culture for future generations and the community of the Philippines compared to the US Filipino community.
Interview Date
11-4-2011
Interviewer
Jeshe Wiggins
Geographic Coverage
Salinas (Calif.)
Subjects
Chinatown (Salinas, Calif.); Filipino American families; Philippines--Emigration and immigration; Filipino language; Labor camps
Type
Moving Image
Genre
Oral histories
Digital Format
video/mp4
Language
eng
Digital Collection
Chinatown Renewal Project
Repository
Archives & Special Collections of California State University, Monterey Bay
Disclaimer
These oral histories express the personal views, memories, and opinions of the interviewee. They do not represent the policy or views of California State University, Monterey Bay.
Recommended Citation
Aremas, Susan and California State University, Monterey Bay, "Interview with Susan Aremas" (2011). Chinatown Renewal Project. 17.
https://digitalcommons.csumb.edu/ohcma_chinatown/17
Rights Statement
