NABO is endeavoring to encourage members to pursue an oral history project to record the story of our ancestors.  If we don't do it, others will not and too much will be lost.

This will potentially be coordinated by a NABO chairperson

Coming soon will be a template to serve as guide for organizing interviews.  In Euskadi, a program is already underway under the direction of Euskal Herriko Ahotsak at http://www.ahotsak.com/english/

Urazandi Interviewer Checklist
Provided by http://www.sfbasque.org/urazandi/status.htm

Setting up the interview

Phone the interviewee.  Tell the interviewee that the purpose of the interview is for the Urazandi project, which is to collect the history of the Basque community in the San Francisco Bay Area.  Explain that an Urazandi book will be written about the history of the Basque community in the Bay Area.  Explain that the interview will be taped, and that the tapes will be saved and only used for the educational purposes of the Urazandi project.  Explain that they will be given a copy of their interview for their own personal use.  Tell them that they will need to sign a legal form that protects them, and ensures that the tapes will only be used for educational purposes of the Urazandi project.

Set up a time and place where the interview will take place, and follow up a day or two before with a confirmation phone call.  Make sure that you have the correct address if you are meeting them at their home.

Ask the interviewee if he or she has any pictures that could be potentially scanned for the project.  If so, ask them to have them available for viewing even though you will not scan them at the time of the interview. This way you can inspect them for their relevance, and then arrange for them to be scanned.
 

Preparing for the interview

The Equipment

Make sure you are completely familiar with the minidisk recorder.  How to start and stop it, Changing disks, and so forth. 

Set up for the interview in a place where there is little chance for distraction or disruption.  Place the minidisk recorder in place where you can make sure it is functioning, and use an alternative timing device to make sure the disk space does not run out while you are interviewing.

Questions

Take time to review the interview questions.  Prior to the interview think of questions and topics that you know the interviewee will have information about.

What to bring to the interview.

The minidisk player and a few disks.

Two copies of the legal release form, one for the interviewee and one for the Urazandi committee.

Interview questions

Interview fact sheet form which will allow you to quickly note the interviewee’s pertinence to the focus of the project Urazandi.

Note pad and pen to make your own notes of the interview.

Post Interview

Contact the Urazandi committee arrange for an exchange of the interview materials.

Urazandi General Interview Questions

Section I: Emigration Process

1.    Where were you born?

2.    When did you immigrate to the U.S. and to where?

3a. Why did you immigrate?

3b. What where the political and/or economic factors at home?

4.     How did you come to the SF Bay Area?

5.     Did you intend to move permanently to the U.S. or for a short time?

 If you didn’t intend to stay- what happened to change your mind?

6a.  Did you have family in the US or other hometown friends here?

6b.  Did you have a facilitator to help you make the arrangements?

6c.  How long did the trip take?

7.     What did you fear about coming to the U.S.?

8a.  Did you find Americans to be immigrant friendly? What was your

       impression of the U.S. and Americans? Did you ever experience

       prejudice because you were an immigrant?

8b. Did people know what Basques were?

9.   Did you speak English before emigrating the U.S.? What grade level

      of education did you complete in the Basque country?

9b. How did you learn to speak English? Was it hard?

10a.What language do you speak in your home?

10b. What language do you speak with your children? With your    grandchildren?

12. Was it easier or harder than you thought to adjust to American culture?

Section II: Introduction to Job Market &Social Life of New Country

1.    How did you get your first job?  Did other Basques help you or

did you do it on your own?

2a.(If female) Did you work outside the home in the Basque Country?

2b. How long did you work in your job?  How did it feel to work outside

     the home?  Did you work with other Basque women? 

3.    Do you still work? If so, is it the job you first started when you came

to the Bay Area?  

     4.  What kind of work did you do in the Basque Country? Were you

hoping to do the same type of work? Was it hard to adapt to a new job?

6.    Did you financially support anyone in the Basque Country?  Did you help bring other family members to the U.S.?

Section III: Family

1.    Where you married before you came to the U.S.? Did you marry a

 Basque or non-Basque?

2a. Do you have children?

2b. Did you maintain a Basque culture at home? Was it difficult trying to

      maintain Basque identity for your children in America?  What helped 

      you maintain a Basque identity for your family?

4.     Did your children marry other Basques? Or non Basques? Are they

 involved in the Basque community?

5.    Have you kept in communication with your relatives in the Basque 

Country? How have you kept communication?

Section IV: Relationships with Other Basques

1.    Was there a Basque community in the area you moved into?

2.    What type of social activities were there?  Did you participate in them?:

       Mus?

       Pilota?

       Dance?

       Klika?

       Choirs?

       Picnics?

  Banquets?

      3.   How did Basque people get together?

4.     What hotels and restaurants did you go to? Where were they?

5.     What church did you go to? Was there a Basque community within

  the church?  Was there a Basque Priest? Who was it?

6.     Did you belong to any Basque clubs or any other social clubs?

 If not, why?

7.    Was it important for you to connect with other Basques?

8.    What Basque organizations do you belong to now?

9.    What do you remember of the NABO convention in 1979?

10.  What do you remember of the Basque Cultural Center starting? What were the events that formed the need for a Center? Were there any problems getting the Center started?

Section V: Concept of the Basque Country from America

1.    Have you returned for a visit? How often? Do your children visit the

Basque Country?

2.    What are the main changes you have noticed when you visit? How

 do you feel about them?  What about changes in your family?

3.    What aspect of the Basque Country or your life in the Basque Country do you miss the  most?

4.    Do you follow what is happening in the Basque country politically or economically? How do you follow what is happening? (TV, newspapers, etc.)

5.    Do you think what happens in the Basque country has an impact on Basques here? How so?

6.    Do you now consider the U.S. as your “home” or is the Basque country still “home” to you?

Section VII: Going back home

1.    Do you plan on going back to the Basque Country for good?

2.    Why or why not?

3.    If you could do it all over again, what would you do differently?

4.    What was the best advice you received about making a life for yourself in the U.S?

5.    What advice would you give to someone planning to immigrate to the U.S?

6.    When you emigrated, did you ever imagine your life would turn out as it has? Is it better or worse than you thought?

7.    What do you see as the future of the Basque community here in the

Bay Area?

INTERVIEW DATA SHEET

Urazandi Interview Subgroup Questions:

Mus

1.    Was Mus  a social event for you? Did you play in the home with other Basques? Picnics? In the clubs?

2.    Do you remember the first club Mus tournament you played in? What year was it and where was it? Where you involved in organizing the Mus tournaments?

3.    Do you play in Mus tournaments now and which ones?

4.    Have you won any Mus tournaments? Where did you go?

5.    Do you think Mus is important to the Basque culture and community?

Pilota

1.    Did you play pilota when you first arrived to the Bay Area?

2.    Where did you play? Was it close to your home or to other Basque hotels or community?

3.    Did you play in any organized tournaments?

4.    Was pilota important for you in in the Basque community? Was it important that the community build a pilota court when the court at

Helen Wills playground was torn down?

5.    Have you been involved in the pilota community and it’s formation as a league game?

6.    Do you play now or do you play another sport such as pala?

7.    Do you come to watch pilota tournaments?

8.    Do you think it’s important for the community to foster sports?

Dance

1.    Did you participate in any dance groups? Where were the practices?

Who was the instructor? Who was in the group?

2.    Did you participate in teaching Basque dance?

3.    Do you enjoy watching Basque dancing?

4.    Do you still dance?

Klika

1.    Did you participate in the klika group at any time? How long did you 

Participate? Where did you practice? Do you still play now?

     Choir

1.    Did you participate in any Basque choir when you came to the Bay Area? Who was the instructor? How long did you participate?

2.    Are you a member now?

Clubs

1.    Was there a Basque Club when you first came into the Bay Area?

2.    Did you join a club when you came to the Bay Area? Which one?

3.    Did you involve yourself in the club? As a director? Did you help out with the functions? What did you do?

4.    What did the Basque Club mean to the community?

5.    Where you a founding member or director of the Basque Cultural

Center?

6.    What challenges were there in starting the Basque Cultural Center?

7.    Why was it important to start the Basque Cultural Center?

Hotels

1.    How did you enter the hotel business?

2.    Was the business already established or did you start it up?

3.    Who were the clientele in the business?

4.    Did you see changes over the time you had the business?

5.    When did you leave the business and why?

6.    Did another Basque take it over?

7.    Was there a Basque community close by or did people come to the

restaurant/hotel from other areas?

8.    Did you have children while you had the business? What was it like

to raise a family and run a business?  Did any of your children go into the business?

Traditional Basque Culture

Basque-American Experience

Basques in the World Today

Send your comments to info@nabasque.org

For Basque culture to endure we'll need to find a viable balance between the fun of being Basque (e.g., festivals) and knowing something more about what being Basque is about.  That is why NABO is following the motto Recreate + Educate = Perpetuate.  The educate part of the equation is being developed in our GUREA Cultural Literacy program.  Gurea is Basque for "it's ours."