Francisco Vega

Interview Description

Oral History Interview with Francisco Vega

Francisco Vega was born in Granada, Nicaragua, and later moved to the capital of Managua. He was involved there with a number of businesses, including factory supplies. Under suspicion from the Sandinista government of having been in the Somoza army, he left Nicaragua in 1985, sponsored by a friend who lived in Brooklyn. After staying with this friend at first, he moved to Queens where he lived for three years before moving again to the Greenpoint neighborhood of Brooklyn. He resided there when the interview took place in 1989. He was able to find a job with a company that cleans restaurant equipment. He then set up a similar company of his own, where he employed many Latino/a workers.

In the interview, Francisco Vega recalls the immigration experience that makes up a major part of his life story. He speaks of his pride at the fact that, having gone through a period of great hardship, including some weeks when he lived on the street, he is now self-employed and doing well financially. He describes his attempts to bring his children from Nicaragua, and to settle his problems with the immigration authorities. He also speaks of his relatives who live in the Nicaraguan communities in San Francisco and Los Angeles, California. Interview in Spanish conducted by Marcelo Herman.

Brooklyn Historical Society initiated the Hispanic Communities Documentation Project in 1988. Over fifty interviews were conducted to document the experiences of Brooklyn residents who arrived from Puerto Rico, Panama, Ecuador, and several other Central and South American nations in the latter half of the twentieth century. This collection includes recordings and transcripts of interviews conducted between 1988 and 1989. The oral histories often contain descriptions of immigration, living arrangements, neighborhood demographics, discrimination, employment, community development, and political leadership. Also included are photographs and printed ephemera.

Citation

Vega, Francisco, Oral history interview conducted by Marcelo Herman, March 25, 1989, Hispanic Communities Documentation Project records and oral histories, 1989.004.27; Brooklyn Historical Society.