A new oral history collection preserves voices rarely heard—those of Latinos living in Virginia.

Scholars from the Southeast will get a preview of Latino Virginia at the March 28 Migration Studies Symposium in Richmond. The project will see its public launch in September during an Hispanic Heritage Month event at the Sacred Heart Center. 

The 33 oral histories–with audio files and transcripts–now posted in Latino Virginia Oral History Collection in Scholars Compass is only the beginning. The project has collected 135 interviews, 75 percent of which will eventually be published. The collection will grow as new interviews are finalized. And, the research is ongoing. People interested in being interviewed or referring a subject are invited to email latinova@vcu.edu. 

The research project includes individuals from every single country of Latin America.  Subjects’ cultural roots span South and Central America, the Caribbean and Mexico. Individual reasons for migrating to the United States differ widely–from economic and political reasons, to reasons guided more by family connections or the pursuit of education. 

According to principal researcher sociologist Gabriela León-Pérez: “A strength of our project is that it captures a wide variety of migration stories. There is a belief that Latin American immigrants come in search of better work opportunities. That experience is certainly represented in our oral histories, but we also have many other individuals who came for other varied reasons, including family reunification, health reasons, violence or insecurity in their origin communities, and escaping political persecution or domestic violence.” 

According to the 2020 U.S. Census, Latinos  make up 10.5% of the population in Virginia and over half of Virginia’s Latinos are immigrants. Despite this fact, “Latinos have largely been left out of the historical record in Virginia,” says León-Pérez. “Our goal was to put together a large collection of Latino life in the state that would not only be used for scholarly purposes,  but also to help the broader public better understand an often overlooked community. This archive will become a resource that students and teachers can turn to learn about the Latino community and the history of Virginia.” 

The VCU-based project is led by two faculty members who have mentored some 40 students over the past two years, historian Daniel Morales, Ph.D.,  and sociologist  Gabriela León-Pérez, Ph.D. For the project, they received funding from the VCU Quest Fund and the Division of Community Engagement’s Community Engaged Data Dissemination projects fund as well as VCU’s Transformative Learning Fund, which allowed them to develop a Vertically Integrated Project for students to collaborate on this project. Through classes in sociology and history, students supported the project and gained knowledge in hands-on research. Approximately 40 students have participated through these courses. In addition, other students have joined the project through The Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program and through the Mellon Pathways Program. This academic year, two students are project leads with six additional students working as research assistants.   

Students have conducted the interviews that VCU Libraries’ Digital Initiatives Librarian Irina Rogova has organized and processed. “There are interviews with young adults still in university, reflecting on how their experience as children of immigrants has shaped their experiences of belonging in the Commonwealth. There are interviews with folks who have spent decades working in public service at the city and state level, reflecting on how Latino voices have impacted the dynamics of government decision making. There are stories from immigrants who have raised their families in Virginia, reflecting on the lives left behind through migration. They are all dynamic stories that contribute to the tapestry of life in the Commonwealth.”

Why are oral histories such powerful research tools? “Oral histories are a vital resource for addressing archival silences and gaps in the historical record,” says Rogova. “Traditional archival practice, for centuries, relied on collecting materials from those considered significant–usually wealthy and powerful individuals, families, businesses, and government bodies. Stories from those at the margins are harder to find in archives because of these practices, and modern archivists are trying to address this in the present through practices like oral histories. The Latino Virginia project is a crucial addition to expanding whose voices are included in the historical record of Virginia.”

These interviews brim with deeply personal experiences, feelings and complexities of identity, purpose and experiences. According to Rogova: “Due to the human tendency to simplify and classify characteristics, a lot of nuance within racial and ethnic groups often gets erased.”

“These oral histories demonstrate a lot of variety in the experiences of Latinos who live in Virginia,” she says. “Every story is different. Individuals are coming from different countries, different regions and different experiences. Their experiences in the United States vary greatly based around a variety of identities–race, class, gender, sexual orientation, immigration status and more. And even the scope of the interviews available does not cover the totality of the Latino experience in Virginia. Interviews available are those from individuals who feel comfortable being interviewed, and having their interviews posted online. In addition, the majority of our participants live in the Greater Richmond Area and Northern Virginia.”

In preparing the histories for publication, Rogova and the research team were sensitive to the risks to individuals’ privacy and, possibly safety, in publishing their stories.  

“There are definitely some concerns,” said Rogova. “We as stewards of these oral histories have to make sure that the narrators are not endangered by their oral histories. I have worked with the faculty on this project to flag parts of interviews that may need to be redacted, and we have worked together to also include content notes on oral histories as well.”

Researcher Leon-Perez underscored that “protecting our participants has always been our priority, even before the current immigration enforcement policies. We are closely reviewing every single interview that will be shared publicly to ensure that no sensitive or vulnerable information is shared. Interviewees also are able to ask us to redact parts of their interview, anonymize it, or remove it from the archive altogether.”

VCU Libraries serves as the digital steward for this project. By hosting these oral histories in Scholars Compass, VCU’s open-access institutional repository, the libraries provides a platform where more than 55,000 items already reach a global audience. “Our role goes beyond storage,” says Head of Digital Libraries and Publishing Karen Bjork. “We provide detailed descriptions to enhance discoverability and support long-term preservation, ensuring these voices remain accessible for generations. We are proud to transform local memories into a permanent, searchable 'living record' accessible to students, educators and the Latino community across Virginia and beyond.”

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Latino Virginia will be unveiled March 28 in a panel presentation at the Migration Studies Symposium in Richmond. Scholars from the Southeastern United States will gather to discuss research and provide feedback on publications and best practices in teaching. 

In addition, a public event is in the works with a community partner, the Sacred Heart Center, for September 2026.  

The project continues to conduct interviews.  Those interested in participating or referring someone, please email latinova@vcu.edu.