Oral history interview with Sarah Thiero
Object Details
- General
- Associated documentation for this interview is available in the Anacostia Community Museum Archives.
- Title created by ACMA staff using text written on sound cassette, contents of audio recording, textual transcript, and/or associated archival documentation.
- Names
- Garvey, Marcus, 1887-1940
- Strickland , Bob
- Thiero, Sarah Christian
- Collection Creator
- Smithsonian Institution. Anacostia Community Museum
- Place
- Jamaica
- West Indies
- Washington (D.C.)
- United States
- Topic
- Women
- Caribbeans
- African Americans
- Education
- Emigration and immigration
- Manners and customs
- Religion
- Broadcasting
- Stereotypes (Social psychology)
- Racism
- Segregation
- Rastafarians
- Reggae music
- Interviews
- Culture
- Jamaicans
- West Indians
- See more items in
- Black Mosaic: Community, Race, and Ethnicity among Black Immigrants in Washington, D. C. Exhibition Records
- Black Mosaic: Community, Race, and Ethnicity among Black Immigrants in Washington, D. C. Exhibition Records / Series 3: Oral History Interviews
- Sponsor
- Funding for partial processing of the collection was supported by a grant from the Smithsonian Institution's Collections Care and Preservation Fund (CCPF).
- Extent
- 3 Digital files
- 2 Sound cassettes
- Date
- 1992 December 14
- Archival Repository
- Anacostia Community Museum Archives
- Type
- Archival materials
- Digital files
- Sound cassettes
- Citation
- Black Mosaic: Community, Race, and Ethnicity among Black Immigrants in Washington, D. C. exhibition records, Anacostia Community Museum, Smithsonian Institution.
- Collection Rights
- Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
- Note
- The total playing time of interview recording is approximately 1 hour and 25 minutes. ACMA_AV002391_A contains clips of ACMA_AV002475_A and ACMA_AV002475_B; the clips of Sarah Thiero's interview stop at about 09:40 and are followed by clips of Ralma Blake's interview.
- Scope and Contents
- Sarah Christian Thiero spoke of her memories growing up in Kingston, Jamaica until the age of 12. She explained her parents moved to the United States, on diplomat visas, before her; described in-detail her first moments and experiences in the United States; and explained her adjustment to the United States, particularly the differences in schooling between Jamaica and the United States. Thiero also spoke of her siblings and daily life in Washington, DC; her parents' work in Jamaica and the United States, including her mother working for the Kennedys; maintaining Jamaican culture and community in the United States; the neighborhoods where she lived in Washington, DC; her joy of singing; her children; the importance of religion throughout her life; her family helping other people; her education and work in television and radio broadcasting, including how her co-workers perceived and interacted with her; and her friendship with Bob Strickland. Thiero explained how her father helped to racially integrate retail stores and restaurants in the DC area; when and how her family was able to access Jamaican food; awards and accolades her parents received; the values her parents taught her and her siblings; her love of cooking; the importance of family and community; how often her family, including her children, visits Jamaica; how she and her family remain connected to and learn about their cultural heritage; importance of Marcus Garvey; how Rastafarians and reggae music have influenced Black American and white American communities; how Americans perceive and stereotype Jamaicans and Black community, particularly how Black men are treated in the United States; how to and why connect to own culture and other cultures; and her work in the AIDs community. Thiero stated her children call themselves "Westies" because of their connection to their cultural heritage, and that she is proud to be Jamaican and to live in the United States. Interview is in English. Digital audio files include loud white noise and static, and some background noise. Interviewee's voice is intelligible for the most part.
- Collection Restrictions
- Use of the materials requires an appointment. Please contact the archivist to make an appointment: ACMarchives@si.edu.
- Record ID
- ebl-1712088000981-1712088003376-0
- Metadata Usage
- CC0