Ponciano

=Claudio Ponciano=

Podcast
media type="custom" key="12081369"

BIOGRAPHICAL/GEOGRAPHICAL NOTE
Brazil, a country in South America, is home to 203,429,773 Brazilians (as of 2011). Its’ main language is Portuguese, although there are other less common languages spoken, such as Spanish, German, and Japanese. In 1822, Brazil separated from Portugal. Now, Brazil’s government is a Federal Republic.

Claudio Ponciano, born in Brazil, is an American immigrant. Although he had family in Brazil, he always wondered about America, its lifestyle and its work ethic. During that time, Claudio said that Brazil was poor, not how everybody always thinks of Brazil. But at the same time, he says it’s not overly poor. Still, Claudio always wished for a better life, a life where he could actually achieve something he couldn’t do in Brazil. When he arrived in America, he married and had one kid. Claudio currently lives in Ohio, retired from his past job.

=Creative Writing=

By: Carter Jordan
//__Never Stopping__//  Can you imagine? the sound,  the smell,  the sight.  people working from morning, to noon, to night.  it’s something I must see.  pause the television, just right there.  just let me see.  let me fly away, away from this poor  (paradise).

 Let me escape,  Escape to America.

 Live the (dream), if it may be called. So be called. Live the  dream you cant grasp,  in this gray area.

 is it good? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> is it bad? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> for certain though, it’s worse back home. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> i finally, <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> have a chance. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> i finally… I finally <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> can Live. I finally, <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> can Live.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> até logo Brazil.

//__Clouds Below__// <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> shaking, the tremors of an earthquake I am, quivering <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> ever so slightly in my seat, <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> wedged, <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> between two others. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> am I anxious? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> am I nervous? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> am I scared by what's yet to come? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> but with nothing, with leaving everything, <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> what could I expect? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> that I'd be happy? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> Content to leave everything? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> Goodbye Mamma, <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> Papa, <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> Brother. I may never see you. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> Maybe never again. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> I am curious, <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> as I soar through the sky to a new life, <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> to a new world.

INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT
Your Name: Carter Jordan

Your Interviewee's Name: Claudio Ponciano

Carter: The first question is, did you feel any pressure from family back home?

Ponciano: No.

Carter: Did you feel any pressure when you arrived in America?

Ponciano: Very, very, very little, very little struggle. The language barrier, that’s all it was.

Carter: Did you leave any family back in Brazil?

Ponciano: Yeah.

Carter: What family did you leave in Brazil? I know that you had a brother that you left.

Ponciano: Mamma, Daddy, brother, and a sister.

Carter: Do you still believe you made the right decision?

Ponciano: Yes, I did.

Carter: Why did you come to America?

Ponciano: I just wanted, I just wanted to better myself you know. I had a better chance in here.

Carter: What chance do you have here above Brazil?

Ponciano: Learning the language, and work, and getting to know these people.

Carter: About the language though, what barrier did it have? How was it hard for you?

Ponciano: It wasn’t hard; it wasn’t that hard, really.

Carter: How was the transition between cultures?

Ponciano: It wasn’t bad at all; it was easy.

Carter: What was the most difficult thing about leaving to you?

Ponciano: Family, and some family and friends.

Carter: What was your reaction to the life lived in America?

Ponciano: Oh I did like it, my reaction life was that it was different, but it was good. My reaction was very good.

Carter: Was life harder in America than it was in Brazil?

Ponciano: Uh, it was a little harder, but not that much.

Carter: From what you heard prior, was America portrayed accurately?

Ponciono: Yeah, it was.

Carter: What’s your favorite American food?

Ponciano: Hotdogs!

Carter: What American customs have you adopted?

Ponciano: Most everything.

Carter: What could have been done for you to stay in Brazil?

Ponciano: Well, well you know, I- I guess I could've finished school.

Carter: If you had a choice, would you move back to Brazil?

Ponciano: No.

Carter: Did anyone move to America with you?

Ponciano: Yeah, my sister.

Carter: What drew you to America?

Ponciano: I knew a, I knew a lot about America, and uh, I just come down here. I guess uh, it's really hard to explain, I just wanted to come.

Carter: When you came here, what port did you enter?

Ponciano: Bermuda.

Carter: What's one thing better in America than Brazil?

Ponciano: One thing that's better in here is the way of life, it's much better.

Carter: How’s it better?

Ponciano: If you work hard you know you accomplish something. You get it better than you do in Brazil.

Carter: Do you miss anything in Brazil?

Ponciano: Eh, no not really.

Carter: How was your journey to America?

Ponciano: I don't know, I just flew up here.

Carter: What was Brazil like when you left?

Ponciano: Oh, big country, not well populated, poor country. Real poor.

Carter: What type of education did you receive in Brazil?

Ponciano: I had a high school.

Carter: What about the U.S.?

Ponciano: I didn't go to school in here.

Carter: Do you feel your experience is similar to other people’s experiences?

Ponciano: Well, yeah it was. There are many, many people come down here, no different, really.

Carter: Did anyone discriminate against you when you came to America?

Ponciano: No, not really. I didn't have this problem.

Carter: That's good. Did you have knowledge of the U.S. culture before you came?

Ponciano: Yes I did, yeah.

Carter: What were the living conditions in the U.S. and Brazil?

Ponciano: The living condition is 100% better here.

Carter: Have you ever felt like an outsider in the U.S?

Ponciano: Oh not really. I made good friends.

Carter: What emotions and feelings did you have on the journey?

Ponciano: Kind of scary, you know. (chortles)

Carter: Yeah.

Pompano: You don't know how everything will turn out. They turn out good for me.

Carter: Well that's good, because whenever I think of moving to another place it's always just, it's surprising.

Ponciano: And scary isn't it?

Carter: Yeah. What things did you bring with you?

Ponciano: Nothing. Myself and I.

Carter: What did you expect to find here?

Ponciano: Oh, I guess I expected to find a whole bunch of people working hard, because Americans works hard.

Carter: Yeah, but what was your favorite thing about America and about Brazil?

Ponciano: My favorite thing about Brazil?

Carter: Yeah.

Ponciano: It was home, and my favorite thing about here is the people.

Carter: Is Brazil anything how people think of it in America?

Ponciano: Not really because usually they show on T.V., they don't show much of the good things. They don't show the, they only show the poor parts, and the jungle.

Carter: It always seems like a beautiful country.

Ponciano: It is, it is. It’s beautiful, man.

Carter: Well, I think that's all.

Ponciano: Okay.

Carter: Thanks again for your time.

Ponciano: You’re welcome.

ANALYSIS
Claudio’s immigration experience seemed to differ from that of which we have studied in Social Studies. His experience seemed to show that now immigration is easier than in the past. Claudio said how it was easy, and how he wasn’t oppressed even, but in Social Studies we studied experiences that were negative, such as racial prejudices and religious oppression. One example is the Irish being portrayed as violent, drunken people. Claudio even said how he believes that his experience was common, showing that the immigration experience has changed for the better. His experience shows that some of these people, such as those who opposed the Irish, have finally stopped being oppressive and closed off to new cultures; instead, they seem to embrace others more now. When I asked Claudio if he faced any discrimination, he said, ”No. Not really. ”