Monika Madinabeitia is an associate professor at the Faculty of Humanities and Education Sciences at Mondragon University, The Basque Country. Her main research areas are culture, identity, and e/migration, with an emphasis on immigration into the Basque Country and the Basque American diaspora in the US West. She is currently the co-coordinator of the recently launched degree in Global Digital Humanities, in Bilbao, The Basque Country.
Fronteras: Congratulations on the publication of Petra, My Basque Grandmother, which was published by the University of Nevada Press in 2019. The Basque American experience in the American West is better known in the Basque Country and in Spain than in many parts of the United States. Before we talk about your book, can you tell us a little about how Basques came to live in the American West and how they have become a part of its social and historical fabric?
Dr. Madinabeitia: The news of the Gold Rush of 1849 encouraged Basques to travel the southern route to Argentina, Chile, Mexico, and eventually into California. However, they soon became disillusioned and turned to sheep herding. The middle period began in the 1870s and lasted into the early twentieth century. Basque sheepmen spread throughout the American West, even though few Basque immigrants herded sheep back home. In fact, and I guess to the surprise of many nowadays, they knew little about sheepherding. Since it was a job that no one wanted and speaking English was not a requirement, Basques were assured jobs.
Their agrarian background and values of hard work, perseverance, and endurance often allowed them to be successful in the sheep business. This led to more opportunities for second-generation Basques, who had more opportunities thanks to their parents’ hard work. When the good habits and values instilled in them by their parents were paired with a good education, they had a solid base for a successful life. That is why, although still strongly associated with herding, current Basques in the American West have little to do with sheep. Point in fact, many have climbed up the ladder and you may more easily come across Basque American lawyers, bankers, university professors, or entrepreneurs than Basque sheepherders.
by Monika Madinabeitia
Fronteras: Tell us a little bit about your new book. What is it about and what did you want to accomplish by writing it?
Dr. Madinabeitia: The main character in my book is Petra Amoroto Egaña, born in the Basque Country in the late 19th century. She was the grandmother of the Basque American writer Frank Bergon, whom I wrote my Ph.D. thesis about. I learned about her experience and became interested in her because she was Basque and a woman. Petra made me think of my Basque grandmother, my amama, and my Spanish abuela in different ways: my amama because of her Basque identity and my abuela because she experienced the harshness of migration. Through Petra I wanted to highlight the invisibility of Basque immigrant women throughout history and even vindicate the little space they have been given within Basque Studies and Basque Diaspora Studies. Similarly, the book underlines the importance of grandmothers when transmitting values, language, and generally elements that convey a part of one’s ethnic identity.
“To be honest, it is much easier to be Basque in the Basque Country, but ironically, Basques in the diasporas are sometimes more Basque than those in the homeland. That should indeed be some food for thought for those of us in the Basque Country.“
Fronteras: Your book is an attempt to document Basque American experiences and identity. What is the status of Basque American cultural memory in the American West in the twenty-first century? Is it in danger?
Dr. Madinabeitia: Rather than in danger, I would say that Basque American identity is in constant transformation, like in its homeland. Identity/ies in the Basque Diasporas (in plural) and the homeland have evolved differently and sometimes the perceptions, feelings, and attachments may even clash. In other words, although the homeland may regard itself as possessing the “genuine” Basque identity, its core values, and ingredients, the truth is that the diasporas may not necessarily follow the same trends as those established in the Basque Country, for countless reasons. This makes perfect sense since we are talking about different life experiences and conditions. It is not the same to be Basque in the homeland or outside its geographical confines. To be honest, it is much easier to be Basque in the Basque Country, but ironically, Basques in the diasporas are sometimes more Basque than those in the homeland. That should indeed be some food for thought for those of us in the Basque Country.
Fronteras: In your opinion, what are some differences between the Basque American immigrant experience in comparison to other ethnic groups that came to the United States in the nineteenth or twentieth centuries?
Dr. Madinabeitia: My main field of research is the Basque community, but I have been able to see patterns that are not exclusively Basque. As I claim in my book, the story of Petra is about the many Petras in the world. Petra was not the only Basque nor the only woman, for example, to have been married by proxy without even knowing her husband. The idea of hard work and instilling their children with values or providing them with the opportunities they never had are also common in other ethnic groups. Based on my research and the immigration biographies of the people who come to the Basque Country, my perception is that there have not been many changes in the reasons why people migrate. In reality, we have not learnt much from our past experiences; for example, the host countries still have many pending issues in learning how to welcome and host the people that go through such excruciating tribulations. If you ask me, we deserve an F in this matter.
Fronteras: You are a researcher in American Studies who has focused on the Basque experience in the United States. Can you tell us about some of your other projects, and how they relate to your work on Petra, My Basque Grandmother?
Dr. Madinabeitia: I completed my Ph. D. on the Basque American writer Frank Bergon a while ago and have written and spoken about him quite often ever since. In 2019 the Center for Basques Studies at the University of Nevada Reno organized an international conference that was fully dedicated to Bergon and his work. Bergon himself was there, of course. The conference resulted in a new book, Visions of a Basque American Westerner: International Perspectives on the Writings of Frank Bergon. My contribution to the book discusses the Basque world in Frank Bergon’s fiction. I talk about how Basques were initially called “Basco” in a derogatory way and how this very same term has become not only trendy but has even been adopted and used by the Basque community itself. The book Petra subtly recollects this initial ethnic shame and eventual pride that Basques in America have experienced. Bergon’s parents are a representation of the urge to assimilate that many second-generation Basques felt. They wanted to be only American, period. Becoming Basque American came later. Although my analyses and writings are almost always based on literature, I also explore music, dance, art, and other genres and disciplines to discuss identity and migration. For example, music performance, singing, and dance have been central in helping younger generations to discover and be engaged in their Basque roots. Food and identity construction is a new area I have also examined and wish to work on more in-depth.
“To be honest, very few people in the Basque Country know about the Basques in the American West. This part of our history is usually not taught at schools, so unless you have relatives in America and you are in touch with them, people know little about Basque Americans.“
Fronteras: Historically speaking, is there an awareness in the Basque cultural imaginary about Basques in the American West? We would assume that the presence of Basques in the American West has exerted a fascination among Basques and Spaniards, who grew up with Westerns in the twentieth century.
Dr. Madinabeitia: To be honest, very few people in the Basque Country know about the Basques in the American West. This part of our history is usually not taught at schools, so unless you have relatives in America and you are in touch with them, people know little about Basque Americans. We are indeed very familiar with Westerns, especially B Westerns, but since Basques and their experience never made it to Hollywood, Westerns have not been a source to educate the Basque society. There is a Western, Thunder in the Sun (1959), directed by Russell Rouse and starring Susan Hayward and Jeff Chandler, that does have Basques in it. I would not recommend this Western to learn about Basques. This Western misrepresents Basques and even includes elements that have nothing to do with Basque identity or culture. I use parts of this film in class when we work on stereotypes; it is certainly a practical resource that helps the students be aware of how certain communities may be misrepresented. When one sees how one’s identity can be distorted, it makes it easier to understand how we may mask other people and collectivities. The Basque Program at Boise State University, Boise (Idaho), the Center for Basque Studies at UNR (Nevada), or even the Etxepare Institute (The Basque Country) are doing a great job to tell the world not only about the Basques in the American West but also about Basques all over the world. We owe them much more than we owe films or Hollywood.
Before we bring this conversation to a close, what are you currently working on?
Dr. Madinabeitia: I have several ideas, but I am now collecting information and doing research on Jimmy Jausoro, a second-generation Basque born in Nampa, Idaho. Jausoro became “the” accordionist that helped many Basque generations in the Boise area feel and become Basque. I learned that Jausoro´s dad was born in my hometown, but, except his relatives, no one over here knows who Jimmy Jausoro is and how much we owe him… On the contrary, if you go to Boise, Idaho, everyone knows about him, at least in the Basque Block or in the Basque community there. This project will probably combine illustrations and written text, as in Petra. I would like it to be read by a wider audience and plan to avoid academic jargon. It will be in English, but I am exploring the option of making it bilingual so that Basque readers can read it as well.
Want to see more Fronteras content? Visit our main page here. You can also click on the categories below to see their corresponding posts.
