Pathways in Oral History: Paul Ortiz

Abstract:In this Pathways in Oral History, we hear from Paul Ortiz, the director of the Samuel Proctor Oral History Program (SPOHP) at the University of Florida. Ortiz's work is situated in the realm of social justice, particularly involving workers' experiences and how race is implicated in workers' rights. Ortiz is shaped very much by his family heritage and his own experience organizing farmworkers in the Pacific Northwest. As part of that work he interviewed men and women on radio programs, served in the US Army in Central America, and conducted interviews with African Americans in North Carolina for a major research study. Much of his work has centered on African Americans, which has afforded him a keener appreciation of how our economic system has exploited workers from Black and Brown groups.