Joanna Brooks Oral History

This interview is with Joanna Brooks, one of the Co-founders of the organization Detainee Allies and the digital humanities initiative. She was born in Los Angeles and grew up in Orange County, California and Santa Ana. She currently resides in San Diego, working as the Associate Vice President for Faculty Advancement at San Diego State University. The interview discusses the topic of detention centers, specifically Otay Mesa detention center, immigration law, detainees, activism, community organizing, and the importance of letter writing. Joanna and I met through Professor Man, who is teaching the Race and Oral History In San Diego course for Spring 2019. The interview was conducted at Joanna Brooks’ home, on her dining room table.
My name is Déstina Valladares and I am a first-generation college student who transferred into UCSD in 2017. My major is Ethnic Studies, and I am taking the Race and Oral History course as one of my last courses before graduating.