The Library of Congress >  Researchers >  Search Finding Aids  >  Alejandro Paz Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico collection
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Series 1: Interview recordings, April 24-June 2, 2018 (continued)
Item ID: AFC 2020/005: 010 José E. Santiago Vásquez and José E. Santiago interview, part 1, June 2, 2018
1 mp3 interview (0:06:38)
This interview takes place while both Kike elder and the younger Kike give me a tour of their property. Most of the interview is filled with the noise of shrieking birds. They start off explaining the purpose of keeping certain birds in cages as opposed to roaming free. They give an overview of why they raise the types of birds they keep. They go over breeding, the culinary uses of guinea fowls, and "padrotes," or roosters kept alive through old age for breeding. Additional notes: José E. Santiago lives by the hills in Martorell, Yabucoa with his son, also named José (Santiago Vásquez). They go by the same nickname as well, Kike, although the elder calls the younger "Kikito." Son and father live in the same property, which consists of two small houses and whatever they can salvage from the steep surrounding land. They raise birds amongst other occupations. They make money off of breeding cockfighting birds, and occasionally gambling on fights.
Spanish transcript of José E. Santiago Vásquez and José E. Santiago interview, part 1
Item ID: AFC 2020/005: 011 José E. Santiago Vásquez and José E. Santiago interview, part 2, June 2, 2018
1 mp3 interview (0:31:37)
After a brief interruption, father and son showcase their two pigs, kept for christmas dinner. They explain young roosters are kept in cages due to their uncontrollable aggressiveness. At one point the elder kike takes a young rooster out of a cage, opens another cage containing a separate rooster, and, holding one rooster in his arms, thrusts it towards the caged rooster. Both roosters' plumage flares and they swipe at each other with their spurs and beaks. This demonstration is meant to show the turn to aggression when two young roosters come near each other. Later on, the two of them walk through where they keep their adult fighting roosters. They explain and give demonstrations of the training techniques and tools they use on roosters. They also show and explain how roosters were trained before the advent of some of these tools. The two also discuss how the metrics of cockfights, the length and frequency of fights, affects how their roosters are trained and kept. The two discuss the importance of an effective fighting rooster in breeding for superior cockfighting birds, as well as a chicken’s role in the transference of genes. Elder kike shows how they label their chickens with a tag to keep track of them. Father and son say interest and expertise in cockfighting came to them from their childhood experiences. They describe cockfighting as part of Puerto Rico's idiosyncrasies. They also discuss how both the rich and poor gamble in cockfighting at their corresponding price ranges. The interviewer recounts going to a cockfighting arena in Yabucoa. The discussion turns to the state of Puerto Rico's cockfighting venues. They discuss taxation and the cockfighting federation. Younger kike describes the destruction Hurricane Maria brought to their property. Younger kike shows and talks about their horse. He also discusses the importance of having faith when recovering from disasters like the hurricane. Additional notes: José E. Santiago lives by the hills in Martorell, Yabucoa with his son, also named José (Santiago Vásquez). They go by the same nickname as well, Kike, although the elder calls the younger "Kikito." Son and father live in the same property, which consists of two small houses and whatever they can salvage from the steep surrounding land. They raise birds amongst other occupations. They make money off of breeding cockfighting birds, and occasionally gambling on fights.
Spanish transcript of José E. Santiago Vásquez and José E. Santiago interview, part 2
Series 2: Still images, April 30-June 2, 2018
121 jpg files
Item-level inventory attached in Appendix. Photographs include images of interviewees, community members' homes and work/craft making spaces, hurricane damage, as well as rooster farms and animals. From donor: "I used my cellphone (Camera on LG Android Phone (VS835). The photos were mostly of poor quality in both their resolution and how well they were taken. Nevertheless, I think they are quite usable, especially those of cockfighting 'faenas' and of the ruins of the Batey de los Hermanos Ayala."
Appendix: Inventories
Still image inventory
Inventory of still images taken by Paz with file-level information, including locations, dates, and descriptions.

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