Interview, Diana Hernandez

Diana Hernandez was born in 1954 and raised in the Bronx, NY, by her Puerto Rican parents. She began her college education to become an elementary school teacher at Fordham University and completed her degree at Hobart and William Smith Colleges. She moved to Rochester, NY, with her husband in 1973, following her graduation from college. She worked in various positions in the Rochester school system before retiring in 2010.

In this interview, Diana Hernandez discusses what her parents were like, going to school without having previously learned English, and the efforts she made in order to attend college. She explains the importance of maintaining close relationships within her family and community, how she views herself as a Latina woman and a Puerto Rican, and her experiences of discrimination and stereotyping. She also discusses her faith, why she moved to Rochester, and her view on the situation in Puerto Rico in 2018.