Who am I?

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by Gabbsters1 view·Updated Jul 3, 2021
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  1. Hi, my name is Gabriella or also known as Gabby
  2. and this is my presentation.
  3. Who am I?
  4. Hi I'm Gabriela Quintero.
  5. I'm 22 years old and I was born and raised
  6. in Miami florida in the United States of America.
  7. I was raised by Cuban immigrants.
  8. My ethnicity is a big part of my identity especially
  9. since I am a second generation american.
  10. Thanks to my grandparents, I am excited to share my
  11. life and story with you all.
  12. This is my grandmother, Olga Hernandez and that is a
  13. photo of her back in CUba in her hometown.
  14. It all begins with this amazing woman here.
  15. My grandmother was born in via Clara Cuba on February
  16. 16, This is also known as the countryside of Cuba.
  17. Many who reside there are illiterate.
  18. My grandmother wanted more for herself and moved to the
  19. city of Havana cuba to study nursing.
  20. She lived in terrible conditions and found herself struggling to
  21. make ends meet this here is a photo of my
  22. grandparents, Laureano Torres and Drogba Menendez in Cuba in the
  23. park where they met While living in the city.
  24. She met my grandfather at the park near her house
  25. in the summer of 1972.
  26. They instantly hit it off and after a couple of
  27. months they got married a couple of years went by
  28. and my grandma gave birth to my uncle and two
  29. years after that to my mother.
  30. My grandmother had just graduated nursing school.
  31. My grandfather broke the news that they were going to
  32. the United States.
  33. My grandmother couldn't believe it and was so happy to
  34. escape their struggles and the dictatorship.
  35. After a long process, they were able to immigrate and
  36. arrived in Las Vegas Nevada in the spring of 1978.
  37. My grandparents knew this was going to be difficult, but
  38. they were determined and hard working.
  39. My grandmother got a job at caesars Palace as a
  40. maid and my grandfather worked in construction.
  41. They worked long shifts in order to provide for the
  42. Children and pay the bills.
  43. They encounter many hardships, like prejudice and language barriers Back
  44. in 1976.
  45. In Nevada, they were barely in the Spanish speakers and
  46. people were so ignorant that they did not know where
  47. or what Cuba was they also that they were illegal
  48. immigrants, illegal mexicans.
  49. They were treated poorly due to their ethnicity and because
  50. they couldn't speak english, my mother and uncle also experience
  51. experienced similar treatment in school.
  52. It was my mother's first to school as a first
  53. grader throughout the day, she felt the need to use
  54. the bathroom and she said it was an emergency, she
  55. wiggled around, pointed towards the bathroom and even pleaded in
  56. spanish, but the teacher would not allow her to go
  57. until she asked in english.
  58. Unfortunately no one had taught her how to ask that
  59. question and the Children were not allowed to help her.
  60. She ended up having an accident in front of everyone
  61. and made her teacher furious.
  62. She said it was such a traumatizing moment and from
  63. there on she would repeat the phrase over and over
  64. in her head to avoid another accident while living in
  65. Nevada. They rented a basement and lived there for many
  66. years. They had many pests and lived in terrible conditions
  67. but it was what they could afford.
  68. My grandparents worked too many shifts and sometimes even two
  69. jobs. They saved every penny until they finally had enough
  70. money to move.
  71. After all the money, they say they were contacted by
  72. a family member who lived in Miami.
  73. That person was my grandfather's cousin lisa.
  74. She invited them to come to Miami and live with
  75. her until they were able to get on their feet.
  76. She explained to them that Miami is filled with Latinos
  77. and it's practically a second cuba.
  78. My grandparents were overfilled with joy packed their things and
  79. we're off to Miami.
  80. They arrived in Miami October of 1996.
  81. Many years passed and my family finally achieved their dreams.
  82. My grandparents bought their own home, had good paying jobs.
  83. My uncle and mother graduated and were not working as
  84. teachers on December 12, I was born and I was
  85. the first grandchild and baby of the family.
  86. And that's a picture of me with my grandparents.
  87. I was raised by my grandparents and my mother.
  88. They taught me how to speak spanish and I eventually
  89. learned english in school.
  90. They all taught me about my heritage and culture.
  91. We always had get together, get together with friends and
  92. family. I remember all the traditions such as neutral when
  93. a which had delicious foods and amazing music.
  94. I was always so proud to be Cuban and be
  95. a part of this family.
  96. Fast forward to present day.
  97. Here we all are.
  98. It all began with my grandparents and it grew into
  99. one big happy family.
  100. Unfortunately, my grandfather passed away February 29 of 2020 and
  101. was unable to join us on our holiday trip at
  102. the end of the year, my grandparents, mother and uncle
  103. went through so much and they were able to overcome
  104. the hardships and achieve their wildest dreams.
  105. I am forever grateful for all of them and what
  106. they have done for this family.
  107. Thank you very much.