Series:

Chemical Entanglements: Oral Histories of Environmental Illness

Topic:

Social Movements

Environmental Illness

Biographical Note:

Interviewed for the UCLA Center for the Study of Women’s Chemical Entanglements: Oral Histories of Environmental Illness series. Member of the Women’s Collective in San Francisco, an organization that advocates for the rights of domestic workers such as caretakers and house cleaners.

Interviewer:

LeGresley, Megan

Interviewee:

Lazarte, Ines

Persons Present:

Lazarte and LeGresley

Place Conducted:

The interview was conducted by telephone.

Supporting Documents:

Records relating to the interview are located in the office of the UCLA Library’s Center for Oral History Research.

Interviewer Background and Preparation:

This interview was conducted by Megan LeGresley, an undergraduate student researcher, for the Center for the Study of Women, who graduated UCLA with majors in Economics and Political Science. She was a member of the 2018-2019 Chemical Entanglements Undergraduate Student Group.

Processing of Interview:

The interviewer prepared for the interview by reading a pre-interview questionnaire completed by the narrator.

Length:

.75 hrs

Language:

Spanish

Copyright:

Regents of the University of California, UCLA Library.

Audio:

Series Statement:

Chemical Entanglements: Oral Histories of Environmental Illness is a collection of interviews with over seventy individuals living in the U.S. and Canada whose family history, occupation, art practice, or activism have brought them into direct contact with illness experience and disability related to chronic, low-dose exposure to toxicant chemicals. The procurement of this collection (from March 2019 through September 2020) was sponsored by the UCLA Center for the Study of Women under the directorship of Rachel C. Lee, with interviews conducted by six undergraduates, five graduate students, two career staff, and two faculty members at CSW.

Note:

Under Legal Agreement, please delete file size 684929 as it is not countersigned.

Welcome to the call--Ines turns down the volume on her TV--Identifies as a Hispanic woman from La Paz, Bolivia--Grows up with her mother and adopted siblings--Works as a tailor before and after immigrating to the United States--Studies to be a nursing assistant and works caring for elderly people--Has to use toxic products during the pandemic and when going to houses as a caregiver--Products affect her throat and stomach--Learns biomagnetism treatment and cures her knees without surgery--Helps her coworkers using biomagnetism--Has worked with the Women’s Collective since its founding in 2000; found organization after suffering from wage theft--Helps pass the California Domestic Workers Bill of Rights that guarantees overtime pay--Attends Zoom meetings and hopes to pass the Health and Safety for All Workers Act to secure CAL/OSHA--Prefers to use green products like Bon Ami, vinegar, and baking soda--Hopes governments recognize that almost everyone in the world is an immigrant, and current immigrants need help--Conclusion