Educational Media Reviews Online

Weaving with Spanish Threads: An Immigrant’s Tale features the reminiscences of 98 years old Francisco Pérez, one of the original Spanish immigrants to Hawaii in the early years of the 20th century. Host and interviewer Jaime Cader prompts the recollection of these memories with specific questions. Some of the descendants of the original colonists further fill in the history of the recruitment of Spanish workers by American fruit companies. They discuss the sea routes taken by these immigrants, the contracts used by the fruit companies and American immigration authorities to secure a willing work force, and the reasons why many of the immigrants later moved to California. The bulk of the video fills in these historical events through the reminiscences of Pérez, who talks about cutting sugar cane, diving for coins in the harbor, the impact of the Spanish flu, what people ate, and how people helped each other.

The filmmakers supplement the talking head recollections with location images and music; however, unlike many oral histories, this documentary relies heavily on the memories of one individual, and, as such, would appeal to a limited audience. Nonetheless, descendants of Spanish immigrants to Hawaii may welcome this video as they would the memories of their grandfather.