Learn more about Hispanic heritage and history by visiting our research guide to the Bracero Program. Facing labor shortages on the home front during World War II, the United States initiated a series of agreements with Mexico to recruit guest workers for American farms and railroads. The Emergency Farm Labor Program, more familiarly known as the Bracero Program, enabled approximately 2 million Mexicans to enter the United States. While the work was often grueling, the program offered participants economic opportunity. The contributions made by these laborers have had significant impact on the political, economic, and social climate of both the United States and Mexico.

“Bittersweet Harvest: The Bracero Program, 1942-1964” is a set of six bilingual posters with images and interviews by documentary photographer Leonard Nadel. The goal of the exhibition is to celebrate the impact and achievements of migrant farmworkers by telling the stories behind the Braceros. “Bittersweet Harvest: The Bracero Program, 1942-1964” was organized by the National Museum of American History in partnership with the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service, and received federal support from the Latino Initiatives Pool, administered by the Smithsonian Latino Center.

View the online Smithsonian exhibition.

Visit the research guide for additional resources.

Celebrate National Library Week with the TCC Libraries! A good library has a place for everyone. While we are sheltering at home, let us help you find your place.

The Horror Genre

Horror has its roots in the gothic novel, an atmospheric and sensationalized type of fiction popular beginning in the mid-18th century. Since then, horror has diversified into numerous types (gothic, survival, paranormal, psychological, etc.) and become a perennial favorite among TCC students. If horror is your place, here are some suggestions on what to read or watch online during your time at home.

• The Shining by Stephen King is the obvious choice to make you grateful you are at least not on lock down in an inaccessible haunted hotel.
• Frankenstein by Mary Shelley is a must-read classic if you are a horror fan. Mary Shelley began writing it when she was only 19 and was forced to spend most of a summer indoors after a volcano eruption disrupted weather patterns worldwide.
• The Plague by Albert Camus is another classic horror novel with multiple interpretations. It centers on an outbreak of bubonic plague and a city’s response to it.
• The Stand by Stephen King–Once you have read Stephen King’s take on staying at home, why not try his post-plague world?
• The Masque of the Red Death by Edgar Alan Poe is a short story of infectious horror for those of you who just need a quick study break.
• Hauntings edited by Ellen Datlow is a ghost story anthology for more escapist horror.
• The Ultimate Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams is an apocalyptic tale with a sense of humor if you need to laugh.

Don’t forget our collection also features streaming videos! Feature Films for Education includes 28 Weeks Later, Aliens, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, The Omen, Young Frankenstein, and many more horror films. 

Love to tell your own stories? Check out the TCC South Campus Library’s post about resources for authors!