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Jose Orozco [detail from video]

Veterans History Project Service Summary:

  • War or Conflict: Vietnam War, 1961-1975
  • Dates of Service: 1968-1970
  • Branch of Service: Army
  • Service Unit/Ship: B Company, 2nd Battalion, 87th Infantry Regiment
  • Location of Service: Louisiana; Colorado; Vietnam
  • Highest Rank: Specialist
  • Collection Number: AFC/2001/001/24294

View full service history

"He was my enemy. He became my friend." (22:44)

Specialist Jose V. Orozco was born in Mexico and grew up on the South Side of Chicago. He was not excited to be drafted into the Army at the height of the Vietnam War in 1968, but quickly found that he enjoyed the lifestyle and camaraderie of the military. Serving as a machine gunner, Orozco was decorated for courage in Vietnam - he was calm under fire and on one occasion dove into a burning armored personnel carrier to retrieve ammunition. He also demonstrated a keen understanding of the complexities of counterinsurgency warfare in Vietnam, showing compassion for the plight of the local people. Orozco captured a wounded young Viet Cong fighter during one engagement, and later went on to befriend and work hand in hand with the same young man after he was recruited into the Kit Carson Scouts.

Interview / Recording

Transcript

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About this Item

Title

  • Jose V. Orozco Collection

Names

  • Auyeung, Audrey Wing Chi
  • Orozco, Jose V.
  • Garcia, Mario R.
  • William Ogden Elementary School

State of Residence at Time of Collection Donation

  • Illinois

Headings

  • -  Orozco, Jose V.
  • -  Vietnam War, 1961-1975 -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Army.

Repository

  • Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Gender

  • Male

Race

  • Hispanic

Status

  • veteran

Service History

  • Vietnam War, 1961-1975

    • Branch of Service: Army
    • Service Unit/Ship: B Company, 2nd Battalion, 87th Infantry Regiment
    • Location of Service: Louisiana; Colorado; Vietnam
    • Highest Rank: Specialist
    • Dates of Service: 1968-1970
    • Entrance into Service: Drafted
    • Military Status: veteran

Materials

  • Manuscript: Transcript [1 item] -- Transcription of video recording (collected 2004-10-04)
  • Video: DVD [1 item] -- Oral history interview (collected 2004-10-04; 2004-10-20)

Collection Number

  • AFC/2001/001/24294

Online Format

  • online text
  • video

Additional Metadata Formats

Special Format

Wars & Conflicts

Service Branch

Location of Service

Service Unit/Ship

Highest Rank

Service Entrance

Discharge Status

Gender

Race

State of Residence at Time of Collection Donation

Interviewee

Interviewer

Organization/Affiliation

Rights & Access

Using VHP Material in Publication or Exhibition

The Veterans History Project (VHP) at the Library of Congress collects, preserves and makes accessible the firsthand recollections of U.S. military veterans who served from World War I through more recent conflicts and peacekeeping missions, so that future generations may hear directly from veterans and better understand what they saw, did and felt during their service. The Veterans History Project Collection includes oral histories along with documentary materials such as original letters, diaries, photographs, and memoirs.

Veterans and interviewers contribute these materials to the Library for scholarly and educational purposes, retaining any copyright they may hold. Therefore, permission must be obtained before using the interview or other materials in exhibition or publication. Researchers or others who would like to make further use of these materials should contact the Veterans History Project for assistance.

As a publicly supported institution, the Library generally does not own rights to material in its collections. Therefore, it does not charge permission fees for use of such material and cannot give or deny permission to publish or otherwise distribute material in its collections. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item from the Library’s collections and for securing any necessary permissions rests with persons desiring to use the item.

Please contact us with questions.

Obtaining Copies of VHP Materials

In order for VHP materials to be duplicated, we must receive written permission from the interviewee for you to obtain a copy of the recording unless the proposed use is limited to personal use, research, or other uses permissible by copyright law. If the interviewee is deceased, their next-of-kin may grant written permission.

Please contact VHP for assistance if you need to contact a veteran for permission to use their materials in exhibition or publication, or if you have received permission from the veteran and need access to high-resolution copies of VHP collection materials.

Citing VHP Materials

Please use the following formats when citing Veterans History Project materials (substituting the appropriate name and collection ID number).

Materials as a whole:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Manuscript material:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Memoirs (MS02), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Transcript (MS04), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Correspondence (MS01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Recording:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Audio recording (SR01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Video recording (MV01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Photograph:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Photographs (PH01), photographer unknown, Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Photographs (PH03-PH14), Ralph Williams photographer, Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Computer file:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Computer file (CF01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Artifact:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Artifact (AR01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

Auyeung, Audrey Wing Chi, Jose V Orozco, Mario R Garcia, and William Ogden Elementary School. Jose V. Orozco Collection. 1968. Personal Narrative. https://aj.sunback.homes/item/afc2001001.24294/.

APA citation style:

Auyeung, A. W. C., Orozco, J. V., Garcia, M. R. & William Ogden Elementary School. (1968) Jose V. Orozco Collection. [Personal Narrative] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://aj.sunback.homes/item/afc2001001.24294/.

MLA citation style:

Auyeung, Audrey Wing Chi, et al. Jose V. Orozco Collection. 1968. Personal Narrative. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <aj.sunback.homes/item/afc2001001.24294/>.