Hey so I’m hyped that Trump’s gone and all but let’s just remember that things don’t magically get better from here on out - we have to keep working for them.
Keep supporting blm.
Keep protecting trans kids.
Keep welcoming immigrants.
Keep defending marriage equality.
Keep believing women.
Keep working to make our society more fair, just, and accepting of all.
![Exil [Exile] (Visar Morina - 2020)](https://64.media.tumblr.com/682149c701c5bcad056abacd7233b0c0/03c055758477b8b6-55/s1280x1920/9e101c6d1ffb882b8901cf3c86bbd01c79822a4b.jpg "Exil [Exile] (Visar Morina - 2020)")
![Exil [Exile] (Visar Morina - 2020)](https://64.media.tumblr.com/95c3f69e8ef2493b0b5532162048809b/03c055758477b8b6-9c/s1280x1920/5c55d43a7ae7fa80d98b406082053a9d6a3b922c.jpg "Exil [Exile] (Visar Morina - 2020)")
![Exil [Exile] (Visar Morina - 2020)](https://64.media.tumblr.com/dd9f7b4eba9bc796b2f8548bdc447f73/03c055758477b8b6-58/s1280x1920/2f451dcc23820e3f3e672032dd6f48c0eff38f10.jpg "Exil [Exile] (Visar Morina - 2020)")
![Exil [Exile] (Visar Morina - 2020)](https://64.media.tumblr.com/7419078db2e783cf74c9a6adebc1ca8a/03c055758477b8b6-ef/s1280x1920/b5289ac9a3c3deb1bd6b956e3ccc7bc1b15b35fb.jpg "Exil [Exile] (Visar Morina - 2020)")
violent-migrants-deactivated201:
This reaction happend in million homes around europe! It’s what we crave, we just can’t deny our need for these men anymore They will come and they will own us! ♠✊
thepostmodernpottercompendium:
Hi guys.
I’m so glad so many of you are reading this project, because its something very dear to me and the fact that there are people reading this motivates me to go deeper into this and not shove this project to the side.
Bless you all.
BUT
I’m applying to universities for my MA and that takes time. Unfortunately, I foolishly let real life take a backseat to this blog and now one of the courses I really wanted is Limited Availability now.
In short.
I would really, REALLY appreciate it if you guys could pitch in and submit any pictures you might find which you think could work on this blog. I end up spending about four or five hours at a go finding blog entry appropriate pics and then another hour or so editing them so they look good. In proportion, it usually takes me about an hour to write and edit a post so that its ready to go. The more pics I get, the quicker I can upload, the more you guys get to read. So…
Themes that will be turning up sooner or later:
- Slaves: ok this is URGENT. I need pics of slaves in slave ships - they could be paintings or screencaps, but high quality, high resolution stuff.
- Mughal art & colonial Bengal era photos/pics etc.
- ooo photos from post-war britain, preferably of immigrants from South Asia and the Carribean.
- Celts: red haired ones preferably. + points if they’re painted in blue.
- Scottish clansmen: erm. yeah. Battle scenes esp?
- Saxons: farmers, battles, bonus points if you can find something to do with the Night of the Long Knives. Or like people being butchered at a dinner table. (No, the Red Wedding is too obvious a reference sorry.)
- Hogwarts House motifs: um. Minimalist, preferably. Also if you can get actual pics of animals/people which look nice/fit the pic quality or themes used so far = great.
- 1920s era dudes in a dudeclub. A bit like the Drones club from P G Wodehouse. I have some art for this already, but I like to have a stock to choose from. Tweed+suckerseer suits also work.
- things which could pass for Azkaban. Gloomy stuff.
All submissions should have a source link and I will credit your sumissions at the end of each post. <3
I will be posting, don’t fear, but I would dearly appreciate the help since I’m a bit swamped at the moment.
<3
[[The loveliness behind Postmodern Potterverse has been a huge supporter of this project. I can totally relate to their struggle - I too prefer writing to picture-hunting and I don’t even have workable image editing software so trying to make things look good take up a LOT of time. If you have resources do share!]]
To learn more about the brand, follow @kidsofimmigrants on Instagram.
The first-generation Americans behind the clothing line Kids of Immigrants (@kidsofimmigrants) want to inspire children in their community. “Diversity IS American,” says Weleh Victor Dennis, who co-founded Kids of Immigrants (KOI) with Daniel Buezo. Weleh was born in California; his parents are from Liberia. Daniel is originally from New York; his parents are from Honduras.
Sparked by the tradition of street vendors in their immigrant-rich Los Angeles neighborhood, the entrepreneurial duo launched KOI in 2016. “Our main principle since the beginning was to spread love and power to people and spark creativity,” says Daniel. “KOI isn’t a political statement — it’s literally who we are.”
April is Scottish American Heritage Month and we are sharing these images of Scottish immigrants naturalizing in the U.S. between 1939 and 1943. Meet Alison McKinley Campbell, age 57, a practical nurse from Cowdenbeath; Catherine Archer Smith, age 62, a nurse from Dundee; William Wilson, age 46, a plumber from Glasgow; Clementina Sinclair Heddle Smith, age 55, a housewife from St. Andrews; Charles Leslie Brown, age 39, an actor from Aberdeen; and Alexander Thomson, age 37, a blacksmith from Thurso.
Did your ancestors immigrate to the U.S. and become naturalized citizens? If they naturalized in southern California, Arizona, or Clark County, Nevada, we may have their documents here. We have over 1 million naturalization documents in our holdings!
Recent acts of violence against Asian Americans across the country have underscored the notion of being perceived as a “perpetual foreigner” in one’s home country.
But this is nothing new. The “othering” of immigrant groups is long rooted in American history.
New from Flatiron Books, Sigh, Gone: A Misfit’s Memoir of Great Books, Punk Rock, and the Fight to Fit In, by Phuc Tran. In 1975, during the fall of Saigon, Phuc Tran immigrates to America along with his family. By sheer chance they land in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, a small town where the Trans struggle to assimilate into their new life. In this coming-of-age memoir told through the themes of great books such as The Metamorphosis,The Scarlet Letter,The Iliad, and more, Tran navigates the push and pull of finding and accepting himself despite the challenges of immigration, feelings of isolation, and teenage rebellion, all while attempting to meet the rigid expectations set by his immigrant parents.
The same people who scream at women outside of Planned Parenthood are laughing at babies being teargassed at the border.
Spoiler: It was never about being “pro-life” and always about control.
“11 years ago, I remember feeling powerless and simply watching the news wishing there was something I could do. Today, through a series of unlikely events and a rather unexpected journey, I’m in a position to help. I’m heading back home. All the hard work has paid and it has gone full circle.”
Dancing and eating at the Greek Festival/ Video, photos
Fellow Rhode Islanders,
This year, “I Have a Dream” turns 50 years old. It is simply one of the best speeches of the 20th century – if not of all time. Throughout the years, I often think about the prophetic words Dr. King delivered with such unwavering fortitude and conviction to a crowd of more than 250,000 who were drawn to the National Mall to hear him speak on August 28, 1963. I consider Dr. King one of my heroes. He is a visionary with the spirit and soul of a prophet; he forcefully and openly advocated for what we all hold so dear – freedom, dignity, equality, a decent wage and ending poverty. Dr. King understood the “power of the pulpit” speaking out about injustice. He effectively accomplished this in his writings, especially his call to action in the moving and gut-wrenching 1963 “Letter from a Birmingham Jail.” Dr. King was a brilliant orator who touched our hearts with his insight into giant and important themes particularly in the “The World House” chapter of his 1967 book “Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community?” He writes: “The large house in which we live demands that we transform this world-wide neighborhood into a world-wide brotherhood. Together we must learn to live as brothers or together we will be forced to perish as fools.”
As we honor the timeless words of freedom and justice put forth so eloquently by this American legend, I am reminded of how “I Have a Dream” has resonated with me throughout the years. Dr. King in the speech notes: “But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation.” It is that legacy of ensuring “the vaults of opportunity do not go empty,” which has guided me in my work to improve Rhode Island. This past summer on August 1 we became the tenth state to enact marriage equality. In May, I signed an Executive Order to promote diversity, equal opportunity, and minority business enterprises in our state. In addition, I fully supported and approved allowing undocumented students who immigrate to Rhode Island to pay in-state tuition rates at our public university and colleges. I have been steadfast in my commitment to make sure that all of our state’s students receive a quality education – especially in our urban cores.
As you may remember, less than 24 hours after my swearing-in as Governor, I fulfilled my campaign promise and repealed E-Verify. The executive order allowed us to engage in a comprehensive dialogue with our immigrant communities, law enforcement agencies, and all interested parties. In October, affordable health-care choices will be made available for all Rhode Island individuals and families and small businesses through our health exchange, HealthSource RI, which is shaping up to be a model for the rest of the country.
All of these initiatives send a message well beyond our borders that Rhode Island is a great place to live and work. As you know, our state was founded on the principles of diversity and tolerance – which is what Dr. King fought for and was the core of his “I Have a Dream” speech. In his words: “We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of now. This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off… .” It is the “fierce urgency of now” that keeps me working hard and guides me in my efforts to move Rhode Island forward.
Sincerely,
Lincoln D. Chafee
Governor
Join Guatemalans in Rhode Island in celebrating their heritage at the 3rd Annual Festival Guatemala on Sunday, September 9, 2012 from 10am to 6pm at Roger Williams Temple of Music in Providence, RI. For more information contact [email protected].The festival is coordinated by the Guatemalan Center of New England.
For many Guatemalans, Rhode Island became a passing point on the way to political asylum in Canada–simply a temporary stop-over. In the 1980sand 90s, the Guatemalan community became more visible, settling in places like Providence, Central Falls and Woonsocket. Today, Guatemalans can also be found in large numbers in Aquidneck Island (primarily Portsmouth and Middletown) working in nurseries and running their own lawn care businesses.
When Guatemalans first began to settle in Rhode Island, one of the biggest attractions for them was that it was a peaceful place, especially compared to cities like New York and Los Angeles. Many of the first Guatemalans to reach Rhode Island were from small farming communities, and the rural feeling of Rhode Island–and particularly Aquidneck Island–made them feel very much at home.
The first reported Guatemalans began to arrive in New England in the early to mid-1960s. Those were the years of the civil rights movement, and many women and African Americans were moving out of jobs as domestic workers into better-paying ones. There was a need to fill these abandoned positions, and employment agencies in Boston reached out as far as Guatemala searching for domestic workers. By the late 1960s and early 70s, many of these women eventually found their way to Providence when city life in Boston became too overwhelming for them and their families. At that time, the Guatemalans who arrived in Rhode Island found very few Hispanics living here. The only services that were available to them were limited ones offered by the Catholic Church. Many Guatemalans felt isolated from their people as they sought places to speak their language or for the familiar foods that they needed to cook their native dishes. The only Hispanic business where they found a bit of comfort was a place called Fefa’s Market, a restaurant and market in South Providence (owned by Josefina Rosario), which sold many Latin American staples. Eventually Guatemalans looking for food that reminded them of home ended up at Roger Williams Park, where a Guatemalan family pulled up their truck once a week to sell tortillas.
Feelings of isolation were often expressed by many Hispanics in Rhode Island, including one Guatemalan woman interviewed for this project, who considers herself and her family to be one of the first to arrive in Rhode Island in 1962. Because of her undocumented status when she and her family reached Rhode Island, she remembers very little about her life in the West End of Providence, where she and her family lived in hiding in the home of a friend for almost two years. Even at the age of eight, she recalls living in fear that they would be found by authorities, and the loneliness sometimes led her to wish she could return to her country just so she could walk outside and breathe the fresh air of her familiar world. During her interview, she commented on the irony of hearing her parents talk about coming to America to find a more stable place to live, a place where they could gain economic security and safety, and to be free to walk the streets without fear of government oppression. At that time, there were three such families from Guatemala who had been brought to Rhode Island through the Catholic Church, an entity that at the time was not readily prepared to give them the appropriate services needed to become contributing citizens of the U.S.
Formal records show that during the 1970s and 80s Guatemalans began to settle in high numbers in the West End neighborhood of Providence, and also in the Olneyville neighborhood of Providence–on Westminister Street and in the vicinity of Saint Teresa’s Catholic Church, where a Spanish mass held every Sunday made them feel at home. The areas around Broadway Street in Providence, just east of Olneyville, are also heavily populated with Guatemalans. There are also pockets of Guatemalans in northern Rhode Island, in places like Central Falls and Woonsocket. Remarkably, in North Providence, a small community developed in the 1990s, one that includes Quiché-speaking Mayans, an interesting phenomena that raised a new set of social barriers for this community.
According to one Guatemalan who has lived in Rhode Island since the 1960s, the Guatemalan community today is still very isolated. Many individuals do not get involved in political advocacy or find it hard to access state social services for which they qualify primarily because they are accustomed to fearing anything public or government sponsored. The Guatemalan community today lives quietly in Rhode Island, and still relies on some assistance from the Catholic Church and other social service agencies, yet they have formed two organizations in an effort to educate their community about issues of amnesty and immigration reform. A number of restaurant and markets that sell Guatemalan foods are now serving the large number of Guatemalans who live in Providence and Central Falls.
In the year 1970, Naglaa Gaafar was born in Alexandria, Egypt. After devoting her early years to family and receiving her Bachelor’s Degree in English Language and Literature, as well as a Master’s Degree in Applied Linguistics from Alexandria University, Naglaa reached a pivotal point in her life. A yearning for something more and an undeniable sense of courage led Naglaa to travel 5,324 miles across the Atlantic to Dartmouth, Massachusetts, at the age of 28.
“I think there comes a point…when you feel that whatever you’re looking for does not exist where you are, and you have to take a risk and explore somewhere else. And I took a very big one.”
Naglaa’s journey began with an opportunity and desire to further her education. She received a scholarship for her master’s degree and attained a teaching assistantship for the professional writing program at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth. Her life progressed rapidly, as she married her husband and moved to Rhode Island six months after her arrival.
A continuous sense of feeling welcomed in Rhode Island and interacting with good natured people paved the path that transformed Naglaa from an Egyptian woman into an Egyptian American woman. Encouraging professors, supportive in-laws, and community oriented neighbors pushed Naglaa and her husband along as they built their life together. The couple took root in a small apartment, with one car, while both husband and wife worked multiple jobs and attended school. About a year and a half into their marriage their responsibilities grew with the addition of a third family member, their daughter. Life was hectic and busy, but Naglaa loved everything about it.
Naglaa has been working in higher education for 21 years, beginning when she still lived in Alexandria, Egypt. Her first full time job in the United States was at Cornell University. She worked her way through multiple positions, from faculty to administration. Currently she works at the Community College of Rhode Island (CCRI) as the Director of the Center for Excellence and College Readiness. Naglaa’s passion for teaching, however, remains the same. She has always kept one leg in teaching and describes its importance in this way: “Now I teach part time, it’s my passion.” While teaching does serve some self-interest, Naglaa is also doing some systematic bridge building between administrators and professors, two groups that sometimes struggle to understand each other.
The troubles caused by misunderstanding are not unique to Naglaa’s chosen profession in education. She frequently witnesses a misinterpretation of immigrants and their intentions by US-born citizens. Naglaa wants immigrants to be viewed as people who bring their rich cultures and add to what already exists in America, not take away from it.
“I want to contribute. We are not here to take anything away from anybody. We are here because we took a chance on ourselves. We put life in a bag and said goodbye to every dear person to our hearts. It was gut ripping, but we said we were going to plant roots here.”
Naglaa has lived in the United States for 16 years, yet she has remained connected to her Egyptian family and Egyptian roots. She travels to Egypt once a year, however, the sense of coming home isn’t felt on the journey there; it is felt on the journey back. Naglaa is who she is because of the experiences she has had as an immigrant living in the United States. She identifies this country, the place where she established her own family, as home and finds value in the individualistic culture of the United States.
“What I would say about my experience here is, what happened to me coming through my journey is I was able to shed a skin that was given to me and find my own spirit…If you’re here to know more about yourself, this is the perfect environment because you are on your own.”
Naglaa’s confidence, charisma, and enthusiasm for life are contagious. These qualities are evident through her story and the way in which she encourages growth in students at the Community College of Rhode Island:
“Everywhere you go there will be people who think that they are better and people who are going to think that you are less, and that doesn’t matter. It only matters what you think of yourself. If you treat yourself with respect, and as an equal, the world tends to respond to that.”
Written and compiled by Colleen Andersen and Claire O’Connor
Sandra Cano was born September 9, 1983 in Medellín, Colombia where she attended Catholic school and enjoyed swimming. Her father was a manager of an airline company in Colombia. During the 90’s rebels were kidnapping business-owners to hold for ransom. Unfortunately, Sandra’s father was on this list. He was kidnapped and ready to be killed, when miraculously, a former employee, who Sandra’s father had helped years ago, let him go saying, “He’s not on the list. Take him back home. He doesn’t have any money, he is just a man working for the company.”
After two weeks of being separated from his family, he was advised by his boss to seek political asylum in the United States. He traveled to Rhode Island to be with his son who was studying in an exchange program at Brown University. Upon Sandra’s father’s arrival to the US, he was advised by the government to bring the rest of his family with him, so that they would be protected as well.At age 17, Sandra was a student at the University in Colombia and had dreams of being a journalist or news reporter, but had to sacrifice her education in Colombia to move to the United States to find safety. She arrived to Pawtucket, Rhode Island in September 2000, where she and her family reunited with her father.
Sandra, reluctant to leave because she was already enrolled in the University, promised her father to live in the United States for six months to learn English. She was unprepared for the setbacks she faced, especially because she had already gradated high school in Colombia after 11th grade, but was placed back in high school to complete 12th grade in the United States. This was most frustrating since she had to attend the same English as a Second Language (ESL) class with her younger thirteen year old brother, who constantly teased her.
Despite this frustration, Sandra continued her life in the United States. She received her Associates degree from the Community College of Rhode Island. Sandra then transferred to Rhode Island College, and completed her bachelor’s degree at Bryant where she was able to obtain a scholarship. Most recently, Sandra obtained her Master’s Degree in Public Administration from the University of Rhode Island.
Sandra is now the Assistant Vice President of Business and Community Development for Navigant Credit Union in Central Falls, Rhode Island. She never gave up her journalism dreams; she volunteers at a Latino Public Radio station where she hosts her own public radio show. In addition, to her professional career, Sandra serves her community in Pawtucket, Rhode Island as the first Latina to be elected to the School Committee.
Serving in a public office as a young, female immigrant, Sandra feels that her leadership capacity is sometimes questioned. Some members of the community consider her accent a weakness, and assume she is uneducated. As a young Latina she still struggles to have her ideas heard and taken seriously. Sandra hopes to combat negative stereotypes and push forward a positive vision that immigrants and refugees are not looking to take advantage of, but to help make the Unites States a better and stronger country. She explains,
“There are a lot of negative perceptions about immigrants and refugees, and people don’t know their stories… I want you to understand that I’m coming here to contribute to this country; I’m not coming here to take away from this country. And, we all together could be a community. I mean, everybody is an immigrant, other than Native Americans.”
Despite facing some adversity, Sandra felt encouraged by all who believed in her. She continues to take a stand on issues important to her community.
“Every time somebody would shut the door on me… somebody else would give me that encouragement to continue…In Pawtucket we have a lot of work to do…it is still very divided. So, [we have] the Latinos here and the Cape Verdeans on this side of the city, and the white, Irish, and French Canadians on this side of the city….and they’re not really integrating. So, I would like to work together, or do something to try to help.”
Sandra still misses the family reunions and traditions of playing soccer at her grandparents’ home back in Colombia but it looking forward to starting a family of her own in Rhode Island. Sandra’s desire to have a happy and healthy family comes from her dad, admiring how selfless he was in doing everything he could to help his children create successful lives in the United States.
Sandra envisions a bright future ahead for the ocean state.
“I want equal access opportunities for my [future] kids in terms of education [and] job opportunities. I want a Rhode Island that has a positive economy…And I am positive for the future of Rhode Island. I think that more than ever we have had our struggles, and this time communities and people are getting together…to put our vision forward; a positive vision forward.”
Written and compiled by Colleen Dusel and Katy Foley
Andrew Mangeni was born in the nation of Uganda, in East Africa. As a young boy he started his schooling in Uganda, and later on in England. With the urging of his uncle who was a medical professor at Brown University, Andrew came to the United States in 1990 to pursue his higher education.
He received an associate in fine arts degree from the Community College of Rhode Island, and later went on to complete his bachelor of science in music education (cum laude) at Rhode Island College. Andrew then began teaching music in the Smithfield Schools while continuing his education at the University of Connecticut, where he obtained a master’s degree in music education. In the fall of 2002, he began to teach as an adjunct professor at Rhode Island College, while maintaining his job in Smithfield. Currently, he is attending Boston University to receive his doctoral degree in music education and continues working at both Rhode Island College and the Smithfield Schools.
When Andrew came to Rhode Island, he felt both welcomed and unwelcomed. Some people embraced him fully, like the family at his church who took him in “like he was their own son;” they even gave him the very first car he drove in the United States. Andrew quickly became friends with a fellow foreign student from Guatemala named Stuardo, and the two became like blood brothers; to this day their families remain very close. On the other hand, others were less eager to welcome Andrew; some people were quick to judge him because he spoke differently from them, or perhaps they thought that as another immigrant he had come to take opportunities away from society. Andrew explains that:
“They [immigrants] add to the fabric of our community. Many of them are simply looking to improve themselves… If someone is looking to improve themselves chances are the community in which they settle will improve as well.”
In fact, that is exactly what Andrew has done. In 2008, Andrew and his wife Anna became ordained as pastors at New Dimension Church, where they are serving the local community to build stronger families.
Andrew states that he was always blessed with great opportunities growing up, whereby he always had three meals a day and did not lack much growing up in a blessed household; he credits his parents for giving him the opportunity to acquire a good education in Uganda, England and later on in the United States. Currently Andrew has settled in a city with an economically diverse population; however, it was not until he returned to his native Uganda in 2009 that he fully recognized the impact of his blessings compared to others around the world. On this trip to Uganda Andrew was able to visit remote village areas where he saw a lot of people [especially children] living under severe poverty conditions.
“While we were driving on the streets of Kampala at night, we were shocked to find little children between the ages of 3 and 8 years… who were abandoned on the streets to beg for food into the late hours of the night.”
After seeing this Andrew and his wife Anna together with other friends decided to start a non-profit charitable organization to help widows and orphans; in 2011 they started AAM Global Mission and Pennies On Purpose (a capital campaign), with the sole purpose of building schools that service orphans and helping widows create small farming businesses to improve their sources of income. Andrew considers helping less fortunate people as his greatest achievement in life; his passion for education and charity combine to create this accomplishment.
“I believe that if I had not received the gift of education I would not be where I am today; if it were not for education you would all not be where you are today. So we want to use education to help widows and orphans get back on their feet and become self-sustained, that’s my greatest desire.”
Andrew and his family are planning to return to Uganda this summer, along with a team of volunteers to complete building a school they started in 2013. Andrew’s future includes retiring from teaching and dedicating his life to serving widows and orphans through AAM Global Mission. Their hope is to build over 100 schools over the next ten years around the world, and through education projects they hope to reduce poverty in Uganda and in other countries such as Haiti, India, Guatemala and several others.
Andrew hopes that one-day Rhode Island will be more diverse.
“I want a kind of Rhode Island that is Martin Luther King’s “I have a dream” kind of Rhode Island; that’s the kind of Rhode Island I want for my children. I want my children to look at a person of any race and receive them without any reservations. I want my children to sit down and enjoy the same brotherly relationship that I have developed with my friend Stuardo from Guatemala… I want, a Rhode Island where people really respect each other, where my kids respect any kind of person, background, and I think that would be a better Rhode Island for all people.”
Andrew loves Rhode Island and would not move to live anywhere else—since this was the first and only US state he has ever lived in; he feels a very deep connection and claims to have been bitten by the “Rhode Island bug.”
“I’m proud to be an American. I became an American last year [2013]. The United States has become my home; I’ve been living here for the past 24 years, and it’s a big chunk of my life. The United States is home for me”
The Mangeni family currently resides in Lincoln, Rhode Island, and is looking forward to another mission trip to Uganda early this summer.
Written and compiled by Lizzy Tighe and Brian Millham
Stephanie Alvarez was born in Cali, Colombia in 1994. When Stephanie was only six months old her parents uprooted their lives and headed to the United States. As cooks, her parents found jobs in Providence in the culinary field and struggled to offer their children a better life in the United States.
“Well like a lot of other people, they came for the search of better jobs, and a better place to raise a family. They chose [Rhode Island], I think, because they heard a lot about economic opportunities, and it was a small state and seemed like a good place to settle.”
Settling in Central Falls, Stephanie was raised with Colombian values infused in her life. Although she does not remember Colombia, she still identifies with Colombian culture, largely in part because of her mother’s influence. She was taught Spanish as her first language and is proud to be bilingual.
“Growing up in Rhode Island was great, but it was really hard. My first language of course was Spanish, my parents knew next to no English; so going to school was really tough without knowing English. I got made fun of a lot for my heritage, and as a child that really affected me.”
Stephanie is currently a student at the Community College of Rhode Island and hopes to transfer to Providence College to pursue her dream of becoming a pediatric surgeon.
When she is not in school or working full time as a Certified Nursing Assistant at Waterview Villa Nursing Home in East Providence, Stephanie is taking care of her two-year-old son, Christopher, whom she refers to as “the absolute joy in my life”. She is raising him to be bilingual; with a strong sense of Latino values that she believes played such a pivotal role in her life.
Stephanie hopes to one day be able to travel back to Colombia to see the rest of her family, especially her older brother. Her parents did not have the financial means to bring the entire family to the United States and had to make the hard decision to leave Stephanie’s older brother back in Colombia as the rest of the family went to Rhode Island.
Since Stephanie left Colombia at such an early age, she does not actually know her older sibling personally, but rather has a relationship with him through social media. This has a deep impact on Stephanie who wants nothing more than to have her family in its entirety together in the United States. “You know, we have been trying [to bring family members to the United States] for a really long time. It has been a long and tedious process, hopefully one day it will happen.”
Stephanie feels a special bond with other immigrants in Providence, regardless of their home country. She is proud to be an immigrant and loves that Providence fosters such an open environment to all foreign-born individuals. She hopes to see a continuation of this cohesiveness between the immigrants in Providence and is glad that she can be a part of it. Stephanie’s ultimate goal is to see a world in which immigrants are totally accepted for who they are.
“When you first come here to America, it’s going to be really hard. It’s still hard for my family. So I think if we all work harder, then we can be a more welcoming community.”
Stephanie hopes that one day equality with reign over prejudice. She wishes this not only for herself, but for her young son Christopher as well.
“As he is growing up, I just want him to have opportunities; opportunities to be who he wants to be, and [to] grow up in a safe environment. I don’t want him to be judged or stereotyped as different…I want a Rhode Island that will welcome him. That will be supportive of him. Not just for him, but for everyone. I don’t want him to be judged, or looked at differently. That’s the Rhode Island I want for him”.
Written and compiled by Melissa Keiser and Michael Finnerty
Amazing Infographics from a New York Times Article Published Last Week.
Key Findings:
1. Nevada is the most diverse state.
2. Louisiana is the least diverse state.
(Click the link above I know the numbers are hard to read.)
I wrote a piece for the BuzzFeed Community Summer Challenge and I would really appreciate the support of just clicking the link. The post is my first attempt at a movie review/sarcastic and honest criticism of Arab American stereotypes.
Stop Palestinian hate.
Palestinian Girl Watches Adam Sandler’s You Don’t Mess With The Zohan So You Don’t Have To.
With fortitude, I survived a peritonitis that almost took my life and I survived in an ICE detention centre where I lived in the last years. I was seeing dehumanisation of people for more than 19 months. ICE is a system created and used to psychologically torture human beings who fall into their claws. I thank God for sending me health and freedom.
Aristoteles, 2020
DEPORTING PEOPLE DOESN’T CHANGE THE FACT THAT YOU STILL AREN’T QUALIFIED.
Immigrants and POC aren’t taking your jobs because of their skin color just like you aren’t entitled to them because of yours.
Today’s Black Futures Month artist celebrates immigrants throughout the world. It was created by Cuban artist, Nancy Cepero Dominico. The text translates to:
Every person has their place in the world. This place is not necessarily where one was born, but rather where one is able to multiply and grow.
In spanish it reads:
Cada persona tiene su lugar en el mundo que, no ha de ser necesariamente aquel donde nació, sino donde logra multiplicarse y crecer.
The accompanying article was written by Benjamin Ndugga-Kabuye: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/benjamin-nduggakabuye/the-black-immigrant-narrative_b_9191262.html?1455023944
#BlackFutureMonth #BlackLivesMatter #VisionsOfABlackFuture
“Terrace was established by Chinese railroad workers in 1869, when construction crews were racing to connect the eastward and westward tracks of the railroad 70 miles from here at Promontory Summit. Eventually, simple wood structures rose on both sides of Main Street, housing hotels, clothing stores, restaurants, railroad machine shops, even a 1,000-volume library specializing in science, history and travel literature. Because water was scarce, engineers constructed an aqueduct from hollowed-out timber, funneling water from mountain springs that were miles away. At its peak, the town was home to some 500 residents, and it welcomed hundreds more each year, mostly rail and wagon-train travelers.
In 1903, Terrace burned in a fire, and after the railroad was rerouted 50 miles south—straight across the Great Salt Lake—the following year, the town was abandoned. But researchers have returned, seeing the ghost town as an ideal site to learn not only about the workings of a remote railroad town but especially about the immigrant community that thrived here.”
*CW: Mentions of racially-motivated violence.
