Archive for the ‘immigrant stories’ Category

Guest post: How our backwards immigration system tore our family apart

Posted: February 8, 2012 at 11:31 am By Allie

Too often, it can feel like the reality of this country’s broken immigration system is something we face alone. It’s a system meant to isolate us, so that we do not join together to share our pain and organize to fight back.

Gay couple faces split because of antiquated DOMA

Posted: August 17, 2011 at 1:16 pm By admin

Bradford Wells and Anthony Makk have been together for 19 years and seven years ago they were legally married in Massachusetts. Despite the fact that they have been together for so long, their marriage is recognized by the state, and Makk is the sole caregiver for the terminally-ill Wells, they are in danger of being [...]

UPDATE: Tony and Janina to be reunited

Posted: August 8, 2011 at 10:52 am By admin

Originally posted on the We Are America Stories blog
After a painful four year separation, Tony and Janina Wasilewski and their son, Brian, are finally going to be reunited tomorrow in Chicago, as reported by an article in today’s New York Times. Their story is one that many immigrant families are going through. For Tony [...]

Daring to DREAM

Posted: August 3, 2011 at 5:48 pm By admin

Originally posted on the Standing FIRM blog
“Undocumented Students and the Struggle for the American Dream” was a powerful event organized by unashamed and unafraid immigrant students today. Students risked the danger of deportation to speak out for their cause.
I was amazed how brave the speakers were, how strong and articulate and amazingly inspirational their words [...]

1 Million Immigrants Deported

Posted: July 27, 2011 at 2:57 pm By Melvin

Yesterday, more than 1,000 working families,  civil rights activists, students, faith leaders and community allies  came together at Lafayette Square to rally and send President Obama an important message: stop the deportations.
The hundreds of demonstrators were joined by Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-Ill) who was among a dozen of  immigrant advocates that broke off from [...]

Freedom From Fear Award at Netroots Nation

Posted: June 28, 2011 at 5:30 pm By Nicole

At the most recent Netroots Nation in Minneapolis, MN, the Freedom from Fear Awards were awarded.
The Freedom From Fear Award takes its name from Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s famous “four freedoms” speech 70 years ago in which he outlined four fundamental freedoms that people “everywhere in the world” ought to enjoy:
Freedom of speech and expression;
Freedom [...]

Jose Vargas’ Story Reflects That of Millions

Posted: June 22, 2011 at 4:17 pm By Nicole

Keep your head down and work hard. That’s what has defined Jose Vargas’s life. And In a recent New York Times article, Vargas relates his tale of hard work – working his way up to becoming a respect reporter and part of a Pulitzer Prize winning team.
The biggest part of Vargas’s story is not that [...]

The Guzman family: separated by detention, 20 months and counting

Posted: May 12, 2011 at 10:48 am By Lloyd

Cross-posted from We Are America
Pedro Guzman has lived in the United States for almost 25 years, since being brought here as a child by his mother, from Guatemala. In September 2009, he was detained on an order of deportation, which was the result of several governmental clerical errors. For 20 months, his wife and son [...]

We Are America: Jackie and Jaime: Fighting for their (Maryland) Dream

Posted: March 9, 2011 at 11:46 am By Lloyd

The latest story from We Are America is up:
Jackie and Jaime are two high school seniors in Maryland who hope to start four-year college next fall. Both are accomplished students with high GPAs; both are also undocumented and therefore must pay out-of-state tuition and can’t receive scholarships. Having worked for the federal DREAM [...]

Host a screening of Tony & Janina’s American Wedding

Posted: February 22, 2011 at 12:04 pm By Lloyd

video platformvideo managementvideo solutionsvideo player
We’ve been sharing with you the story of Tony & Janina Wasilewski, torn apart by our broken immigration system.
Now, you can share their story with your friends and family. Volunteer to host a house party screening of Tony & Janina’s American Wedding. We’ll send you a screener version of the [...]