Stories
Immigration Reform Is Vital for Virginia’s Businesses, Says Founder & CEO of Challa Law Group
As owner and CEO of Challa Law Group, located in Virginia’s 7th congressional district, and special counsel on immigration matters to Virginia’s attorney general, Lakshmi Challa knows how vital immigration reform is to her local economy. “The seventh district has many companies with multinational workforces that help boost the economy… Read More
Ambitious Venezuelan-Born American College Student Wants Greater Educational Opportunities for All Immigrants
Venezuelan immigrant Barbara Galizia, who is currently majoring in International Relations at American University, has never taken her life in the United States for granted. She immigrated here as a child along with her parents and sister. “It wasn’t easy for my parents to leave their family and make all… Read More
Fourth-Generation Farmer Says Labor Shortages have led to Crop Loss
A fourth-generation farmer, Craig Underwood has been working and running Underwood Ranches (and Underwood Family Farms) for 45 years. But labor shortages are forcing him to turn to mechanized crops, and he has lost faith that the government will repair the H2-A visa program so farmers like… Read More
Former Hotel Executive Says his Chain Couldn’t Have Thrived without the Contributions of Refugee Workers
Tom Negri has worked in hotels his entire life. After graduating from high school, he moved to Colombia for school and work. At the Hotel Irotama in Colombia, he met his future wife. By age 21, while attending the New York Hotel School, Negri was married and working six days… Read More
For This Immigrant & Policy Scholar, Immigration and Education Go Hand in Hand
The distinguished career of Dr. Vichet Chhuon, a thought leader in U.S. education policy, is a direct result of his own multicultural background and his family’s experiences as Cambodian refugees. As an associate professor at the University of Minnesota, Chhuon’s work focuses on multicultural education and the experiences of underserved… Read More
University President Once Fled the Communists — Now He Presides Over a Diverse Group of Promising Students
As President of Miami Dade College, Eduardo Padrón presides over 170,000 students, most of whom are immigrants or the children of immigrants, Graduates include mayors, lawyers, police and fire chiefs, and prominent political figures such as U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Fla., the first Cuban-American… Read More
Conservative Christian Says We Have a Mandate From God to Treat Immigrants Humanely
Dr. Carlos Campo, a longtime conservative Christian and the newly appointed president of Ashland University, in Ashland, Ohio, is a proud fighter for immigration reform. Every significant facet of his life — from his family, to his career, to his faith —has reinforced the need to treat this country’s newcomers… Read More
Esteemed Scholar and Khmer Rouge Refugee Speaks to Value Immigrants Bring a Country
When it comes to immigration, noted professor and political scientist Dr. Sophal Ear recalls a statement on Indochinese refugees made by former U.S. Secretary of State Cyrus Vance. “He was basically saying that America is a nation of refugees,” Dr. Ear says. “His point was, everybody who has come to… Read More
Cuban Immigrant, Business Leader, and Veteran Believes America’s Growth Starts with Immigration
If local governments handed out MVP awards to their community members, Jorge Gutierrez of Woodstock, Virginia would surely be in contention. Four years ago, after 26 years of service, he retired from the United States Army and opened his own consulting business, BMOC Group, which is estimated to generate around… Read More
Despite Challenges, Undocumented Youth Earns Her Degree While Giving Back to the Community
Shawnee Taveras, an immigrant from the Dominican Republic who recently earned her bachelor’s degree in psychology, has come to recognize that immigration reform — and a new attitude toward undocumented individuals — is vital. “When we came here, we didn’t come to steal; we came to get a better education,”… Read More
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