Stories
Without a Reliable Supply of Migrant Workers, Landscaper Can’t Grow
In 2016, Faulkner’s Landscaping and Nursery, in Hooksett, New Hampshire, hit a record high: $2.1 million in revenues. In 2017, with even more commercial patios, greenery, and waterfalls to install, that number should have gone up. Instead, it plummeted by $500,000, thanks to a new government policy that prevented owner… Read More
Bangladeshi Uses an Overseas Education to Fight for Worker Rights in U.S.
Farook Hossain has a master’s degree in political science and was working as a medical clinic director in Bangladesh when he won a green card through the diversity lottery. He gave it all up to move to America, in 2001, and was soon working for $5 an hour at a… Read More
For Promising Immigrant Entrepreneurs, a Struggle to Stay in U.S.
Siva Raj was working as a product-development manager in Rochester, New York, in 2013 when he realized he had a problem. Although he exercised regularly, his health was poor. “My blood pressure was starting to rise, and my aerobic capacity was less fit than someone who was my grandfather’s age,”… Read More
Broken Immigration Policy a Risk to U.S. Crops, Says Farmer
California’s lush Salinas Valley remains America’s Salad Bowl, producing some 80 percent of all the leafy greens grown in the United States, in addition to berries, almonds, and other high-value crops. But ongoing labor shortages are forcing farmers to change to low-labor crops and those amenable to mechanized harvests. Ken… Read More
Once an Undocumented Child, Now He Educates Virginia’s Youth
Sal Romero Jr. came to the United States as an undocumented immigrant from Mexico when he was 13 years old. Today, he is a citizen and serves on the Virginia Board of Education and as the first-ever Coordinator of Family and Community Engagement for Harrisonburg City Public Schools. It is… Read More
Startup Offers Simplicity, but Visa Process Still Cumbersome
When Xiao Wang’s parents came to Phoenix from China nearly three decades ago, they hired an immigration lawyer to help them obtain their green cards and, later, their citizenship. The cost: The equivalent of five months of rent. Wang’s parents believed the steep investment was worth the price: As graduate… Read More
A Stowaway’s Son Uses Business Acumen to Help New Jersey Elders
Dominican immigrant Jose Brito Bueno grew up in poverty but now runs WeCare, a domestic-care company with 213 employees. When he was just 10 years old, his father — leaving their home in Santo Domingo — stowed away in a cargo ship bound for the United States. He hid in… Read More
Child of Immigrant Shopkeepers is a Powerful Force for Small Businesses
Ron Kim grew up working in his parents’ small grocery store in New York City. The family had immigrated to the United States from South Korea in 1987, when Kim was 7 years old. “I saw my parents, both of them, work nonstop,” he says, noting that the store was… Read More
After Decade in U.S., Still No Visa for Successful Startup Founder
Chris Choi has a bachelor’s degree in economics and mathematics from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and a master’s degree in investments and securities from Pace University. He also co-founded a growing company called Spryfit, a reward-based fitness app that uses cash prizes and other rewards to… Read More
Want Safe, Homegrown Food? Then Look to Immigration Reform, Says Tennessee Farm Bureau
“The most important industry that we have in this country is agriculture,” says Lee Maddox, of the Tennessee Farm Bureau. “We depend on it every day, and we’ve got to take care of it to make sure it stays that way for future generations.” To do that, however, America must… Read More
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