Meena Ramamurthy is a filmmaker and storyteller. A colleague, another writer of color, once told her: “Don’t write a pilot with two people of color.” “It doesn’t come from a bad place,” Ramamurthy says. “It just comes from experience.” If you’ve watched “Master of None” (the “Indians on Television” episode), this probably sounds familiar. Studios, […]
Detained after being released by a judge
Here’s my latest, about the powers of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement and local law enforcement. … Gonzalez and the two other protesters were in the booking area together, where they were processed, fingerprinted and patted down. That’s when, she says, two agents called her by name to come up to the counter. Gonzalez says she […]
You for Me for You: Discuss
Radio host Julia Nekessa Opoti and I will be in discussion with the cast and director of “You for Me for You” after the Feb. 27, 7pm performance at the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis. More information and a link to tickets here. This one’s got some great hosts: The Guthrie, Mu […]
Trump v. The Pope
It’s an unlikely pair to be having a war of words, but GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump and Roman Catholic Pope Francis traded sharp statements about immigration and the Mexican border. After hosting a mass in Ciudad Juárez, on the US-Mexico border, the pope responded to a question about Trump’s position on immigration: “A person who […]
Scalia: His legacy on immigration not all what you might think
The Supreme Court this term will hear cases on unions, abortion and legislative districts. And they’ll also hear a challenge to Obama’s executive action on immigration, which would affect some 5 million people. How the Supreme Court will decide those cases may have shifted dramatically with the death over the weekend of Supreme Court Justice Antonin […]
A survey of who works in the book industry gives us a clue about why it’s not diverse
Progress is often incremental, says publisher Jason Low, and the book publishing industry moves slowly. The week’s news bears out the thesis. Last week, author Matt de la Peña became the first Latino author in almost 100 years of the award to win the Newbery Medal in children’s literature for “Last Stop On Market Street.” […]
A network of churches are among those trying to reach undocumented immigrants with water in Flint
“You know what? This is terrible. I’m going to do something about it.” It’s not an uncommon feeling for people learning about what’s happening in Flint, Michigan, these days. It was Aida Cuadrado’s reaction last week. She’s the director of Action of Greater Lansing, a network of churches that do faith-based community organizing. Over the […]
Fighting a terror attack with photographs of joy
It’s not uncommon for images of carnage to dominate international news coverage of Mogadishu, Somalia. But Hana Abukar wants to show that it is so much more. As a Photographer that place will still be the best spot to be in #Mogadishu #Tweetliidopictures pic.twitter.com/Gxd6NihTA3 — Mukhtar Nuur (@MukhtarNuur) January 22, 2016 Read more about Lido […]
Pressure points and identity in America
Last week, I reported on the protest and shootings in Minneapolis. I focused on the ways that Somali immigrants have coped and joined the protest. It’s really made me think about this moment in America: Being an immigrant, Muslim and black—what does it do to someone’s psyche to see so much bad news? Mohamed Samatar, a […]
Hard — really hard — choices for an Iraqi refugee in Turkey
Amer Mohammad has a decision to make. While refugees are camped out, protesting and demanding safe passage from Turkey to Europe, Amer must decide if he will wait and how long he will wait for an answer about his future. The United Nations and the German embassy, he says, have said it could take years […]