Book launch event to celebrate the release of Somewhere We Are Human. Julissa contributed an essay to this anthology.
Hosted by Reyna Grande & Sonia Guiñansaca, the event will feature readings and performances by the anthology contributors. Books will be available for purchase from Creating Conversations.
The event is free! Food, refreshments and space generously provided by The Mistake Room. Music by DJ Sizzle Fantastic-provided by Informed Immigrant.
Attendees will also have the chance to support and get to know local immigrant-rights groups who will be featured at the event.
* Proof of vaccination and masks will be required. For the safety of the community, vaccination cards will be checked at the entrance. If you are not vaccinated then a self-reported COVID-19 test taken no earlier than 48hrs prior to the event will be required. Masks will be required indoor.
More on Somewhere We Are Human:
Somewhere We Are Human: Authentic Voices on Migration, Survival, and New Beginnings (HarperCollins June 7th)
Edited by Sonia Guiñansaca and Reyna Grande , with an introduction by Pulitzer Prize–winning author Viet Thanh Nguyen.
A unique collection of 41 groundbreaking essays, poems, and artwork by migrants, refugees and Dreamers—including award-winning writers, artists, and activists—that illuminate what it is like living undocumented today. In the overheated debate about immigration, we often lose sight of the humanity at the heart of this complex issue. The immigrants and refugees living precariously in the United States are mothers and fathers, children, neighbors, and friends. Individuals propelled by hope and fear, they gamble their lives on the promise of America, yet their voices are rarely heard. This anthology of essays, poetry, and art seeks to shift the immigration debate—now shaped by rancorous stereotypes and xenophobia—towards one rooted in humanity and justice. Through their storytelling and art, the contributors to this thought-provoking book remind us that they are human still. Transcending their current immigration status, they offer nuanced portraits of their existence before and after migration, the factors behind their choices, the pain of leaving their homeland and beginning anew in a strange country, and their collective hunger for a future not defined by borders.
Created entirely by undocumented or formerly undocumented migrants, Somewhere We Are Human is a journey of memory and yearning from people newly arrived to America, those who have been here for decades, and those who have ultimately chosen to leave or were deported. Touching on themes of race, class, gender, nationality, sexuality, politics, and parenthood, Somewhere We Are Human reveals how joy, hope, mourning, and perseverance can take root in the toughest soil and bloom in the harshest conditions.
Book includes praises by Luis Alberto Urrea, Martín Espada, Rigoberto Gonzales, Victoria Chang, Ken Chen, and Aracelis Girmay to name a few.