In the wake of COVID-19, the American Writers Museum is bringing its latest exhibit, My America: Immigrant and Refugee Writers Today, to viewers online so it can be enjoyed from home during this time of social distancing. From the comfort of home, viewers can hear personal stories about topics such as identity, community, language, storytelling and what it means to be an American from contemporary authors of our time. View the exhibit at My-America.org.
My America: Immigrant and Refugee Writers Today features more than 30 authors who delve into questions about writing influences, being multilingual, community, family, and what it means to be American. At a time when “immigrant” can be a symbol or slur, shorthand for any of a thousand complicated concepts, these writers explore what it truly means to cross borders.
“The importance of immigrant and refugee writers in the last two decades is illustrated by the level of recognition their works continue to achieve,” said Carey Cranston, president of the American Writers Museum. “The American Writers Museum is honored to present this essential and relevant subject in an experiential way, which lets the writers tell their own unique yet universal stories.”
Originally opened Nov. 21, 2019, My America: Immigrant and Refugee Writers Today has received nationwide acclaim and high praise in the past four months for its one-of-a-kind interactive elements, its storytelling that bring viewers to the front lines and its celebration of diversity and different perspectives. The exhibit gives visitors and students a deeply personal experience, bringing them face-to-face online through interactive, intimate video conversations with contemporary authors who are immigrants and refugees from all over the world. The exhibit, which runs through May 2021, is designed to elicit thoughtful dialogue on a wide breadth of issues relating to the modern refugee crisis and the perception of immigrants in our country today.
Authors featured in the exhibit include Juan Martinez, Vu Tran, Dipika Mukherjee, Laila Halaby, Edwidge Danticat, Louie Perez, Ligiah Villalobosand many more who emigrated from Cuba, Ghana, Japan, China, France, Mexico, Italy, Korea, Nigeria, Russia, Israel, Colombia, Vietnam, Iran, Nigeria, Iraq, Lebanon, Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic.
