In today's era of global migration, the idea of “home” is increasingly complex. Immigrants rarely melt into their adoptive countries. Connections between countries are not severed, and they often flow both ways.
Diaspora builds bridges between immigrants, the friends and families that stayed behind, and Chicago listeners curious to better understand their international neighbors.
Diaspora depends on your curiosity about life in immigrant communities.
Chicago Public Radio is piloting the program Diaspora, and would like to hear what you think! Join the the Web Forum to answer the question: What does “Diaspora” mean to you and your community?
E-mail us your questions, story ideas or comments about the program.
Hosted by Mercedes Fernandez |
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| Listener Question: What is Minimum Wage and What Will it Buy You? |
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Minimum Wage in the United States
We catch up with a group of Tibetan immigrants at Shan restaurant in Chicago’s Edgewater neighborhood. They explain how they’ve struggled to make more than minimum wage and what they can buy earning $6.50.
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Finding a Job
Journalist Kisuule Magala Katende had his own radio show in Uganda. He interviewed personalities like Bill Clinton, Nelson Mandela and Kofi Annan. Here in Chicago, Kisuule has worked as a janitor and a hotel doorman. He reflects on the challenges of looking for a job as a new African immigrant. |
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Upwardly Global
Jane Leu directs Upwardly Global, an organization that helps immigrant professionals find work in their fields. Jane tells host Mercedes Fernandez how the organization helps immigrants and U.S. employers understand each other better. |
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Job Interview Nightmares
Finding a job can be a source of great stress, but for author Fasil Yitbarek, it is also a source of creative inspiration. His novel, The Texture of Dreams, tells the story of Yosef, an Ethiopian man adjusting to life in New York. Actor Mohammed H. Mohammed reads an excerpt of the story where Yosef prepares for an interview to work as an English teacher. |
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Publishing the Stories of Immigrants
Fassil Yirgu is passionate about sharing the stories of other immigrants. He tells Mercedes Fernandez why he started Nyala Publishing. |
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Being a Gay Muslim
Parvez Sharma has been an advocate for LGBT rights in India for many years. He’s a filmmaker and has been working on a film project entitled In the Name of Allah. It shares the stories of Muslims struggling to be true to their sexuality and their faith. |
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Queer Identity in the African Diaspora
Sierra Leonean-Canadian Notisha Massaquoi reflects on reconciling her queer identity with her Sierra Leonean identity. She’s a researcher and activist focusing on the rights of LGBT members of the African diaspora. She spoke with independent journalist and oral historian Selly Thiam, as part of Selly’s project “None on Record.”
For more information, e-mail Selly Thiam.
Related Links:
Gays and Lesbians of African Descent |
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| Listener Question: Can I Buy Traditional Medicine in the U.S.? |
Indigenous Healing Traditions in Chicago
Kisuule Magala Katende went to Makola African supermarket on Wilson Avenue in Chicago’s Uptown neighborhood in search of herbal medicine. Store owner Nana Yao from Ghana tells him what they offer. |
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Sorcery in Chicago?
Congolese-Chicagoan Kabuika Kamunga reports on beliefs and practices of sorcery/witchcraft/“juju” among African communities in Chicago, and how people balance these beliefs with organized religions. |
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Hosted by Mercedes Fernandez |
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| Listener Question: Is it True I Can Get Citizenship or a Visa to the U.S. or UK if I Join Their Military? |
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Immigrants in the Military
Mary Lou Cabrera is a spokesperson for Homeland Security Department’s U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. She explains that joining the military won’t get you into the country. But if you’re already here legally, it could get your citizenship faster.
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Recruitment of Immigrants—Perspective One
Hussein Affey speaks with U.S. Army Recruiting Command
Douglas Smith about the Army’s policies on recruiting immigrants.
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Recruitment of Immigrants—Perspective Two
Hussein Affey speaks with Non-Military Alternative Project's Prateek Sampat about the organization's efforts to educate young people about their options and rights.
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Contest—American Mythology
Diaspora is looking for listeners to submit their fantastical stories that heard about the U.S. before they immigrated.
Ebo Kesson starts us off by explaining why he has a fear of escalators.
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Eating Right in the Land of Fast Food
New immigrants and refugees face an overwhelming array of relatively inexpensive food options when they arrive in the U.S. But not all of this food is healthy.
Kisuule Magala Katende explores the challenges of adapting to the American food landscape—and how to navigate what’s available.
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Taxi Gourmet-Hyderabad House
Diaspora invites Chicago cab drivers to become our food critics. Every episode, we’ll hear a taxi driver tell us his or her favorite place to get lunch. Zeenat Rahman speaks with cab driver Syed Ibrahim about his favorite haunt—Hyderabad House on Chicago’s Devon Avenue.
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| Listener Question: Can Women Who are Abused Keep Their Immigration Status if They Leave Their Husbands? |
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Violence Against Women in Immigrant Communities
Sherizaan Minwalla is the supervising attorney for the National Immigrant Justice Center’s “Gender Justice Initiative.” Sherizaan helps victims of violence get immigration status. Sherizaan speaks with Hussein Affey and explains to him why being an immigrant can make domestic violence even more complicated.
Domestic Violence Resources:
The Chicago Domestic Violence Hotline: 877-863-6338
The National Immigrant Justice Center: 312-660-1370
New clients seeking legal help who are victims of gender-based violence are taken on Mondays between 11-2 p.m.
Chicago Abused Women Coalition |
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White Girls in Saris: Appreciation or Exoticization?
Is it respectful for non-Indians to wear Indian clothes? What about African-Americans who wear kente cloth? Ellyn Ong Vea examines the fashion and cultural explorations of “outsiders” and some tips for those who are not sure what to wear.
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U.S. Fashion Shock
Kisuule Magala Katende shares his impressions of the world of American fashion.
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