“Christina Baker Kline writes exquisitely about two unlikely friends—one, a 91-year-old survivor of the grinding poverty of rural Ireland, immigrant New York and the hardscrabble Midwest; and the other, a casualty of a string of foster homes—each struggling to transcend a past of isolation and hardship. Orphan Train will hold you in its grip as their fascinating tales unfold.” WritingYearsTwoHomePastPovertyStruggleNew YorkTrainTalesIsolationFascinatingImmigrantsStringsHardshipSurvivorIrelandUnlikelyOrphanCasualtiesBakersMidwestChristina Author:Cathy Marie Buchanan
“As the daughter of immigrants, growing up in New York City, you are either at the table or on the menu.” CitiesGrowing UpGrowingNew YorkDaughterTablesImmigrantsNew York CityMenus Author:Grace Meng
“A range of studies shows there is no evidence immigrants commit more crime than native-born Americans. In fact, first generation immigrants are predisposed to lower crime rates than native-born Americans. The two cities in this country most impacted by undocumented immigrants, you would think of the New York City with over 500,000 and Los Angeles, with a similar amount. Both those cities are among the safest in the free world.” ThinkingWorldFirstsTwoCountryFactsShowsBornCitiesStudyGenerationsCrimeNew YorkAmountEvidenceRateCommitRangeNativeImmigrantsLos AngelesNew York CityFree WorldOver 50Crime RatesUndocumented Immigrants Author:Geraldo Rivera
“I think of my father growing up in South Jersey, the son of second-generation German immigrant glassblowers. The opportunities for him of feeling that aspiration, that yearning, get out of the small town, connect to a larger world, get yourself to New York, wanting to play the piano at every opportunity, bonding with people who were on a similar path, ending up in Provincetown, which was kind of nexus for nonconformity, and artistic dropout reality.” PeopleThinkingWorldKindPlayFeelingsRealityFatherOpportunityGrowing UpPathGrowingGenerationsNew YorkSonTownsSouthArtisticPianoAspirationImmigrantsYearningSmall TownJerseyNonconformityBondingDropoutsNexusProvincetown Author:Anne Waldman
“What I love most about New York is that I can walk in the street and nobody is looking at me as if I'm different. In my country and in Italy, you have to choose sides. I was a famous journalist and I was also an immigrant and ultimately I never stopped feeling like I was a guest.” IfsI CanDifferentCountryFeelingsSidesWalksStreetsNew YorkJournalistImmigrantsGuests Author:Rula Jebreal
“I mean, we must act with intelligence. We must work on this framework, so that immigration becomes an asset to both nations. Believe me, what - just the Mayor Bloomberg said here in New York, that this city would be stopped, totally stopped if it were not by the immigrants working here.” IfsBelieveMeanSaidWould BeNationsCitiesNew YorkImmigrationImmigrantsAssetsBelieve In MeFrameworkMayors Author:Vicente Fox
“I'm not someone who's an immigrant who's struggling in that way, but between New York and L.A., I had someone tell me very early on, "If you're going to be broke anywhere, it's better to be broke in L.A. At least the weather is nice." I was like, "You're right." I didn't take them up on that.” IfsWayStruggleNiceNew YorkLike YouWeatherBrokeImmigrants Author:Greta Gerwig
“I am an immigrant in a sense. What happened was that my father was stationed in New York when my mother became pregnant, and she said, "I've got to go to Sweden so this child can be born there, because you don't have any idea where you're going to be transferred next."” ChildrenSaidIdeasMotherNextFatherBornHappenedNew YorkImmigrantsPregnantSweden Author:Claes Oldenburg
“Ed Koch once said that New York City is where immigrants come to audition for America. That's what happened to my parents; that's what happened to me.” SaidAmericaParentCitiesHappenedNew YorkImmigrantsNew York CityAuditions Author:Lin-Manuel Miranda
“I both loved and hated South Pasadena. On the one hand, it was so diverse - all my closest friends were immigrants or had immigrant parents. On the other hand, it was a bit conservative - in a sort of wholesome, Midwestern, small-town sense. I never met a single writer until I moved to New York City for college.” HandsBitsParentCitiesNew YorkCollegeMetsTownsMovedSouthConservativeHatedImmigrantsNew York CityDiverseClosestSmall TownClosest FriendsImmigrant ParentsPasadena Author:Porochista Khakpour
“I lived in a suitcase for a year, and then a relationship brought me to New York for about four months, then I lived in Melbourne. Then I moved back to Gothenburg because the immigrant laws are strict for both Australia and the U.S., and I would have to marry someone to get into those countries. But I wouldn't really be able to get involved in a sham marriage without being able to tell anyone about it.” YearsCountryAbleLawFourNew YorkMonthsInvolvedMovedAustraliaImmigrantsStrictGet InvolvedSuitcasesMelbourne Author:Jens Lekman