Immigration and Journalism

This program was originally scheduled for February 28.

The McLean Contributionship Philadelphia Evening Bulletin Endowed Lecture Series at Temple University Libraries' Special Collections Research Center.

Join us for a program honoring the McLean Contributionship’s long-standing commitment to the field of journalism and supporting access to our Philadelphia Evening Bulletin Collection. The McLean Contributionship Philadelphia Evening Bulletin Endowed Lecture Series at Temple University Libraries' Special Collections Research Center aims to reflect on the past, present, and future of American journalism, history, and culture.  

In this installment, Dr. Heather Levi, professor in the College of Liberal Arts at Temple University, will moderate a panel on immigration coverage in journalism. Panelists include: 

• Laura Benshoff, public radio reporter and producer
• Jeff Gammage, reporter, The Philadelphia Inquirer 
• Erika Guadalupe Núñez, executive director, Juntos 
• Blanca Pacheco, co-director, New Sanctuary Movement 

About the speakers:

Laura Benshoff is a reporter and audio producer based in Philadelphia. She has worked in public media for a decade, first for Philadelphia member station WHYY and then with NPR. Her work has also appeared in The Philadelphia Inquirer and on the podcast Reveal, from The Center for Investigative Reporting. She crisscrosses many beats but is particularly interested in stories at the intersections of migration, climate and the economy. 

Jeff Gammage covers immigration for The Philadelphia Inquirer, where he was part of the five-reporter team that won the 2012 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service. He’s the author of China Ghosts: My Daughter's Journey to America, My Passage to Fatherhood, and has written about international adoption for publications including The New York Times. He’s a graduate of James Madison University and a recipient of the school’s Ronald E. Carrier Distinguished Alumni Achievement Award. 

Heather Levi is an assistant professor of instruction in cultural anthropology at Temple University, where she has taught the course Immigration and the American Dream for the past ten years. Her primary research interests include Mexican urban popular culture, gender and sexuality, and the anthropology of food. She is the author of The World of Lucha Libre: Secrets, Revelations and Mexican National Identity (Duke University Press) and co-editor of Professional Wrestling: Politics and Populism (Seagull Press). She has a PhD in Anthropology from New York University.

Erika Guadalupe Núñez is a queer immigrant, artist, and cultural organizer currently serving as the Executive Director of JUNTOS. After emigrating from Mexico at a young age with her mother, Erika Guadalupe grew up sin papeles and eventually sin miedo which inspired her work as a community organizer for immigrant rights in both local and national campaigns since 2011. She is a member of Mijente’s Leadership Circle and has been recognized for both her cultural work and community organizing via various awards and fellowships: GALAEI’s David Acosta Revolutionary Leadership Award in 2015, the Leeway Art & Change Grant in 2015 and 2017, and the Leeway Transformation Award in 2017. Recent fellowships have included the Knight Foundation’s Emerging City Champions Fellowship and the Advocacy Leadership Institute with the National Association of Latino Arts and Cultures (NALAC). 

Blanca Pacheco is a passionate community organizer, single mother, and community leader with over 15 years of experience organizing with immigrant communities in Philadelphia.  A founding New Sanctuary Movement (NSM) member and now its co-director, she co-created and led Know Your Rights trainings at immigrant faith congregations around Philadelphia. She has worked on storytelling projects with different immigrant communities to empower, build connections, and lift immigrant voices. As a community organizer, she has worked on successful campaigns to stop collaboration between Philadelphia Police and ICE and helped win Sanctuary campaigns for families choosing to challenge final deportation orders. She is currently one of the leaders in the state of Pennsylvania fighting for a driver’s license for all regardless of immigration status.  

This program will be presented via Zoom. On the day of the program, use this link to join: https://temple.zoom.us/j/95866380839

The McLean Contributionship Philadelphia Evening Bulletin Endowed Lecture Series is generously supported by The McLean Contributionship. 

Our programs are geared toward a general audience and are open to all, including Temple students, faculty, staff, alumni, neighbors, and friends. Registration is encouraged.