About this Event
Join WFAE for an EQUALibrium Live conversation with Pulitzer Prize-winning author, activist, and filmmaker Jose Antonio Vargas on how we define American and the immigrant narrative in a quickly changing nation.
Vargas founded the nonprofit advocacy organization Define American in 2011, the same year he revealed that he had been concealing a long-held secret. He was an undocumented immigrant, having been sent as a child to live with his grandparents in the United States – a fact he didn’t discover until he tried to obtain a driver’s license in California.
His first book, a memoir called “Dear America: Notes of an Undocumented Citizen” was published in 2018, and his second book, “White Is Not a Country,” is set to publish next year.
Vargas and WFAE Senior Editor Ely Portillo will discuss Vargas’s story, this country’s turbulent immigration landscape, the role of the media in shaping immigrant narratives, and how we define “American” identity.
Event details:
- Date: Sunday, September 24
- Time: 2-3:30 p.m.
- Location: WFAE's Center for Community and Civic Engagement (301 E. 7th St.)
EQUALibrium Live events are made possible by support from Novant Health, Wells Fargo and WFAE members.
About Jose Antonio Vargas
Jose Antonio Vargas is the founder of Define American, named one of the World’s Most Innovative Companies by Fast Company. Define American is a narrative change organization that uses the power of storytelling to humanize conversations about immigrants. We conduct original, cutting-edge research to identify narratives that inspire people to action. Our advocacy within entertainment, digital media, and the arts is creating an America where everyone belongs. Define American was founded in 2011 by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Jose Antonio Vargas and has been named one of the world’s most innovative companies by Fast Company. For more information about our programmatic work, visit defineamerican.com.
About Ely Portillo
Ely Portillo is Senior Editor for News and Planning at WFAE. In this role, he is responsible for planning and editing daily news coverage, as well as working on newsletters, digital content and long-term projects. He also oversees our Race & Equity coverage. A longtime Charlotte journalist, Ely worked at the UNC Charlotte Urban Institute and the Charlotte Observer before coming to WFAE.
Jose Antonio Vargas (left) and Ely Portillo
Event Venue & Nearby Stays
WFAE Uptown, 301 East 7th Street, Charlotte, United States
USD 0.00