Tag: politics
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The Fear Doesn’t Leave When the Agents Do
//WitnessThe immigration raids may have eased in Austin, Minnesota, but the fear they created has not. Children still wonder whether their parents will be home after school, whether they need to carry passports—and whether they can make it safely from the car to the front door.
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That Doesn’t Matter Anymore
//WitnessMiriam had spent much of her life helping others—translating, giving rides, navigating appointments, doing whatever needed to be done. Then one ordinary act of kindness placed her in an encounter that left her terrified, shaken, and questioning something she had always taken for granted: what it meant to be a U.S. citizen.
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The Miracle We Refuse to See
//WitnessJane Graupman has spent nearly four decades helping immigrants and refugees rebuild their lives—and watching Minnesota become stronger because they did. Her story reveals the people behind the politics: health-care workers, separated families, newly arrived refugees, and communities connected from St. Paul to Kakuma.
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Seeing the People Behind the Policy: Why I am creating Witness: The Human Impact of Immigration Enforcement
//WitnessI am creating *Witness* to document the human impact of immigration enforcement through portraits, interviews, and reporting. By sharing these stories, I hope readers better understand lives often hidden behind politics and headlines, and that understanding leads to a more humane conversation. If you have a story that should be part of this project, I…
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They Come Because They Have To. They Contribute Because That’s Who They Are.
//WitnessIn this interview, Laura Cooper cuts through the noise around immigration. We talk about why people leave home, what they face when they arrive, how families rebuild, what immigrants contribute, why citizenship means safety, and why Minnesota was ready to stand up when the pressure came. At the center is a simple truth: immigrants are…
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The Farm They Cannot Leave
//CubaOn a tobacco farm outside Viñales, five generations of one family have worked land they do not own, building a life around horses, tobacco, and spring water. One child left to become a doctor, but for Miguel, Michelle, and Michael, the valley is more than home—it is the place they cannot imagine leaving.
Documentary Photography and Stories 