Arts & Entertainment
Appleton Public Library: Inspiring Meaningful Conversations About Immigration
Wisconsin-based journalist Bill Berry and Pulitzer-Prize photographer Gary Porter worked with WHC to capture their stories.
August 12, 2021
Immigrant Journeys from South of the Border ¡Mi travesĂa hasta Wisconsin! exhibition will open Monday, August 16. We'll be celebrating the exhibit with a public unveiling event Monday from 6:00-7:00 pm.
Find out what's happening in Appletonfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
The exhibit, created by the Wisconsin Humanities Council (WHC) in partnership with Centro Hispano, features eight personal stories from Wisconsinites who immigrated here from Colombia, Honduras, Mexico, and Uruguay. Wisconsin-based journalist Bill Berry and Pulitzer-Prize photographer Gary Porter worked with WHC to capture their stories.
Immigrant Journeys from South of the Border ¡Mi travesĂa hasta Wisconsin! is touring statewide this year and will be on our first floor from August 16 – August 29.
Find out what's happening in Appletonfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
“While at the national level, immigration of people from Mexico, Central and South America is being hotly debated, here in Wisconsin many of us have had little opportunity to meet immigrants from these nations, and to add that kind of personal knowledge to our understanding of the policy discussion,” said Dena Wortzel, Executive Director of the Wisconsin Humanities Council. “The humanities help us deepen our understanding of individual lives and how each of us fits into the larger whole. That’s our goal with this exhibit, which shares stories of people whose lives may not be well understood or visible to many of their Wisconsin neighbors.”
In addition to the exhibit, we are welcoming the community to participate in a 30-day reflective journal. The journals were designed by local artist Marisol Encarnacion and will be available near the exhibit starting Monday. The journals are intended to provide community members with a safe space to reflect on their experiences.
"We need to see and listen with more than just our eyes and ears. We need to see, listen, and act with our minds and hearts. Besides empathy and compassion, we need to value the human spirit of each human being for the greater good of every individual, community, and beyond," said Marisol Encarnacion, local artist and library partner.
This press release was produced by the Appleton Public Library. The views expressed here are the author’s own.
