|
Collecting Personal Stories
*******************************
SPECIAL NOTE: Join the author for a special live event on Tuesday 11/3. Check out the flyer and RSVP NOW to smpa@gwu.edu! *******************************
The stories of immigrants have always fascinated Steven Roberts, the Shapiro Professor of Media and Public Affairs at SMPA. Four years ago, he published a memoir called "My Fathers' Houses," which described his deep connection to his own family's journey from Russia and Poland to the United States.
A major assignment in his Feature Writing course at SMPA asks students to research their family's history -- a topic that is easier for young reporters to investigate, but more importantly, it provides a valuable lesson for the future. Any of the skills taught at SMPA are useless if, like Professor Roberts says, you believe the world "ends at the Potomac River."
Professor Roberts' most recent book, "From Every End of This Earth," chronicles modern tales of US immigration. He draws from the experiences of thirteen families, all hailing from different corners of the globe. Two of the family stories originated from those inside the Feature Writing classroom, while an additional five families found Roberts through his former students.
For Roberts, this book is a realization that the journey his grandparents made is still being made every day in America. In the three years it took to compile the book, Roberts learned that some things about immigration in America hadn't changed at all, and others were completely different. The mother in the Vietnamese family called herself a member of the "sacrificed generation," a term that refers to those who can't identify with the native country or America. At the same time, the family from India is still in contact with their home village via cellular phones, despite the fact there is no running water.
When asked, Roberts denies that the collection of stories has anything to do with the current politics surrounding immigration. Instead, he intends for readers to learn to celebrate the contributions of immigrants throughout America's history.
-- By Gina Orlando, PCM '13
|
