Posts by Rachel Perić
‘Welcoming is possible’: Opening remarks at the Welcoming Interactive 2024
Editor’s note: Following are remarks by Rachel Perić, executive director of Welcoming America, delivered on April 11, 2024 at the opening plenary of the 2024 Welcoming Interactive conference in Dallas, Texas. It has been lightly edited for web publication. Welcome to the Welcoming Interactive. What a mighty room! Give yourself a round of applause. Thank…
Read MoreIlluminating our shared humanity: Opening remarks from the 2023 Welcoming Interactive
Editor’s note: Following are remarks by Rachel Perić, executive director of Welcoming America, delivered on April 27, 2023 at the opening plenary of the Welcoming Interactive conference in San José, California. It has been edited for web publication. We are so glad to be here in San José and see the incredible leadership of this…
Read MoreFarewell, Isha: Parting words from our deputy director
Editor’s note: Isha Lee, deputy director of Welcoming America, is departing the organization after eight years of service. During her tenure, Americans faced some of the most momentous challenges to our well-being and democracy and witnessed profound transformations within the fields of immigration and belonging. Isha came to Welcoming America in 2015 as the first…
Read MoreYes, welcoming is hard, but not impossible: a response to the crisis narrative of the migrant situation in the U.S.
When someone chooses to make our community home, flattery — not indignation — should be our response. If they, like my own family, have traveled thousands of miles, fled an oppressive regime, and want to work so they can feed their family, consider yourself doubly flattered, because it means you’ve done great work creating a…
Read MoreWhat we hope to hear on immigration in Biden’s first State of the Union address
A year ago, I wrote this celebratory post, commending the Biden Administration’s announcement that it would stand up the Task Force on New Americans, a mechanism for the federal government to advance a vision of full belonging for immigrant Americans and one that has existed since the Bush administration. A year later, the Administration faces…
Read MoreA message on Ukraine and welcoming
Dear welcomers, Our thoughts today are with the people of Ukraine, and all those whose lives are uprooted because of the ever- present forces in our world that believe that domination — rather than democracy — is the path forward. As the granddaughter of Holocaust survivors from Europe, and as the spouse of a survivor…
Read MoreA Note from Our Executive Director
Dear welcomers, As we enter 2022 in great flux, one constant is the durable power of welcoming infrastructure. As Afghans, Haitians, and other new arrivals join communities — and as communities look to forge trust and equitable policy and practice — we’ll be here to support our 300+ local partners to build lasting local infrastructure…
Read More“Welcome to the U.S.A. – You’re Hired!”: A Foreword
Editor’s note: This foreword was republished with permission from Betsy Cohen, author of the book “Welcome to the U.S.A. You’re Hired: A Guide for Foreign-born People Seeking Jobs” which released in September 2021. Elizabeth “Betsy” Cohen is the Executive Director of the St. Louis Mosaic Project of the World Trade Center-St. Louis, a Welcoming Network…
Read MoreReflecting on the 20th anniversary of 9/11
As Welcoming Week 2021 kicks off this week with joyous celebrations across the world — virtually and in-person — we also take a moment of silence today to reflect on the lives lost on September 11, 2001. I recall 9/11 vividly, when the world changed irrevocably. Sitting at my desk across the Potomac River, I…
Read MoreReflecting on what it means—and what it will take—to be truly welcoming
In coming months, Welcoming America will be revisiting the Welcoming Standard—the guiding document for communities aspiring to be inclusive places for immigrants and all residents. You can explore the Welcoming Standard to see the kinds of policies and practices that communities should have in place. We also know that there are many factors that go…
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