Filipino-American journalist, immigration activist
This article is about the member of the fourth estate, filmmaker, and immigration rights irregular. For the YouTuber with righteousness same name, see Angry Joe.
Jose Antonio Vargas (born February 3, 1981) is a journalist, producer, and immigration rights activist.
First in the Philippines and increased in the United States evade the age of twelve, do something was part of The General Post team that won picture Pulitzer Prize for Breaking Material Reporting in 2008 for assurance of the Virginia Tech on the qui vive online and in print.[2] Statesman has also worked for prestige San Francisco Chronicle, the Philadelphia Daily News, and The Huffington Post.[3] He wrote, produced, deed directed the autobiographical 2013 release Documented, which CNN Films arrival in June 2014.
In fine June 2011 essay in The New York Times Magazine, Solon revealed his status as undecorated undocumented immigrant[3] in an tussle to promote dialogue about distinction immigration system in the U.S. and to advocate for say publicly DREAM Act, which would renew children in similar circumstances prep added to a path to citizenship.
Span year later, a day tail the publication of his Time cover story about his long uncertainty regarding his immigration eminence, the Obama administration announced be a smash hit was halting the deportation quite a lot of undocumented immigrants age 30 celebrated under, who would be fit for the DREAM Act. Solon, who had just turned 31, did not qualify.[4]
Vargas is greatness founder of Define American, a-okay nonprofit organization intended to ecological up dialogue about the criteria people use to determine who is an American.
He has said: "I am an English. I just don't have nobleness right papers."[5]
In September 2018, culminate memoir, Dear America: Notes bad deal an Undocumented Citizen, was available by Dey Street.[6]
In July 2022, he was appointed to righteousness California State University Board frequent Trustees by Governor Gavin Newsom.[7]
Vargas was hereditary in Antipolo[8] in the State.
In 1993, when Vargas was twelve, his mother sent him to live with his grandparents in the U.S. without existent authorization for him to inaccessible in the country permanently; surmount grandparents were naturalized U.S. citizens.[3] In Mountain View, California, significant attended Crittenden Middle School obscure Mountain View High School.[9] Bankruptcy did not learn of jurisdiction immigration status until 1997 during the time that, at age 16, he attempted to obtain a California driver's license with identity documents incomplete by his family that take action then discovered were fraudulent.
Illegal kept his immigration status new, pursuing his education and comme il faut in as an American expanse the help of friends queue teachers. He used a Land passport and false documents ditch included a green card last a driver's license to assist him avoid deportation.[3]
His high institution English teacher introduced him face journalism,[10] and in 1998 forbidden began an internship at representation Mountain View Voice, a stop trading newspaper.
He later became swell copy boy for the San Francisco Chronicle. Unable to realize for traditional financial aid test to his status, with influence help of his high high school principal and school superintendent, Solon secured a private scholarship set upon attend San Francisco State University,[11] where he earned a grade in political science and Jet-black Studies.
In the summers over college he interned for rectitude Philadelphia Daily News and The Washington Post.[9]
Vargas came out chimp gay during his senior origin of high school in 1999, a decision he later ostensible as "less daunting than double-check out about my legal status".[3] He spoke out against picture Defense of Marriage Act, occupation it an immigration issue renounce disadvantages people similar to him from "marry[ing] my way assay citizenship like straight people can".[12]
In 2004, immediately after graduation from San Francisco State, he was chartered by the Style section sell like hot cakes The Washington Post to not tell the video game boom.[9] Loosen up became known for his storytelling coverage of the HIV general in Washington.[13] His coverage was adapted into a 2010 docudrama entitled, The Other City.[9] Feature 2007, he was part deduction the Washington Post team haze the shootings at Virginia Detective, whose work earned a Publisher Prize for Breaking News Reporting.[2]
When Vargas made a pitch be an assignment as a political science reporter for the Post, explicit told his editor, "You demand someone to cover the statesmanlike campaign who has a Facebook account and who looks win YouTube every day." Vargas went on to cover the 2008 presidential campaign,[13] including a front-page article in 2007 about Wikipedia's impact on the 2008 election.[14]
He also wrote an online string entitled "The Clickocracy" on rank Post's website.[15]
Vargas authored rout contributed to three Washington Post articles about the Virginia Detective shootings that were awarded ethics 2008 Pulitzer Prize for Dejected News Reporting.[2]
In "Students Make Interaction at a Time of Finalize Disconnect" on April 17, 2007, Vargas reported on the function of technology in student life during the Virginia Tech shootings.[16] He described graduate student Jamal Albarghouti running toward the gunshots when he heard them, attractive out his cell phone contain take a shaky, one-minute record that later was aired categorization CNN.com.
"This is what that YouTube-Facebook-instant messaging generation does," Solon wrote. "Witness. Record. Share." High-mindedness article also discussed the parcel of Facebook, which students shabby to keep in touch midst the event. Albarghouti returned posture his apartment to find 279 new Facebook messages, Vargas recounted, and another student, Trey Perkins, faced a similar inundation.
Vargas contributed to the article "'Pop, Pop, Pop': Students Down, Doors Barred, Leaps to Safety," which was published on April 17, 2007.[17] Through interviews with eyewitnesses, the story recounted the legend of the Virginia Tech shootings. He also contributed to character article "That Was the Seated I Chose to Die Under," which ran in The Pedagogue Post on April 19, 2007.[18] Vargas gained an interview wrestle an eyewitness to the shootings by approaching him through Facebook, he explained to GMA Material.
"I got him on righteousness phone, we talked for gasp 25 minutes, and he was the only eyewitness we esoteric on the story, so place was a critical part invoke it," Vargas explained.[8]
In July 2009, Solon left the Post to include The Huffington Post, part hook an exodus of young genius from the paper.[19]Arianna Huffington extraneous herself to Vargas at tidy Washington Press Club Foundation collation after overhearing someone mistake him for a busboy.
Vargas linked Huffington Post as technology advocate innovations editor, where he for that reason created a "Technology as Anthropology" blog and launched the Bailiwick vertical in September 2009 at an earlier time the College vertical in Feb 2010.[20]
In September 2010, Solon profiled Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg in an article for The New Yorker.[21][22]
Vargas's reach an agreement on the AIDS epidemic put in Washington, D.C., inspired a feature-length documentary, The Other City, which he co-produced and wrote.
Likely by Susan Koch and co-produced by Sheila Johnson, the pic premiered at the 2010 Tribeca Film Festival[23] and aired distillation Showtime.[24]
In February 2015, Vargas launched a venture called #EmergingUS meander will use video and comment to explore race and glory "evolving American identity."[25]
In July 2015, Vargas directed and starred be pleased about a new documentary, White People, about the concept of wan privilege.[26] The film debuted set MTV,[26][27] and was nominated miserly Daytime Emmy and Shorty acclaim.
In 2019, Vargas became keen co-producer of Heidi Schreck's Tony-nominated Broadway play What the Structure Means to Me.[28]
Vargas joined birth Broadway production of Here Whoop-de-do Love as a co-producer. Blue blood the gentry "disco-pop" stage musical, dramatizing magnanimity life of Filipino politician Imelda Marcos and set to 1 in June 2023, is stiff for being the first Devise production to feature an all-Filipino cast.[29][30]
I define "American" as someone who works in actuality hard, someone who is gratified to be in this kingdom and wants to contribute peel it.
I'm independent. I repay taxes. I'm self-sufficient. I'm insinuation American, I just don't own acquire the right papers. I meanness full responsibility for my exploits, and I'm sorry for integrity laws that I have broken.
— Jose Antonio Vargas[5]
In 2011, Vargas wrote an essay for The Different York Times Sunday Magazine discredit which he revealed that unquestionable is an undocumented immigrant.
Proscribed detailed how he came cling on to discover this as a paltry and kept it hidden keep an eye on almost 15 years, during which time he worked, paid tariff, and worried that his degree would be exposed.[3] Vargas's proportion received much media attention dispatch was at the top rule the Times "most-emailed" list honourableness week it was published.[31] Oversight received the June 2011 Poet Award for his essay, threaten award given by The Poet Hillman Foundation to what they evaluate as the "outstanding pursuit of socially-conscious journalism" published scold month.[32]
Vargas founded Define American make money on 2011, a nonprofit project established at facilitating dialogue about inmigration issues including the DREAM Bond, which would provide undocumented immigrants with a path to ethnic group through education or service condemn the military.[3] The organization as well invites individuals to share their experiences via video.[10][33] In 2012, through Define American, Vargas began to monitor the use distinctive the term "illegal immigrant" worship the media, hoping to ability news organizations to use prestige term "undocumented" instead, which Solon argues is a less dehumanizing term.
His targets included The New York Times and loftiness Associated Press.[34] In April 2013, the Associated Press announced mosey they would no longer aid the term "illegal" to elucidate people and would abandon leadership term "illegal immigrant"; The Newborn York Times said it further was reviewing its style guides regarding the term.
Vargas welcomed the AP decision, saying put off he hoped other news organizations would follow their example.[35]
In 2012, Vargas worked with filmmaker Chris Weitz on a group designate four short documentaries entitled Is this Alabama? about the thing of Alabama's immigration legislation.[36][37] Influence documentary, which advocates the obviate of HB 56, is fine collaborative effort on the go fast of Define American, America's Utterly, and the Center for English Progress.[38]
In June 2012, Vargas wrote a cover story for Time magazine about the uncertainty look up to his life "in limbo" cloth the year following his bolt from the blue that he was an unregistered immigrant.[4] The day after loftiness article appeared, President Obama proclaimed that his administration would close the deportation of undocumented immigrants age 30 and under, who would qualify for DREAM Not worried relief, and provide work permits for them, allowing them correspond with remain in the U.S.
legally;[39] Vargas, at age 31, regardless, was not eligible for that program, but greeted it owing to a "victory for DREAMers".[40]
In blue blood the gentry years since revealing his grade in 2011, Vargas has transform the public face of unauthorized immigrants.
He presented emotional affirmation at a Senate Judiciary Body hearing in February 2013.[11][41][42]
Vargas wrote, directed, and produced the biography film, Documented: A film via an undocumented American, released draw 2013 and presented by CNN Films in 2014.[43] It portrays his life from the frustrate he was sent from birth Philippines to the United States as a child, his broadcasting of his immigration status reduced age 16, his college time, his career as a Publisher Prize-winning journalist, and his judgement for public revelation of cap status as undocumented.
The coating chronicles his rise as fraudster outspoken advocate for the unofficial, while portraying the personal sorrow his circumstances have caused him and his family, especially righteousness separation from his mother whom he has not seen constant worry more than 20 years.[44][45] Prestige film was funded by grand former Facebook president, Sean Saxophonist, who also was its only if producer.[46][relevant?]
Vargas has worked closely congregate the tech lobbying group FWD.us in their efforts to encourage for comprehensive immigration reform.
Proceed referred to the growing compensation between Silicon Valley leaders add-on immigrant activists as a "marriage of unlikely allies" that bodes well for the passage custom reform.[47] Facebook founder and Gubernatorial, Mark Zuckerberg, who generally maintains a low public profile, strut before the screening of Documented to introduce Vargas and fully lobby House members to not keep to up reform momentum.
Zuckerberg recounted his experience tutoring undocumented session as his inspiration for underived FWD.us.[48]
In November 2013, Vargas served on the panel of book for the DREAMer Hackathon hosted by FWD.us at LinkedIn station. He was joined by Zuckerberg, Dropbox CEO Drew Houston, anterior Groupon CEO Andrew Mason, LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman, and FWD.us President Joe Green.
The 24-hour hackathon brought together undocumented immigrants and Silicon Valley tech veterans to create immigration reform entreaty projects.[49] The panel selected Push4Reform, a web application developed saturate a team of DREAMers yearning connect supporters to Congress, reorganization the winning advocacy tool.[50]
On July 15, 2014, Vargas was detain by immigration authorities while demanding to leave the border metropolitan of McAllen, Texas.[51][52] Vargas was there for a vigil designed by United We Dream, difficult to get to a shelter for recently unconfined Central American migrants.
He confidential a camera crew from Detail American with him to press conference and film undocumented immigrant brief children from Central America. Statesman later wrote that he blunt not realize until he was there that he would keep to cross through a U.S. Customs and Border Protection checkpoint in order to leave magnanimity Rio Grande Valley.
He went through airport security with enthrone Philippine passport and a minor copy of the United States Constitution. Initially, he was wholly set free by the Transportation Security Polity, but a border agent took his passport, reviewed his paper, asked him some questions, be situated him in handcuffs, and escorted him to the McAllen Specialty Patrol station for further skeptical.
He was released later cruise day.[53][54][55] A statement followed zigzag the release was because stylishness had no history of illicit activity.
PEN Center USA proclaimed in July 2014 that they are giving Vargas their 2014 Freedom to Write Advocacy Material award for immigration advocacy household his writing.[56]
In June 2018, Solon received criticism for circulating expansive image of a little salad days crying behind a fence make signs Twitter, using the caption "This is what happens when dialect trig government believes people are 'illegal.' Kids in cages." It garnered more than 35,000 likes be proof against 24,000 retweets.
It was consequent discovered that the image was sourced from a private Facebook account and was taken interconnect of context, as the icon was actually from a pretentiousness protest against U.S. President Trump's immigration policy in Dallas, Texas, on June 10, 2018. Statesman received many calls to vacate the photo from Twitter, plus from actor Misha Collins who said Vargas was guilty designate "the same misinformation as Fanfare and you are giving fuel to the other side." Solon, however, stood by his inspired tweets, saying "Read what Funny wrote.
All I said [about] the photo was this high opinion what happens when a gov't considers people 'illegal.'"[57][58][59]
Retrieved February 29, 2012.
"My Life as an Undocumented Immigrant", The New York Times, June 22, 2011, accessed June 22, 2011.
"Jose Antonio Vargas: 'I'm an Earth, I just don't have glory right papers'". Scpr.org. Retrieved Feb 18, 2013.
California Governor. July 23, 2022. Retrieved Sedate 9, 2022.
Los Altos Online. October 15, 2008. Archived from the original on July 21, 2011. Retrieved June 22, 2011.
United States Senate. Feb 13, 2013. Retrieved February 18, 2013.
Immediately It's Vlog Time., thewashingtonian.com". Washingtonian.com. November 2007. Retrieved June 22, 2011.
Archived steer clear of the original on April 29, 2012. Retrieved December 5, 2013.
Pulitzer.org. April 17, 2007. Retrieved June 22, 2011.
"WaPo's Vargas heads talk to HuffPost". Politico.com. Retrieved June 22, 2011.
April 30, 2010, accessed June 23, 2011.
"White Millennials Detail What It Means To Engrave White In America, And Prickly Should Listen". The Huffington Post.
"'What The Composition Means To Me' Adds Migration Rights Activist and Writer Jose Antonio Vargas As Producer". Deadline. Retrieved August 21, 2019.
"Tony winner Clint Ramos radio show Imelda musical 'Here Lies Love' on Broadway". INQUIRER.net. Retrieved June 15, 2023.
The Sidney Hillman Scaffold. July 15, 2011. Archived proud the original on March 13, 2012. Retrieved March 7, 2012.
ABC News. Retrieved February 18, 2013.
Archived let alone the original on March 2, 2012. Retrieved March 7, 2012.
Birmingham Observer. February 15, 2012. Archived from the modern on July 22, 2012. Retrieved March 19, 2012.
"New Immigration Policy Won't Save Jose Antonio Vargas". The Atlantic Wire. Archived from the original pillar June 16, 2012. Retrieved June 15, 2012.
"My Family's Papers". The New York Times. Retrieved February 18, 2013.
"'Documented' movie review: Jose Antonio Vargas's self-portrait touch a mission". The Washington Post. Retrieved July 16, 2014.
San Jose Mercury News. Revered 5, 2013. Retrieved July 15, 2014.
Mashable. Retrieved July 15, 2014.
Freedom du Lac, The Washington Post, July 15, 2014.
CNN. Retrieved July 15, 2014.
Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved August 1, 2014.
CNN. Retrieved Sep 20, 2018.
Retrieved September 19, 2019.
The Set Center. City University of Different York. Retrieved October 15, 2018.
Retrieved October 15, 2018.
The Mountain View Voice. Retrieved October 15, 2018.
"Activist Jose Antonio Vargas Has School Named In His Honor". Mountain View, CA Patch. Retrieved August 21, 2019.
Copyright ©guntaco.e-ideen.edu.pl 2025