The Bowling Green Greyhound bus station has stayed the same for the last 29 years yet new people come and go every day.
The Bowling Green Greyhound bus station has stayed the same for the last 29 years yet new people come and go every day.
Jose watches fireworks from his rooftop on July 4th. For weeks after his imprisonment, he suffered from nightmares and sleepless nights. But he remains positive and says that achieving his full citizenship is his number one priority. “I will continue to do the right things with my family and I will become a U.S. citizen in no time.”
More than a week after the arrest of her father Jose (who is a green card holder), Natalie Garcia tries to console her daughter Marley outside their home in Arleta, California from which Jose was taken. He had been watering his lawn and preparing for a shift driving for Uber, one of his three jobs, when ICE officials detained him for deportation for a charge from two decades ago. Since his arrest, Marley has slept in his bed and lays out his clothes each day to pretend that he is there.
Once a month, the Warren County Jail allows local churches to come to the facility to hold a baptism service for inmates who wish to participate. Part of Miles’ job is to coordinate with local groups, like churches, recovery groups, local businesses, and a community college
In the thirteen years that Jorge and Christina Zaldivar have been married, the family has been fighting for Jorge’s legal residency in the U.S. With a changing administration and an increasing focus on ICE and immigration policies, the family fears that Jorge’s time in the U.S. will soon be up.
Ballard began documenting the family during her summer internship at The Denver Post. See the entire story here.
WKUPJ student Gabriel Scarlett was interviewed by the Alexia Foundation about his project, Flock of Doves, which explores “the intersection of gang violence and a community of voices demanding change in Pueblo, Colorado.” Scarlett, a senior in the photojournalism program, elaborated on how the project came to be, his goals for the project, and his future endeavors in the world of photojournalism. You can read Scarlett’s full interview here
Julian Rodriguez plays with his son Christopher at their home on Pueblo’s East Side. Julian’s decades long struggle with addiction brought him intimately close to the gang operations as he often bought from and sold for the gangs in order to support his own addiction. With his son, Christopher on the way, he achieved sobriety and had his facial skeleton tattooed to remember his commitment to his son and to commemorate his brother “Bone Head” who was killed in a shootout with the police. “Everything that I desire and want in this life is for that boy.” Christopher will grow up on the East Side, in Duke territory, but Julian hopes that a loving relationship with his father can keep him from that lifestyle. | Gabriel Scarlett
Michelle Hanks has been chosen to attend the Danish School of Media and Journalism this spring as part of an exchange program used to give students a chance of engaging in visual storytelling internationally. The program, now in its 5th year, as brought students from Denmark to attend classes at WKU and in return has sent several of our students to Denmark for a semester.
Hanks, from Chattanooga, TN, is in her Junior year as a Photojournalism major.
This Fall Hanks documented Natasha a young mother battling with recovery with the hope of getting custody of her 4-month old baby. Her child was taken away from her four days after birth, because of her addiction to drugs.
Below are some of our favorite photos from this week’s Through Our Eyes. Each week the selections are chosen by WKUPJ students. Stay tuned for more to come!
First Place
Rango, 33, squeezes back into the Mexico side of the border in La Playa in Tijuana, Baja California. Rango, who recently was living in the United States illegally was deported to Mexico after living most of his life in Sacramento. He demonstrated to a group of friends how easy someone can squeeze through the border fence. After people recorded videos of him on the San Diego side, he struggled to get back onto the Mexico side of the border. The day before, a Tijuana resident who was also deported commented “I may cross the border just one more time. When I was first deported they took my tablet, phone, wallet, clothes, nikes, X-Box, everything I own. I just want to see the beach again on the other side. I just want to see my family living in the United States. Making an affordable income and living life without having to be as cautious,” another deported citizen said.| Michael Blackshire
Below are some of our favorite photos from this week’s Through Our Eyes. Each week the selections are chosen by WKUPJ students. Stay tuned for more to come!
First Place
Saran Thompson got vitiligo when he was 23-years-old, he’s now 28. Thompson is a hip-hop and spoken word artist who uses his platform to provide representation for young kids who might be dealing with vitiligo as well. “The key is to be unapologetically you. When you are comfortable in your skin the thoughts of people will change. What stays consistent is what you think of yourself,” he said. | Ebony Cox
Runner Up
Austin Minton, 22, is an engineering student at Vermont Thread Gage and is dressed up as Jason Vorhees part 6 version at the Vette City Con in Bowling Green, Ky., At the National Corvette Museum on Sat. Jan 26, 2019. Minton has a background of being bullied as a kid and chose his favorite slasher villian. “Jason taught me to not let the bullies get to you,” said Minton. “Be yourself and don’t try to be like everyone. Be who you are.” This is Minton’s second year at the Vette City Con and comes to these events to show support to other creators and his passion for it. | Tyger Williams
Honorable Mentions
James Muchina was our driver for the trip. We blistered up and down the red dirt roads for 18 days so many of us developed an attachment to James and our van. To the kids, James and his van meant the Americans were coming to the village. This is an artists rendition of our van titled, “America Car.” | Reed Mattison