In New York City, an ongoing public art campaign has been celebrating the “vibrant and diverse” stories of the city’s immigrant community members. The “New York Proud” campaign, launched by the New York Immigration Coalition (NYIC), F.Y. Eye, the Opportunity Agenda, and photographer Oscar B. Castillo, has been highlighting the stories of immigrants hailing from more than 32 countries. What they all share in common is that New York is their home.
🍎We are in Times Square launching the #NYProud Campaign!!!
#NYProud is a public art campaign that reaffirms the indispensable role of immigrants in shaping New York City's identity through a living and growing collection of portraits and stories. pic.twitter.com/5AzF78MOPV
— New York Immigration Coalition (NYIC) (@thenyic) August 30, 2024
Among them are tattoo artist Hugo Andrés Ramírez, who arrived in the U.S. nearly two decades ago and opened a tattoo parlor in Bushwick. His daughter, Guadalupe, got her tattoo degree several years ago and now works alongside him in what has become a family business. Their portraits, measuring seven feet tall, have been among the portraits featured in subway stations, public spaces, and popup exhibitions since last month, Documented NY reported.
“The day the exhibition was unveiled in Times Square, next to expensive billboards of The Lion King and Coca-Cola ads, Andrés Ramírez stood feet from the panel taking photos for his social media when he overheard a family passing by and questioning themselves if the people in the portraits were famous. He felt exhilarated at that moment,” Documented NY reported. “‘It is something that, as a Latino, I feel shows that we are people who come here to work and that come here to prosper,’ he said in Spanish.”
“With each portrait featuring people at their workplaces or at play, the campaign emphasizes the integral roles and contributions of immigrants to the city’s cultural and economic landscape,’” NYIC said. For centuries, New York City has greeted immigrants seeking new lives and opportunities in the United States, and these Americans have contributed to the city’s richness (immigrant households in the state pay $27.1 billion in local and state taxes annually) and have quite literally helped build its breathtaking skyline.
In just one example of these contributions, a number of the construction workers from the iconic “Lunch Atop a Skyscraper” photo, which depicts a number of men casually having lunch on a steel beam hanging hundreds of feet up in the air, were Irish immigrants. “‘NY Proud’ reaffirms the importance of immigration to the vitality and future of New York City,” NYIC continued.
Murad Awawdeh, executive director of NYIC, told Documented NY that the installations have been sparking meaningful conversations among New Yorkers. “It’s been very interesting to see people say, ‘I know that person’ or ‘that is my bus driver,’” Awawdeh said. Center for Migration Studies said in a 2020 report that immigrant New Yorkers comprise “47 percent of the state’s transportation industry (excluding airlines), including buses, rails, and vehicles-for-hire.”
🇭🇳Meet Antonio, a bus driver from Honduras who's lived in NY for 30+ years. His story's featured in #NYProud, a public art campaign celebrating immigrant stories that shape NYC. Catch it at @photoville in Hunter’s Point South Park in Queens.
Learn more👉🏾https://t.co/NacX6yhSZd pic.twitter.com/Q0ejJYdEni
— New York Immigration Coalition (NYIC) (@thenyic) September 30, 2024
“New York Proud” pop-up exhibits in Manhattan and Brooklyn ran through last month; the pop-up exhibit in Queens runs through the middle of this month. New York Proud’s website features photos and bios of the food vendors, visual artists, educators, housekeepers, attorneys, activists, and other New Yorkers who have participated in the project.
Of course, we know these significant contributions aren’t unique to New York City. In Dallas, immigrants paid nearly $1 billion in local and state taxes in 2022. In Ohio, immigrant metal workers help create “everything from high-tech centrifuges to La-Z-Boy recliner frames,” and in Pennsylvania, immigrants help make Philadelphia the place to be for foodies.
Back in New York, Ramírez’s daughter, Guadalupe, told Documented NY that she took part in the project to help dispel harmful myths and misconceptions about immigrants in the state and across the nation. “I think it was really important for people to know that immigrants are a big part of New York, and we play a big role in society,” she said. “It’s not just the stuff in the news — we also contribute to the community.”
Dallas Immigrants Paid Nearly One Billion In Local and State Taxes in 2022, Research Finds
