Jose Antonio Vargas
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joseiswriting.bsky.social
Jose Antonio Vargas
@joseiswriting.bsky.social
Founder of @defineamerican
Co-founder, @1587sneakers
📚: White Is Not a Country, Dear America
🎭: Here Lies love
🎓: Vargas Elementary, CSU Board
Today marks my 32nd year in what James Baldwin calls “these yet to be United States.”

We all need to keep talking about solutions to our immigration problems. We cannot keep throwing our own tax dollars—billions of it!
August 3, 2025 at 7:07 PM
We need real solutions for our broken immigration system from both Democrats and Republicans.
July 24, 2025 at 7:17 PM
Telling the stories of im/migrants with nuance and complexity has been my life’s work — and it began with my own.

Because of America’s broken immigration system, I was physically separated from my mother and sister for 31 years.

We reunited at last.

Watch our story now: youtu.be/D26-QdVWOXU?...
May 8, 2025 at 8:57 PM
Don Graham — former Washington Post publisher and co-founder of thedream.us — has spent decades advocating for undocumented students who grew up in the U.S. without a clear path to citizenship.

Watch the full episode now on youtube.com/DefineAmerican
April 29, 2025 at 8:06 PM
Last week, I joined a panel on CNN NewsNight with Abby Phillip. Ashley Allison shared that I was the first undocumented person she met as a public servant.

She made an important point: when you understand people’s stories and humanize them, they stop being reduced to stereotypes.
January 27, 2025 at 8:39 PM
After 31 years, 4 months, and 28 days—11,473 days—I’m finally documented.

To watch the full episode of this journey, head over to YouTube.com/defineamerican or wherever you listen to podcasts.
January 19, 2025 at 8:43 PM
Thank you Yosimar for bravely shedding light on the harsh reality many undocumented families face when navigating the painful decisions of forced ‘self-deportation.’ Watch the full episode, ‘Poet Yosimar Reyes on Making Space for Art Amidst Panic and Gloom,’ on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, & Spotify.
January 16, 2025 at 3:07 AM
Cesar Espinosa, co-founder of FIEL — the largest immigrant-led civil rights organization in Houston — reminds us, we must not only support but truly embody our values by fighting and physically showing up for our undocumented families.

Watch the full episode YouTube.com/DefineAmerican
January 14, 2025 at 2:41 AM