OWLS

Delve into the multifaceted issue of immigration from national, local, legal and personal viewpoints. We will explore Immigration policy, considerations as to why people are emigrating to the United States and the processes (legal and social) and challenges immigrants and refugees encounter.  Learn more about the hurdles that immigrants face from the below speakers as well as how the City of Columbus welcomes and helps immigrants as explained by Maria Cortez, the city’s assistant director of Community Affairs; and by Andrew Gifford of the national Church World Services (the Columbus office). 

 Reanne Frank, Ph.D., a professor in Sociology at OSU, undertakes research on the migration process and on racial and ethnic inequality influences on demographic outcomes.   She focuses on the contemporary immigrant population in the U.S. (especially the Latine sub-population), covering issues of fertility and child bearing, family formation patterns, COVID-19 mortality, racial identity and discrimination, language use, residential attainment and health disparities. 

 Tariq Tarey is the director of Refugee Social Services at Columbus’ Jewish Family Services and he serves on theNew African Immigrants Commission (Ohio) and on the New American Advisory Council (Franklin County Board ofCommissioner).  He is also a documentary photographer and film maker whose works, including those on the plight of Somali refugees, have been exhibited at the Kiaca Gallery, Ohio History Connection, Wright State University, R. B. Hayes Museum     and Otterbein University. Several of his images are in the permanent collection of the Columbus Museum of Art.  His filmshave been shown on WOSU and at the 2nd U.S. Conference on African Immigrant and Refugee Health.  He has won awards from the Ohio Museums Association, South Side Settlement House and the local arts councils (Ohio and Greater Columbus).

 As a staff attorney at Community Refugees & Immigration Services (CRIS), Vincent Wells has played a pivotal rolein providing legal assistance to Afghan evacuees during the recent crisis in their home country, ensuring that these refugeehave equal access to justice and can navigate the intricate legal system in the United States.  An advocate for the rights ofvulnerable populations, he is an integral part of CRIS Legal Services that supports thousands of refugees and immigrants.

 He earned the Excellence in Public Service Award from the OSU Moritz College of Law’s Public Interest Law Foundation.