Northeast: Brain Waste Drags Down Immigrants And Economy
All along Bustleton Avenue are businesses built by foreign-born people who came to the U.S. in pursuit of a better life. Yet many highly educated and skilled immigrants are underemployed in Northeast Philadelphia and the U.S. “Over 40 percent of immigrants in Philadelphia hold at least a bachelor’s degree,” said Nikki Pumphrey, director of strategic […]
Northeast Philadelphia: A Home For Immigrants To Live
Since the ’80s, neighborhoods such as Bustleton, Somerton and Fox Chase have become a haven for Eastern European immigrants. Signs written in Russian can be seen throughout Bustleton Avenue, which hosts many immigrant businesses. One immigrant business featured along a strip mall at 9859 Bustleton Ave. is Palace Royal, a kosher restaurant owned by Ukrainian […]
Bustleton: Immigrant Businesses Booming Along Bustleton Avenue
Northeast Philadelphia has become a home for small immigrant businesses. Shopping centers along Bustleton Avenue feature many thriving businesses owned by immigrants from all over the world. With his restaurant not even two months old, Georgian Bread owner Imeda Londaridze looks forward to giving customers a taste from his old country. Despite his excitement to […]
Fox Chase: Survivor Of Danube Swabian Ethnic Cleansing Shares Her Story
Since the Danube Swabian Association moved to Fox Chase in 1972 it has been dedicated to passing on its Germanic culture and history, as well as honoring the memory of those lost to the ethnic cleansing in Yugoslavia in the 1940s. One Danube Swabian member, 89-year-old Katharina Marx, is a survivor of ethnic cleansing. Marx […]
Kingsessing: AFRICOM Serves As Center Of African Immigrant Community
Eric Edi arrived in the United States in 1999 from his native Ivory Coast during a turbulent time in many West African countries. Conflicts in countries such as Liberia, Sudan and Eritrea left many refugees seeking shelter in the United States. Edi was attending Temple University on a Fulbright scholarship when he found out about […]
Germantown: From Liberia To Philadelphia, Strengthening Community With History And Art
Trapeta Mayson has lived in the Germantown community for 20 years. She has served as the executive director at Historic Germantown since August 2014 and feels like it is a perfect fit for her interests. Mayson was born in Liberia before immigrating to the United States in May 1975 with her parents, Rebecca and Lysander, […]
Fishtown: Tapping Into The Life Of An Irish Evil Genius
Trevor Hayward left his home in Ireland and came to the United States in 2007 to continue his education. He is now the co-owner of Evil Genius Beer Company, which opened March 8, 2017 on Front Street in Fishtown. Hayward, 33, lived in Portmarnock, which is near Dublin, for the first 23 years of his life. […]
Logan Square: Peace Advocate Empowers Others To Protest Immigration Order
Kerri Kennedy is the associate general secretary for international programs at the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) located on Cherry Street in Logan Square. While AFSC does not normally stage protests, Kennedy and the agency organized the Philadelphia March for Humanity on Feb. 3 to express disapproval of President Donald Trump’s executive order banning travel to the U.S. for passport holders from seven Muslim-majority […]
South Philadelphia: Charles Santore Library Offers Help to Immigrants
Jean Solar came to the United States from Chile two years ago. Despite his professional training as an engineer in his home country, Solar has been unable to secure a work visa in the United States and is struggling to assimilate to the culture. He hopes that by spending time learning English and exploring the city, he […]
Center City: Immigrant, Refugee Service Program Provides Support for Victims of Torture
ABOVE: Gretchen Shanfeld (left), director of Health and Wellness at the Nationalities Service Center, and Cathy Jeong stand in front of a tapestry created by 30 immigrants from Bhutan, a country in the Himalayan Mountains. The tapestry, which is about 10 feet long, details some of the country’s culture and was made in a group-art-therapy program […]