We Are Home Becoming American in the 21st Century: an Oral History

From a veteran broadcaster and historian comes a richly reported portrait of the newest Americans, immigrants from all over the globe who are living all across the country, filled with their own voices.

We are a nation of immigrants, never more than now. In recent decades, the numbers have skyrocketed, thanks to people coming from many continents—especially Asia, Africa, and South America. Just like their predecessors, they face countless obstacles, including political hatred. And yet, just like their predecessors, they work hard. They persist. And they become us. The newest Americans are poorly understood and frequently presented only in stereotypes. Veteran journalist, broadcaster, and interviewer Ray Suarez has criss-crossed the country to speak to new Americans from all corners of the globe, and to record their stories. This portrait of our newest citizens is full of their own, compelling voices. It’s a story as old as the country, yet each new wave of arrivals tells that classic story in new and crucially important ways.

Ray Suarez is a writer and broadcaster who currently hosts the weekly foreign affairs radio program and podcast On Shifting Ground. He was the chief national correspondent for The PBS NewsHour, host of NPR’s Talk of the Nation, and a reporter in Chicago, Los Angeles, London, and Rome. His books include Latino Americans (Penguin, 2013), The Holy Vote (Harper, 2005), and The Old Neighborhood (Free Press, 1999). He lives in Washington, DC.