The “Ohio Is Home” Podcast Is Here!
Celebrating the people who make Ohio a better place.
People move. We always have and always will. It’s just part of being human. Have you migrated from one of Ohio’s small towns to one of the “big Cs?” Did you come here from another state or country? Or has your family called Ohio home for generations?
Even if our journeys look different, Ohio connects us all. This is the idea behind the Ohio Is Home Podcast, a new podcast from the Ohio Immigrant Alliance.
We’re covering immigration news and events that affect all Ohioans; talking with immigrants who are championing their communities; allies working alongside immigrants; and exploring the many ways and many types of migration that impacts our lives. From art, music, food, family, community, and culture, movement and migration — change, growth, and renewal — link us all.
Because migration is human. It is an act of courage, love, and hope. Check out our first two conversations, with more to come. Our first guests show us, by publishing a book and coordinating a tattoo design contest, how Ohioans are changing the conversation on immigration using their unique expertise and talents.
Click on the YouTube, Spotify, or Apple Podcasts logos to listen to our first two episodes. And sign up for the RSS feed to get every episode as soon as they come out!
We plan to publish one new episode a month, so stay tuned. If you have ideas for future shows, drop us a line here.
From Welcome to Deportation by Demba Ndiath. We talked with Demba Ndiath, the Ohio Immigrant Alliance’s Advocacy Director, about his first published book, From Welcome to Deportation.
Demba’s book centers the experiences of West African migrants, particularly those from Senegal, Mauritania, Guinea, and neighboring countries—Black migrants who are often left out of immigrant narratives. Their journeys through the legal system and their eventual outcomes expose gaps and contradictions often overlooked in immigration.
Demba also offers realistic, timely solutions to fix our immigration system.
Buy his book here.
Art as Protest, Ink as Solidarity. We also talk with Dexter Komakaru, a Central Ohio-based artist and the Ohio Immigrant Alliance’s Project Manager for the Brave of Us Tattoo Design Contest, a nationwide campaign and call for artists meant to show how tattoos and art are a form of resistance that goes beyond borders and immigration.
Make sure to submit a design before the Brave of Us Tattoo Design Contest’s deadline on September 30th!
Show your creativity and solidarity by using art to send the message that we all stand with immigrant communities wherever we live in Ohio and beyond. So after listening to this conversation, submit your designs!
The Ohio Is Home Podcast Host, Emilio. Guiding many of these conversations will be Emilio Vicente, an immigrant rights activist who came of age in the immigrant rights youth movement from the 2010s fight for the DREAM Act.
As an immigrant himself, Emilio understands the importance of centering immigrant communities and bridging connections across racial justice, reproductive rights, and other movements. At the heart of his work is a belief that will also help guide Ohio Is Home: communities directly impacted by injustice have the solutions to the issues affecting their lives.
Emilio won’t be the only one holding these conversations. Other OIA team members will also lead the podcast, telling their own stories and experiences of migration.
