Review of Crossing The Blvd.
HeSaidBye
strangers, neighbors, aliens in a new America
a kaleidoscopic view of new immigrants and refugees living in Queens, New York
— the most ethnically diverse locality in the United States.Crossing the BLVD
is a cross-media project that documents and portrays the largely invisible
lives, images, sounds and stories of new immigrants and refugees who live in
the borough of Queens, New York — the most ethnically diverse locality in the
United States. Home to the New York airports, Queens, is no longer made up of
neatly partitioned ethnic enclaves. Today the choreography of Queens, a place
where residents speak 138 different languages, is one of chaotic co-existence.
This group portrait of a multi-ethnic, multi-racial community is a magnifying
glass for the future of America.Crossing the BLVD documents migratory life,
normally hidden within the seemingly mundane, sometimes hideous urban landscape
of Queens. Through a book, an audioCD, a public radio series, an exhibit, and
this website, the project presents a community of juxtapositions, including a
wide array of new immigrants: from those who came here with networks of support
and sponsorship, to those who arrived like shrapnel flung from distant wars
often fueled by American foreign policy, to those who attained refugee/asylum
status, to those who remain "undocumented aliens," displaced by the horns of a
bullish global economy. Above all, Crossing the BLVD is a celebration of
resilient, prismatic character - in search of home.For three years, Warren
Lehrer and Judith Sloan traveled the world by trekking the streets of their
home borough. Crossing the BLVD documents the people they encountered along the
way. First person narratives are illuminated by strikingly direct photographic
portraits of the subjects alongside the objects of their worlds. Crossing the
BLVD juxtaposes the multiple perspectives of these new Americans, now thrown
together as neighbors, classmates, coworkers, enemies, and friends. They
reflect on the good, the ugly and the unexpected in their stories of crossing
oceans, borders, wars, economic hardship, and cultural divides. These soulful
narratives are put in context by the authors’ personal and historical
observations. The voices, images and sounds collected here form a portrait of a
paradoxical and ever-shifting America."CROSSING THE BLVD boldly carries the
tradition of oral history into the 21st Century. It is an electrifying collage
of voices, faces, and spirits, capturing the true elasticity -and inclusiveness
- of contemporary American culture."
Eve Ensler, Author, THE VAGINA MONOLOGUES "A book of stunning originality,
tremendous visual flair and cinematic depth, CROSSING THE BOULEVARD will
forever change the way we think about our cities, our communities, our
neighborhoods, our neighbors, and ultimately, our own backyards. It's as if
we've all been invited to an enormous block party, where Lehrer and Sloan have
personally introduced us to some of their most fascinating neighbors. By the
end of the book, strangers somehow feel like friends, and the boulevard feels a
lot like home."
Alan Berliner, Filmmaker and Media Artist
THE FAMILY ALBUM, INTIMATE STRANGER, NOBODY'S BUSINESS“Crossing the BLVD
brims over with the energy, heart and spirit that went into creating this
important work. A fitting tribute to the world it so lovingly documents…”
Dave Isay, Documentary Radio Artist
GHETTO LIFE 101, THE SUNSHINE HOTEL“Lehrer/Sloan’s fascinating book offers
unique insights into the rich and combustible cauldron of cultures and
ethnicities in the most diverse corner of America – the Borough of Queens,
New York. Crossing the BLVD reveals the impact of changes in immigration law
through the oral histories of asylum seekers caught in the maze of mandatory
detention, refugees fleeing war and persecution, and those who are pushed out
of their countries struggling to recreate their lives. The significance of this
extraordinary volume is that, ready or not it provides a glimpse of the new
America which is emerging.”
Ron Daniels Executive Director, Center for Constitutional Rights“BLVD brings
alive the most polyglot place on the planet. One moment I am in the tiny
one-bedroom of Bhutanese exiles, the next in the taxi of a philosopher-poet
from Bombay, then with Renata the table tennis champ from the Czech National
Team. An outstanding book on the new New York!”
John Kuo Wei Tchen, Historian, New York University & Co-founder of the Museum
of Chinese in the Americas
http://www.earsay.org/earsay/index.html
Crossing the BLVD:
strangers, neighbors, aliens in a new America
a kaleidoscopic view of new immigrants and refugees living in Queens, New York
— the most ethnically diverse locality in the United States.Crossing the BLVD
is a cross-media project that documents and portrays the largely invisible
lives, images, sounds and stories of new immigrants and refugees who live in
the borough of Queens, New York — the most ethnically diverse locality in the
United States. Home to the New York airports, Queens, is no longer made up of
neatly partitioned ethnic enclaves. Today the choreography of Queens, a place
where residents speak 138 different languages, is one of chaotic co-existence.
This group portrait of a multi-ethnic, multi-racial community is a magnifying
glass for the future of America.Crossing the BLVD documents migratory life,
normally hidden within the seemingly mundane, sometimes hideous urban landscape
of Queens. Through a book, an audioCD, a public radio series, an exhibit, and
this website, the project presents a community of juxtapositions, including a
wide array of new immigrants: from those who came here with networks of support
and sponsorship, to those who arrived like shrapnel flung from distant wars
often fueled by American foreign policy, to those who attained refugee/asylum
status, to those who remain "undocumented aliens," displaced by the horns of a
bullish global economy. Above all, Crossing the BLVD is a celebration of
resilient, prismatic character - in search of home.For three years, Warren
Lehrer and Judith Sloan traveled the world by trekking the streets of their
home borough. Crossing the BLVD documents the people they encountered along the
way. First person narratives are illuminated by strikingly direct photographic
portraits of the subjects alongside the objects of their worlds. Crossing the
BLVD juxtaposes the multiple perspectives of these new Americans, now thrown
together as neighbors, classmates, coworkers, enemies, and friends. They
reflect on the good, the ugly and the unexpected in their stories of crossing
oceans, borders, wars, economic hardship, and cultural divides. These soulful
narratives are put in context by the authors’ personal and historical
observations. The voices, images and sounds collected here form a portrait of a
paradoxical and ever-shifting America."CROSSING THE BLVD boldly carries the
tradition of oral history into the 21st Century. It is an electrifying collage
of voices, faces, and spirits, capturing the true elasticity -and inclusiveness
- of contemporary American culture."
Eve Ensler, Author, THE VAGINA MONOLOGUES "A book of stunning originality,
tremendous visual flair and cinematic depth, CROSSING THE BOULEVARD will
forever change the way we think about our cities, our communities, our
neighborhoods, our neighbors, and ultimately, our own backyards. It's as if
we've all been invited to an enormous block party, where Lehrer and Sloan have
personally introduced us to some of their most fascinating neighbors. By the
end of the book, strangers somehow feel like friends, and the boulevard feels a
lot like home."
Alan Berliner, Filmmaker and Media Artist
THE FAMILY ALBUM, INTIMATE STRANGER, NOBODY'S BUSINESS“Crossing the BLVD
brims over with the energy, heart and spirit that went into creating this
important work. A fitting tribute to the world it so lovingly documents…”
Dave Isay, Documentary Radio Artist
GHETTO LIFE 101, THE SUNSHINE HOTEL“Lehrer/Sloan’s fascinating book offers
unique insights into the rich and combustible cauldron of cultures and
ethnicities in the most diverse corner of America – the Borough of Queens,
New York. Crossing the BLVD reveals the impact of changes in immigration law
through the oral histories of asylum seekers caught in the maze of mandatory
detention, refugees fleeing war and persecution, and those who are pushed out
of their countries struggling to recreate their lives. The significance of this
extraordinary volume is that, ready or not it provides a glimpse of the new
America which is emerging.”
Ron Daniels Executive Director, Center for Constitutional Rights“BLVD brings
alive the most polyglot place on the planet. One moment I am in the tiny
one-bedroom of Bhutanese exiles, the next in the taxi of a philosopher-poet
from Bombay, then with Renata the table tennis champ from the Czech National
Team. An outstanding book on the new New York!”
John Kuo Wei Tchen, Historian, New York University & Co-founder of the Museum
of Chinese in the Americas
http://www.earsay.org/earsay/index.html
Crossing the BLVD:
strangers, neighbors, aliens in a new America
a kaleidoscopic view of new immigrants and refugees living in Queens, New York
— the most ethnically diverse locality in the United States.Crossing the BLVD
is a cross-media project that documents and portrays the largely invisible
lives, images, sounds and stories of new immigrants and refugees who live in
the borough of Queens, New York — the most ethnically diverse locality in the
United States. Home to the New York airports, Queens, is no longer made up of
neatly partitioned ethnic enclaves. Today the choreography of Queens, a place
where residents speak 138 different languages, is one of chaotic co-existence.
This group portrait of a multi-ethnic, multi-racial community is a magnifying
glass for the future of America.Crossing the BLVD documents migratory life,
normally hidden within the seemingly mundane, sometimes hideous urban landscape
of Queens. Through a book, an audioCD, a public radio series, an exhibit, and
this website, the project presents a community of juxtapositions, including a
wide array of new immigrants: from those who came here with networks of support
and sponsorship, to those who arrived like shrapnel flung from distant wars
often fueled by American foreign policy, to those who attained refugee/asylum
status, to those who remain "undocumented aliens," displaced by the horns of a
bullish global economy. Above all, Crossing the BLVD is a celebration of
resilient, prismatic character - in search of home.For three years, Warren
Lehrer and Judith Sloan traveled the world by trekking the streets of their
home borough. Crossing the BLVD documents the people they encountered along the
way. First person narratives are illuminated by strikingly direct photographic
portraits of the subjects alongside the objects of their worlds. Crossing the
BLVD juxtaposes the multiple perspectives of these new Americans, now thrown
together as neighbors, classmates, coworkers, enemies, and friends. They
reflect on the good, the ugly and the unexpected in their stories of crossing
oceans, borders, wars, economic hardship, and cultural divides. These soulful
narratives are put in context by the authors’ personal and historical
observations. The voices, images and sounds collected here form a portrait of a
paradoxical and ever-shifting America."CROSSING THE BLVD boldly carries the
tradition of oral history into the 21st Century. It is an electrifying collage
of voices, faces, and spirits, capturing the true elasticity -and inclusiveness
- of contemporary American culture."
Eve Ensler, Author, THE VAGINA MONOLOGUES "A book of stunning originality,
tremendous visual flair and cinematic depth, CROSSING THE BOULEVARD will
forever change the way we think about our cities, our communities, our
neighborhoods, our neighbors, and ultimately, our own backyards. It's as if
we've all been invited to an enormous block party, where Lehrer and Sloan have
personally introduced us to some of their most fascinating neighbors. By the
end of the book, strangers somehow feel like friends, and the boulevard feels a
lot like home."
Alan Berliner, Filmmaker and Media Artist
THE FAMILY ALBUM, INTIMATE STRANGER, NOBODY'S BUSINESS“Crossing the BLVD
brims over with the energy, heart and spirit that went into creating this
important work. A fitting tribute to the world it so lovingly documents…”
Dave Isay, Documentary Radio Artist
GHETTO LIFE 101, THE SUNSHINE HOTEL“Lehrer/Sloan’s fascinating book offers
unique insights into the rich and combustible cauldron of cultures and
ethnicities in the most diverse corner of America – the Borough of Queens,
New York. Crossing the BLVD reveals the impact of changes in immigration law
through the oral histories of asylum seekers caught in the maze of mandatory
detention, refugees fleeing war and persecution, and those who are pushed out
of their countries struggling to recreate their lives. The significance of this
extraordinary volume is that, ready or not it provides a glimpse of the new
America which is emerging.”
Ron Daniels Executive Director, Center for Constitutional Rights“BLVD brings
alive the most polyglot place on the planet. One moment I am in the tiny
one-bedroom of Bhutanese exiles, the next in the taxi of a philosopher-poet
from Bombay, then with Renata the table tennis champ from the Czech National
Team. An outstanding book on the new New York!”
John Kuo Wei Tchen, Historian, New York University & Co-founder of the Museum
of Chinese in the Americas
http://www.earsay.org/earsay/index.html-
caccobio10
marco
"HeSaidBye" <hesa...@aol.com> wrote in message
news:20030623014448...@mb-m29.aol.com...
> Crossing the BLVD:
> strangers, neighbors, aliens in a new America
> a kaleidoscopic view of new immigrants and refugees living in Queens, New
York
> - the most ethnically diverse locality in the United States.Crossing the
BLVD
> is a cross-media project that documents and portrays the largely invisible
> lives, images, sounds and stories of new immigrants and refugees who live
in
> the borough of Queens, New York - the most ethnically diverse locality in
> important work. A fitting tribute to the world it so lovingly documents."
> Dave Isay, Documentary Radio Artist
> GHETTO LIFE 101, THE SUNSHINE HOTEL"Lehrer/Sloan's fascinating book offers
> unique insights into the rich and combustible cauldron of cultures and
> ethnicities in the most diverse corner of America - the Borough of Queens,
> - the most ethnically diverse locality in the United States.Crossing the
BLVD
> is a cross-media project that documents and portrays the largely invisible
> lives, images, sounds and stories of new immigrants and refugees who live
in
> the borough of Queens, New York - the most ethnically diverse locality in
> important work. A fitting tribute to the world it so lovingly documents."
> Dave Isay, Documentary Radio Artist
> GHETTO LIFE 101, THE SUNSHINE HOTEL"Lehrer/Sloan's fascinating book offers
> unique insights into the rich and combustible cauldron of cultures and
> ethnicities in the most diverse corner of America - the Borough of Queens,
> - the most ethnically diverse locality in the United States.Crossing the
BLVD
> is a cross-media project that documents and portrays the largely invisible
> lives, images, sounds and stories of new immigrants and refugees who live
in
> the borough of Queens, New York - the most ethnically diverse locality in
> important work. A fitting tribute to the world it so lovingly documents."
> Dave Isay, Documentary Radio Artist
> GHETTO LIFE 101, THE SUNSHINE HOTEL"Lehrer/Sloan's fascinating book offers
> unique insights into the rich and combustible cauldron of cultures and
> ethnicities in the most diverse corner of America - the Borough of Queens,