How Is Migration Woven Into America?

from Zócalo Public Square · host Zócalo Public Square

This program is inspired by "So, I told her I was half-Indian" (2025) by Chicanx and Punjabi American weaver Kira Dominguez Hultgren. The piece, multiple looms woven together as a suspended sculpture, is commissioned by IAJS and will be on view at Zhou B Art Center from August 12 to September 12, 2025. Artist Kira Dominguez Hultgren and guitarist and Chicago Immigrant Orchestra co-director Fareed Haque discuss the work’s larger themes, including how race plays out across generations, how public memorials help make hushed histories visible, and how new technology reveals outdated stereotypes. Then, a panel featuring Stanford IAJS faculty co-director Brian Lowery, Yale historian and Pulitzer Prize-winner David W. Blight, historic preservation leader Bonnie McDonald, and creative consultant and fashion designer Siying Qu explores how migrant communities help stitch together our ideas of American life. This is the second program in “What Can Become of Us?”, a collaboration between the Stanford Institute for Advancing Just Societies (IAJS) and Zócalo Public Square, envisioning new perspectives on migration, America’s diverse communities, and how people come together across differences. Timestamps: 00:00 - Intros 06:40 - Artist Talk: Kira Dominguez Hultgren, Fareed Haque 27:40 - Panel: Brian Lowery, David W. Blight, Bonnie McDonald, Siying Qu Visit www.zocalopublicsquare.org/ for more programs and essays in the series. Follow Zócalo on X: x.com/thepublicsquare Instagram: www.instagram.com/thepublicsquare/ Facebook: www.facebook.com/zocalopublicsquare LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/z-calo-public-square/