‘New York Times’ Reporter To Discuss Immigration in Urban America at RIT, Nov. 30

Kirk Semple will talk about immigrants in New York City and the role of local journalists

Kirk Semple

Rochester Institute of Technology’s Immigration Policy Lecture Series continues Nov. 30 with a talk by journalist Kirk Semple, who will discuss “Immigration and Immigrant Communities in Urban America.” Semple’s talk is at 4 p.m. in Xerox Auditorium, James E. Gleason Hall. A reception follows at 5:30 p.m.

“At a time when the national debate surrounding immigration has become highly charged and polarized, it is more important than ever for local journalists to focus on the stories of the immigrant experience and rendering the complex and dramatic narratives of immigrant diasporas in 21st century America with sensitivity and detail,” says Semple.

Semple has worked for The New York Times since 2003 and is a reporter on the metro staff, covering immigration. He has held other reporting positions on the metro, national and foreign reporting desks at The New York Times, including serving as a foreign correspondent in Iraq, Afghanistan and Haiti. From 1997 to 2003, he was a freelance correspondent in Colombia and reported throughout Latin America for numerous newspapers and magazines.

The Immigration Policy Lecture Series is sponsored by RIT’s Department of Communication; Department of Science, Technology and Society/Public Policy; Urban and Community Studies Program; Department of Sociology/Anthropology; Rochester and Genesee Valley Area Labor Federation; the AFL-CIO; the Ronald G. Pettengill Labor Education Fund; and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers.

All lectures in this series are free and open to the public. For more information, contact Andrea Hickerson, assistant professor of communication, at 585-475-6129 or aahgpt@rit.edu.


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