Podcasts by Mid-Americana: Stories from a Changing Midwest
Mid-Americana explores the history and identity of the Greater Midwest through the lives and stories of individual people. Our second season, Immigration, features eight stories from people who left their native countries to make a new home in the Greater Midwest. We ask our guests what pulled them from their homelands, what challenges they faced while making a home in the Heartland, and how they contribute now to a changing Midwest. Find transcripts, illustrations, and show notes at midamericana.com, where you can also join our email list and suggest ideas for a future episode or season.
Further podcasts by Mid-Americana
Podcast on the topic Gesellschaft und Kultur
All episodes
Home Is Not a Safe Place: Irene Maun from 2021-05-28T05:00
Irene Maun is originally from the Marshall Islands, descended from a Micronesian royal family. Like many Marshallese, she and her family have struggled with chron...
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Journey into the New: Dominique Serrand from 2021-01-13T06:00
Dominique Serrand is Co-Artistic Director for The Moving Company Listen
Conversations with America: Abdirizak Abdi from 2020-12-16T06:00
At age six, Abdirizak Abdi fled civil war in his native Somalia. He lived in a refugee camp in neighboring Kenya, then in the capital city of Nairobi, and as a te...
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I Reached for Books: Hem Rizal from 2020-12-02T06:00
Hem Rizal is an M.A. candidate in public policy at the Listen
Always in the Gray Areas: John-Paul Chaisson-Cardenas from 2020-11-18T06:00
John-Paul Chaisson-Cardenas is an educator, social worker, and justice advocate currently pursuing a PhD in Educational Leadership at the University of Iowa. He h...
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America Looks Like Scotland!: Zoe Bouras from 2020-11-11T06:00
Zoe Bouras is a Communications and Development AmeriCorps VISTA (Volunteer in Service to America) with the Immigration Project in Bloomington, Illinois. She also ...
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Stick to Your Roots: Pavel Polanco-Safadit from 2020-10-21T05:00
As a kid in the Dominican Republic, Pavel Polanco-Safadit fell in love with piano and spent hours each day perfecting his technique. This passion and skill eventu...
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America Has Its Own Ghosts: Kao Kalia Yang from 2020-10-07T05:00
Kao Kalia Yang is an author, public speaker, and teacher. She was born in the Ban Vinai Refugee Camp in Thailand and settled with her family in St. Paul, Minnesot...
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The Gospel of Seed and Soil: Liz Garst from 2020-01-15T06:00
Liz Garst grew up in Coon Rapids, Iowa, in a family of agricultural pioneers. Her grandfather Roswell helped convert Midwest farmers to technologies like hybrid seed, nitrogen fertilizer, and me...
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Flip the Sky: Bob Leonard from 2020-01-01T06:00
Bob Leonard is News Director for KNIA/KRLS, where he also hosts the podcast In Depth. He also writes for The New York Times, Salon, and many other national newspapers ...
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People Would Call Me Iowa: Adam Hammes from 2019-12-18T06:00
Adam Hammes grew up in rural Richland, Iowa. He spent much of his 20s traveling the world leading environmental education trips. After this series of adventures, he moved back to Iowa to establi...
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Punk Rock, Home Birth, and Indian Corn: Shelley Buffalo from 2019-12-04T06:00
Shelley Buffalo is a visual artist and Food Sovereignty Coordinator for the Meskwaki Settlement near Tama, Iowa. Shelley was born near the Settlement, and much of her extended family still lives...
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Couscous Royale: Brian Bruening from 2019-11-20T06:00
Brian Bruening lives in the northeast Iowa community of Elkader, where he is the owner and head chef at Schera’s Algerian Ame...
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Grain, Water, and Yeast: Megan McKay from 2019-11-06T06:00
Megan McKay is founder and owner of Peace Tree Brewing Company in Knoxville, Iowa. Megan was born and raised in Knoxville. She left home after high school, drawn ...
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Divided by Difference: Dawn Martinez Oropeza from 2019-10-23T05:00
Dawn Martinez Oropeza is Executive Director of Al Exito, a mentoring and youth empowerment organization th...
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Gateway to the Midwest: Mike Draper from 2019-10-13T20:18:56
Mike Draper is the founder and owner of RAYGUN, a Des Moines-based T-shirt store that opened in 2005 and has since grown into a regional powerhouse with locations...
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