As the Trump administration intensifies mass deportation of Caribbean and other immigrants, the New York Immigration Coalition (NYIC), an umbrella immigration advocacy group of over 200 immigrant groups in New York State, on Thursday, Aug. 28, unveiled a new series of compelling portraits celebrating immigrant stories at the iconic Flatiron Building in Manhattan.
Murad Awawdeh, NYIC president and CEO, told Caribbean Life that the second year of its “New York Proud” campaign is “a bold public art initiative that transforms subway stations, bus stops and plazas to showcase the real people at the center of America’s immigration debate.
“’New York Proud’ is not just about defending the rights of immigrants – it’s about reminding New Yorkers the indispensable role immigrants play in keeping our city alive,” he said. “Immigrants have been critical in shaping the past, present, and future of New York City.
“In light of unprecedented hostility to our immigrant communities at the federal level, it is of the utmost importance to show people just how important they are to our city and our shared prosperity,” Awawdeh added. “Immigrants are our neighbors and friends, and are crucial to New York City’s identity.”
Awawdeh said this campaign brings to life the personal journeys of immigrant New Yorkers through a striking series of portraits by Venezuelan documentary photographer Oscar B. Castillo, which are now displayed in subway stations, bus stops, and public art exhibits across New York City through the fall months.
He said the exhibits, created in partnership with Photoville, feature these portraits in high-visibility public spaces across all five boroughs, including: Manhattan: Flatiron South Plaza (Broadway between 22nd and 23rd Streets) – Aug. 26 – Oct. 1; Brooklyn: The Plaza at 300 Ashland – Oct. 2 – Nov. 6; Bronx: Van Cortlandt Park Track (5970 Broadway) – Oct. 16 – Nov. 17; Staten Island: St. John’s Ferry Terminal – Ongoing; and Queens the location to be decided.
Awawdeh said featured campaign participants include a doorman, a deliverista, doctors, a mechanic, a theater director, small business owners, chefs, a nonprofit director and more.
“This second series looks to keep building on the importance of better knowing our communities and our city,” Castillo said. “This project is a celebration of the mosaic of cultures, colors, talents, origins, and the myriad of stories that compose New York.
“Through the faces of the migrant people that inhabit this city and proudly make it the most vibrant and diverse place in the world, I would like to share stories of hard work and dedication for personal and collective improvement, growth, and success,” he added.
“In the middle of these certainly troubled times, this project aims to be a call for more understanding and inclusion, and to value the humble but important contribution that millions of people give at all levels to the daily life of this unique place,” Castillo continued. “This 2025 NY Proud campaign represents the commitment to the construction of bridges and understanding.”
Sam Barzilay, creative director and co-founder of Photoville, said his company was “proud to be collaborating with NYIC to bring the second series of ‘New York Proud’ to communities across New York City.
“We strongly believe that by sharing visual narratives of under-represented voices from the immigrant community, this exhibition helps to build powerful, connective bonds amongst all New Yorkers,” he said.
New York City Council Member Alexa Aviles, chair of the City Council’s Committee on Immigration, said she was “grateful to join NYIC for the launch of the NY Proud campaign.
“Together, we are highlighting a truth about our city that is all too often ignored: our immigrant communities are at the heart of what makes NYC so vibrant and culturally impactful,” she said. “While our president and mayor attempt to blame all of our affordability issues on the working-class immigrants who drive our local economy, they are refusing to embrace any real solutions to the economic strain in our city.
“NYIC is showing the true strength of our immigrant communities and all the ways that immigrant New Yorkers contribute to our collective good on a daily basis,” Aviles added. “I hope this campaign will inspire people to stand up and fight against the senseless violence of Trump’s mass deportation agenda.”
New York State Assemblymember Phara Souffrant-Forrest, the Haitian-American, chair of the State Assembly Task Force on New Americans, said that the “New York Proud” installation that will stand at the corner of Lafayette and Ashland in in the Fort Greene section of Brooklyn is “a testament to the strength and diversity of immigrant New Yorkers.”
Phara Souffrant-Forrest, the daughter of Haitian immigrants, who represents the 57th Assembly District in Brooklyn, applauded NYIC’s “creative and critical work to uplift the contributions immigrants have made and continue making to our city.”
Donna Lieberman, executive director of the New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU), said: “New York always has been and always will be a city of immigrants.
“Our city is rich with immigrant stories of sacrifice, bravery, creativity, beauty, industry, love, and resilience,” she said. “The NYCLU is honored to be a fiscal sponsor of the NYIC’s New York Proud campaign, a campaign that invites us to look, reflect, and connect personally with just some of these immigrant stories and with the people who make New York great.
“This is an urgent moment to champion these stories, as the Trump regime marshals vast resources and personnel to demonize and attack our immigrant communities and concoct destructive, poisonous, and racist narratives,” Lieberman added. “We won’t let them.
“The NYCLU, NYIC, City leaders, and our immigrant communities will tell the real story, and we will be New York Proud,” she continued.
