“We’re not all that different”: A Non-Immigrant Student Bridging Divides through Migration Storytelling

• In Event: Literacies of Migration and Belonging

Abstract

While migration storytelling research often centers on immigrant youth, this study examines how non-immigrant students can critically and empathetically engage with migration through storytelling about a public transborder figure. Using borderlands theory and spatiotemporal scales, we analyze Stella’s multimodal narrative on Sofia Vergara’s migration. Findings reveal how storytelling fosters cross-cultural understanding and critical engagement with migration’s human and political dimensions, highlighting its potential to bridge ideological and social divides in diverse classrooms.

Authors

• Tori Choi, Northwestern University

• Wan Shun Eva Lam, Northwestern University

• Gautam Bisht, Northwestern University

• Patricia Delacruz, Evanston Township High School