Defining American: A talk on immigrant belonging with Jose Antonio Vargas

Join immigrant rights activist Jose Antonio Vargas and philanthropic leader Marissa Tirona for a conversation about what it means to be an immigrant, and what it means to be an ally, in today's America.
Earlier this year, Jose Antonio Vargas released an updated version of his memoir, Dear America: Notes of an Undocumented Citizen, with new material for living in Trump's America. Despite anti-immigrant media portrayals, a large portion of Americans across racial and ethnic backgrounds fall between party lines on immigration and are moveable on the issue. It is critical that immigrants and allies reach people being radicalized or pulled down a false rabbit hole. Vargas and Tirona will advise on how to lift up immigrants and immigration in our communities, and inform our friends and neighbors of the facts and humanity of the situation.

About the Speakers:

Jose Antonio Vargas is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, Emmy-nominated filmmaker, and Tony-nominated theatrical producer. A leading voice for the human rights of immigrants, he founded the non-profit immigrant storytelling organization Define American, twice named one of the World's Most Innovative Companies by Fast Company. He is also a co-founder of 1587 Sneakers, the world's first Asian American sneaker brand. His best-selling memoir, Dear America: Notes of an Undocumented Citizen, was published by HarperCollins in 2018. An updated edition with new material for living in Trump’s America was released in June 2025. His second book, White Is Not a Country, will examine America's foundational Black and White racial binary, and where everyone else fits within and outside that binary. An elementary school named after him opened in his hometown of Mountain View, California in August 2019.
Marissa Tirona serves as President of Grantees Concerned with Immigrants and Refugees, leading the organization’s efforts to galvanize philanthropy to build a society in which everyone thrives, no matter where they were born. She frequently speaks on and writes about issues related to transformative philanthropic practice, social justice movement leadership development, and organizational and network strengthening in the United States and around the world. Marissa currently serves on the boards of Change Elemental and Sadie Nash Leadership Project and previously served on the boards of numerous other organizations, including Oakland Kids First, Asian Pacific Islander Legal Outreach, Social Policy Research Associates, and the Asian American Bar Association of the Greater Bay Area. She holds a J.D. from Santa Clara University School of Law, and is a member of the California State Bar.

Host or Publisher Manny's