We the People: The World in Virginia

We the People tells the compelling stories of immigrants to Virginia since 1776.

Over the last two and a half centuries, millions of people have emigrated from other countries and made Virginia their home. Today, more than 1.6 million people living in the Commonwealth of Virginia are foreign born.

Since its founding and up to the present day, Virginia has been at the center of so many crucial debates, including those over immigration. As this book’s richly drawn essays show us, successive waves of immigration have diversified and enriched Virginia in countless ways. On a grand scale, they have forced Virginia to reckon with its racial history, its politics, and its view of itself and the world.

With a combination of historical essays, examinations of immigrant communities, and personal stories, this volume explores the many people who, over centuries, have made Virginia the unique place it is in the United States and in the world.

Julie Maio Kemper is exhibits curator at the Virginia Museum of History & Culture.

Raynaldo Capucao earned his PhD at the Bjoring Center for Nursing Historical Inquiry in the School of Nursing at the University of Virginia.

Maria Carrillo has more than 25 years of experience as a journalist in Virginia.

Michael Hemphill has an M.A. in Creative Writing and twelve years of newspaper writing experience.

Saltanat Liebert is associate professor of government and public affairs at Virginia Commonwealth University.

Daniel Morales is assistant professor of history at Virginia Commonwealth University.

Kim O’Connell is a scholar of Vietnamese immigration to Virginia, and a lecturer of science writing at Johns Hopkins University. 

Katrina Powell is founding director of the Center for Refugee, Migrant, and Displacement Studies.

Grant E. Rissler is assistant professor of organizational studies at the University of Richmond.

Noah Tinsley is assistant exhibits curator at the Virginia Museum of History & Culture.