Judy Luo
Centro para la Observación Migratoria y el Desarrollo Social en el Caribe (OBMICA)
Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
When I arrived just over a month ago, I was surprised to learn that the new research initiative I was anticipating to assist with was no longer taking place. I was welcomed by OBMICA with complete freedom to execute a research project of my own. With Spanish that was still not quite proficient, and with zero formal research experience, I was flung into my summer’s work here in Santo Domingo.
The discussion that took place between Phillip Alston and Vasuki Nesiah at the fellowship dinner demonstrated powerfully the importance of relationships in human rights work. The first two weeks here were agonizingly slow, precisely because I lacked the relationships that could facilitate my research. For the first month and even now, I have spent most of my time building a web of research connections through meetings, phone calls, emails, and texts.
Much of my research work here reminds me of the investigative work I used to do for a public defense firm. It requires the same diligence, persistence, and flexibility. I scour existing research, comb through my personal contacts, and brainstorm indirectly related organizations for leads. They point me to other leads, and the process starts again. Luckily, people have been extremely helpful and kind to me, and I’ve had great success in my outreach efforts.
I’ve begun to conduct interviews with people in the community of Dominicans who were deported from the United States. I pass most of days talking to people, filming, and editing. The American media largely focuses on pre-deportation issues, but I believe the struggles of people post-deportation is a necessary part of the narrative in the fight for immigrant rights. Since I am no longer working on a formalized academic research project, I am more so taking the approach of investigative journalism. By the end of the summer, I hope to produce a short documentary about survival after deportation as well as pitch some pieces to different American media outlets.