Author: Kristofer Rios (Kristofer Rios)

By Kristofer Ríos As Christhian Diaz celebrated his graduation from Cooper Union last May, his mother insisted that he take pictures with everyone: friends, classmates, even seniors he didn’t know well. She had a lot to be proud of. Diaz, who is a 24-year-old illegal immigrant, had overcome many obstacles to get his diploma. He...

By Kristofer Ríos Last summer Mahmoud Farraj worked his first job as an assistant engineer at Lutheran Medical Center through the Summer Youth Employment Program. The 15-year-old, who lives in a small Sunset Park apartment with his parents and three siblings, enjoyed working because he had money to buy the latest video games without depending...