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People, Policy and Rethinking America’s Immigration Landscape
July 23 | 5:30 pm - 8:00 pm
$5 – $25
Online tickets to this event are sold out. Limited walk-up tickets will be available at the door. First come, first served.
With 100 days until the 2024 election, immigration remains a top priority issue for voters. Record levels of migration to the United States in recent years have taxed an immigration system left nearly broken due to decades of congressional disputes and underinvestment. Sensational news coverage and partisan discourse about the border often conflates competing concerns over the rising tide of migrants displaced by climate change, war and poverty, national security, and the state of the US economy, leaving many of us to wonder: What exactly is happening at US borders and how can we make it better? Is there a way to preserve American interests and safely migrate potential new citizens into the country? Inspired by powerful installations in our summer exhibition In Pursuit, this dynamic discussion brings together a cross-perspective panel of scholars and experts to delve into the complexities of immigration policy and its multifaceted impact on our society. Panelists will separate fact from fiction around key issues such as border security, placement of refugees, and paths to citizenship, and offer possible solutions and suggestions for reform.
Before the panel discussion, teachers, educators, and school faculty are invited to a free professional development session focused on Teaching Immigration through Historical and Contemporary Perspectives, in collaboration with Sphere Education Initiatives.
$25 General Admission / $10 NLM or World Affairs Council Members / $5 Students, Teachers, or School Faculty (w. Valid ID)
Schedule of Events
4:30 pm Teacher professional development session (separate registration required)
5:30 pm Doors open for panel discussion
6:00 pm Panel begins, followed by Q&A with the panelists and moderator
7:15 pm Panel and Q&A concludes, networking reception with panelists and moderator begins
Panelists
David J. Bier, Director of Immigration Studies at the Cato Institute
Jonathan Grode, U.S. Practice Director at Green and Spiegel
Anuj Gupta, President and CEO at The Welcoming Center
Moderated by
Andy Toy, Policy Director at the Philadelphia Association of Community Development Corporations (PACDC)
Meet the Moderator
Andrew (Andy) Toy is the Policy Director for the Philadelphia Association of Community Development Corporations (PACDC) whose mission is to work with CDCs to create an equitable city where every Philadelphian lives, works, and thrives in a neighborhood that offers an excellent quality of life. Andy previously served as the Community Development and Communications Director for SEAMAAC (Southeast Asian Mutual Assistance Associations Coalition), whose mission is “to support and serve immigrants and refugees and other politically, socially and economically marginalized communities as they seek to advance the condition of their lives in the United States”. Andy led the Conceptual Plan for Mifflin Square Park towards implementing a $4.2 million improvement. Andy and his team also managed the SoPhiE (South Philly East) Food Truck immigrant chef incubator that connects community through food and culture.
Before, Andy was the Managing Director of the now built Chinatown Community Center Crane project, a $77 Million mixed-use community development. Andy is recognized as a thought leader and innovator when it comes to community and economic development, building a model Commercial Corridor Initiative at the Local Initiatives Support Corporation, supporting minority businesses as Director of the Retail Resource Network at The Enterprise Center and before that building Philadelphia’s Brownfields Program bringing millions in new investments in job creating projects.
Andy is currently President of the Philadelphia Committee on City Policy and on the Boards of the Union Benevolent Foundation, the PA Downtown Center as well as an active Member of AAPIP Philadelphia and the Mayor’s Commission on Asian Pacific American Affairs. Andy is a founder of the Philadelphia Public School Giving Circle and United Voices for Philadelphia and was an appointee on the Philadelphia Zoning Code Commission. In 2006 Andy was selected as one of the top 101 Connectors in Philadelphia and in 2021 selected as a PA 50 Over 50 by City & State.
Andy holds a B.A. in Economics and a Master’s Degree in Public and Urban Policy, both from the University of Pennsylvania. In his spare time he likes to listen to and create music, watch the Eagles win, and eat and cook a variety of cuisines.
Amplified: Art, Music, Power
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Meet the Panelists
David J. Bier
Jonathan Grode
Anuj Gupta
David J. Bier
David J. Bier is the director of immigration studies at the Cato Institute. He is an expert on legal immigration, border security, and interior enforcement.
Bier’s work has appeared in the New York Times, the Washington Post, USA Today, and many other print and online publications. The U.S. Supreme Court and multiple federal appeals courts have cited his research and writing. Bier has testified before committees in the United States House and the United States Senate on several occasions.
From 2013 to 2015, Bier drafted immigration legislation as a senior policy adviser for Congressman Raúl Labrador, then a member and later the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Immigration and Border Security.
Jonathan Grode
Jonathan Grode serves as the U.S. Practice Director and Managing Partner for Green and Spiegel. Jonathan has worked continuously in the U.S. business immigration law field since 1999 and has amassed considerable experience obtaining nonimmigrant and immigrant visas for new company start-ups, professional workers, artists and entertainers, athletes, physicians, and scientific researchers. In addition, Jonathan has significant experience dealing with Department of Labor and Department of Homeland Security enforcement actions as well as immigration related aspects of Mergers and Acquisitions.
Jonathan has been a panelist and moderator on immigration law topics for numerous organizations, including the American Bar Association, Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce, French Chamber for Commerce and Industry (Paris, France), and the American Immigration Lawyers Association. He also writes regularly for industry publications and academic journals. In addition, Jonathan is an Adjunct Faculty at Temple University’s Beasley School of Law where he teaches Business Immigration Law, Advising Global Corporations, and Law Practice Management. In 2020, Jonathan Grode was named Adjunct Faculty of the Year by Temple University.
Notably, Jonathan has been listed as one of SuperLawyers Rising Stars from 2012-2019 and since 2020 continuously been named a Super Lawyer. He has also been honored with the 2014 Pennsylvania Bar Association Special Achievement Award for “Dedication and Commitment to the High School Mock Trial Competition”, for which he has served as Lead Author since 2007. Jonathan was also the recipient of Lexology’s Client Choice Award in 2019 and was named in the 2020 and 2023 Edition of The Best Lawyers in America. Jonathan graduated first in his class from Temple University Beasley School of Law in 2008.
Anuj Gupta
Anuj is a proven leader in Philadelphia’s government, non-profit and private sector communities with a professional track record of achieving impactful results. Anuj now serves as President and CEO of The Welcoming Center, an organization he helped start with his graduate school research in 2003. Anuj is responsible for leading execution of the organization’s strategic plan focused on building pathways to upward economic mobility for Greater Philadelphia’s immigrant communities. Prior to this, Anuj served as Chief of Staff to Congressman Dwight Evans (PA-03). In addition to building a team across two offices, Anuj has led successful legislative strategies towards passage such as the $1B Reconnecting Communities fund in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Act.
Prior to this, Anuj served as the General Manager of the historic Reading Terminal Market for five years. During this time, Anuj was selected as a Public Space Fellow by the Knight Foundation for his work in making the Reading Terminal an inviting, accessible space for all Philadelphians. Anuj was an attorney at Ballard Spahr Andrews & Ingersoll, LLP where he practiced in the firm’s real estate/affordable housing group from 2004-2007. Anuj also started a fast-casual Indian restaurant in 2013 in Philadelphia’s Mt. Airy neighborhood called Jyoti Indian Bistro, utilizing his family’s traditional recipes.
Anuj is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania Law School (J.D., 2003), the University of Pennsylvania’s Fels Institute of Government (M.G.A., 2003) and Carnegie Mellon University (B.S., 1996). He currently is a board member of the Reading Terminal Market Corporation, Independence Public Media Foundation, Victor’s Homes, Regional Housing Legal Services and Mt. Airy Baseball.
