Tessa Lemos Del Pino, a Mexican American woman with gray hair, wears a black shirt and stands in front of a gray door
Tessa Lemos del Pino, executive director of Tennessee Justice for Our Neighbors (JFON). Credit: Martin B. Cherry / Nashville Banner

President-elect Donald Trump has promised mass deportations, raising questions about the feasibility of such an operation and, at the same time, causing fear in immigrant communities across the country. Here in Nashville, local authorities have stayed away from strident rhetoric, but this week Tennessee lawmakers introduced two bills aimed at undocumented immigrants — one that would require law enforcement to transport them to “sanctuary cities” and another that would require state IDs to distinguish citizens from noncitizens.

Tessa Lemos Del Pino is the granddaughter of migrant farm workers who once associated with the United Farm Workers and Cesar Chavez. Today, she is the executive director of Tennessee Justice for Our Neighbors, a nonprofit law office that helps people navigate the complex and time-consuming immigration system. Her office has been inundated with messages this week, as the specter of drastic enforcement measures hangs over undocumented Tennesseans and their families.

Guests

Credits

  • Host: Demetria Kalodimos
  • Producers: Steve Haruch and Andrea Tudhope

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Andrea Tudhope is the news editor for the Nashville Banner, where she also oversees the audio wing. An award-winning multimedia journalist, Andrea spent the past decade working in public radio, from reporter to newscaster to editor. As part of the founding leadership team for America Amplified, a national public media community engagement initiative, she launched a national talk show and co-wrote and edited a playbook on community-powered journalism. She came to Nashville to launch WPLN’s first-ever daily show, This Is Nashville, where she was executive producer.

Steve Haruch is the senior producer. An award-winning journalist, editor and producer, he has worked previously at the Nashville Scene and WPLN, and his writing has appeared everywhere from The New York Times to NPR's Code Switch. He edited the books Greetings From New Nashville: How a Sleepy Southern Town Became 'It' City and People Only Die of Love in Movies: Film Writing by Jim Ridley.