WHAT: Rio Hondo College will host a talk about immigration issues by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Jose Antonio Vargas, leader of the Define American movement. Vargas is an undocumented immigrant brought to the country illegally when he was 12 – a fact he did not discover until he applied for a driver’s license.

He used false documents to attend San Francisco State University and find employment, but announced his undocumented status to the world in an essay printed in The New York Times Magazine in 2011.

Since then, he has advocated for a path to citizenship for others like him, through talks, articles and a 2013 documentary titled “Documented.”

The talk will be followed by a Rio Student Equity Reception.

WHEN: 11:15 a.m. Wednesday, Nov. 16; reception at 12:45 p.m.

WHERE: Rio Hondo College Wray Theater, 3600 Workman Mill Road, Whittier

DETAILS: Vargas, who was raised in the Philippines and sent to live with his grandparents – naturalized U.S. citizens – won a Pulitzer Prize for covering the Virginia Tech shootings for the Washington Post. He received a Public Service Award from the National Council of La Raza, the nation’s largest Latino advocacy group. Define American is a nonprofit organization that focuses on generating dialogue about how Americans are defined.

MEDIA: To cover this event, please contact Ruthie Retana at 562-463-3145.