As immigration issues and policy are being hotly debated around the country in terms of national, economic, and cultural security, Crossing the BLVD presents the very human stories of why new immigrants and refugees have migrated to the United States and what their experiences have been since they came here pre- and post-9/11. Crossing the BLVD by documentary artists Warren Lehrer and Judith Sloan is a cross-media project that documents and portrays the largely invisible lives, images, sounds and stories of new immigrants and refugees who live in the borough of Queens, New York — the most ethnically diverse locality in the United States. Home to the New York airports, Queens, is no longer made up of neatly partitioned ethnic enclaves. Today the choreography of Queens, a place where residents speak 138 different languages, is one of chaotic co-existence. This group portrait of a multi-ethnic, multi-racial community is a magnifying glass for the future of America.

Crossing the BLVD documents migratory life, normally hidden within the seemingly mundane, sometimes hideous urban landscape of Queens. Through a book, an audio CD, a public radio series, an exhibit, and this website, the project presents a community of juxtapositions, including a wide array of new immigrants: from those who came here with networks of support and sponsorship, to those who arrived like shrapnel flung from distant wars often fueled by American foreign policy, to those who attained refugee/asylum status, to those who remain "undocumented aliens," displaced by the horns of a bullish global economy. Above all, Crossing the BLVD is a celebration of resilient, prismatic character - in search of home.

For three years, Warren Lehrer and Judith Sloan traveled the world by trekking the streets of their home borough. Crossing the BLVD documents the people they encountered along the way. First person narratives are illuminated by strikingly direct photographic portraits of the subjects alongside the objects of their worlds. Crossing the BLVD juxtaposes the multiple perspectives of these new Americans, now thrown together as neighbors, classmates, coworkers, enemies, and friends. They reflect on the good, the ugly and the unexpected in their stories of crossing oceans, borders, wars, economic hardship, and cultural divides. These soulful narratives are put in context by the authors’ personal and historical observations. The voices, images and sounds collected here form a portrait of a paradoxical and ever-shifting America.

"CROSSING THE BLVD boldly carries the tradition of oral history into the 21st Century. It is an electrifying collage of voices, faces, and spirits, capturing the true elasticity -and inclusiveness - of contemporary American culture."
Eve Ensler, Author, THE VAGINA MONOLOGUES

"A book of stunning originality, tremendous visual flair and cinematic depth, CROSSING THE BLVD will forever change the way we think about our cities, our communities, our neighborhoods, our neighbors, and ultimately, our own backyards. It's as if we've all been invited to an enormous block party, where Lehrer and Sloan have personally introduced us to some of their most fascinating neighbors. By the end of the book, strangers somehow feel like friends, and the boulevard feels a lot like home."
Alan Berliner, Filmmaker and Media Artist
THE FAMILY ALBUM, INTIMATE STRANGER, NOBODY'S BUSINESS

“CROSSING THE BLVD brims over with the energy, heart and spirit that went into creating this important work.…”
Dave Isay, Documentary Radio Artist
GHETTO LIFE 101, THE SUNSHINE HOTEL

“Lehrer/Sloan’s fascinating book offers unique insights into the rich and combustible cauldron of cultures and ethnicities in the most diverse corner of America – the Borough of Queens, New York. BLVD reveals the impact of changes in immigration law through the oral histories of asylum seekers caught in the maze of mandatory detention, refugees fleeing war and persecution, and those who are pushed out of their countries struggling to recreate their lives. The significance of this extraordinary volume is that, ready or not it provides a glimpse of the new America which is emerging.”
Ron Daniels Executive Director, Center for Constitutional Rights

“CROSSING THE BLVD brings alive the most polyglot place on the planet. One moment I am in the tiny one-bedroom of Bhutanese exiles, the next in the taxi of a philosopher-poet from Bombay, then with Renata the table tennis champ from the Czech National Team. An outstanding book on the new New York!”
John Kuo Wei Tchen, Historian, New York University & Co-founder of the Museum of Chinese in the Americas

STORE- CROSSING THE BLVD INDIVIDUAL AUDIO PIECES NOW AVAILABLE