Ryland Pietras speaks with Erwin Lopez Rada, a Venezuelan immigrant, who was forced to leave his country and make a new home in Chicago. Lopez Rada left Venezuela after threats of persecution because of his political activism. He now enjoys the opportunity to live and speak freely in Chicago – but at times he wonders if he will ever see the mountains of Caracas again.

Normally, students use spring break as a time to recharge and regroup for the remainder of the semester. During the week of March 13-20, three groups of students went to three different cities for NEIU’s alternative spring break.

The difference being that an alternative spring break focuses on volunteer work in the places they travel to.

Each group consisted of ten students and two leaders who traveled by plane or car to either Miami, New Orleans or Selma, AL. Here we will focus on the group t

Ryland Pietras is a journalism student at Northeastern Illinois University. He is a patron of the arts and small businesses, he roasts his own coffee and...