In partnership with Economic Hardship Reporting Project and Magnum Photos
LOS ANGELES COUNTY, CA: LA County Library is pleased to announce the launch of The Californians Powering America, a compelling photography exhibit in partnership with the Economic Hardship Reporting Project and Magnum Photos. This powerful showcase will be on display from October 16 through December 31, 2025, at San Fernando Library and La Cañada Flintridge Library.
The Californians Powering America features six immersive visual stories that highlight the vital contributions of immigrant laborers across California’s key industries—including agriculture, construction, caregiving, and wildfire recovery. At a time when immigrant communities face increasing marginalization, this exhibit brings their stories to the forefront with empathy, depth, and humanity.
Through the lens of award-winning Magnum photographers and storytellers, visitors will gain an intimate look at the resilience, struggles, and everyday realities of the people powering America’s economy—from Central Valley farms to Los Angeles restaurants, homes, and hospitals.
The exhibit is free and open to the public during library hours.
“This exhibit is a moving tribute to the invisible labor that makes California thrive,” said Dr. Skye Patrick, County Librarian and Director of LA County Library. “We are honored to bring these stories to our community and offer a platform for deeper understanding and appreciation.”
“Every photograph in this exhibit is a striking testament to the endurance of communities who sustain our country, yet whose stories are too often overlooked,” said Deborah Jian Lee, Senior Editor at the Economic Hardship Reporting Project. “These stories spotlight the people who feed, care for and sustain us, embodying EHRP’s mission to produce journalism that exposes inequality, reveals our shared destinies and empowers the public to confront systemic hardship.”
“This is a project that has adapted, grown, and been reshaped within the changing context in which the migrant laborer lives in California and in the US at large,” said Giulietta Palumbo, Global Editorial Director at Magnum Photos. “Magnum will continue to document these challenging times and the human beings who are living in them, while always standing for the open dialogue that only arts and its tools can bring. This exhibition is about this dialogue.”
To celebrate the launch of The Californians Powering America, the Library will host a reception on Thursday, October 16 at San Fernando Library at 6 pm.
Members of the public are invited to join the free reception, which will feature a viewing of the photography exhibit and a conversation with Dr. Skye Patrick, Deborah Jian Lee of the Economic Hardship Reporting Project, Giulietta Palumbo from Magnum Photos, and Magnum photographer Sabiha Çimen.
In addition, the Library will host a special family workshop called, The Story of Us: Preserving Family Legacies Through Image, Art and Sound, held at San Fernando Library on October 18 from 1 to 2:30 pm.
This workshop will feature photos from Sabiha Cimen’s book, Hafiz, and will include an activity where families can decorate photo albums to take home.
For more information about the exhibit and upcoming events, please visit: LACountyLibrary.org/Californians-Powering-America.
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