Fort Collins celebrates diversity through immigration in new Colorado photo exhibit

A new set of exhibits on display in Fort Collins are helping highlight the city's rich history of diversity and inclusion of immigrants. 

The exhibits, titled "The Places We Come From" and "Querida Familia," showcase the faces and stories of immigrants who call Northern Colorado home. 

"When people think of Fort Collins, they think it is really white, not a lot of diversity. But in reality, we have people from all over the world," said Jesus Castro, one of the locals featured in the displays. "It is really exciting to see us having an exhibit to show visibility and to show we are here, and this is our home too."

The exhibits are currently on display at the Carnegie Center for Creativity near Old Town. 

"It is to highlight the diversity of Fort Collins," Castro said. "It's highlighting the Latino families that live here in town, including mine."

Castro, and his family, moved to Colorado many years ago. However, he was born in Mexico. 

He said he was humbled to have his family's pictures and stories on the exhibit walls. 

"It just shows our stories and our journey," Castro said. 

The exhibits also showcase how each individual and each family has a different story than the others. Castro said that helps demonstrate how immigrants have their own unique stories, and are not all alike. 

"It is a little more complex. It can be empowering, it can be heartbreaking. But that is our stories," Castro said. "When we think of immigration, we think about it as a political issue; we don't see the humanity in people. We are human beings, and our stories are different."

The exhibits will continue their displays until Sept. 29, open noon until 6 p.m. Castro also created a handful of short plays that were being shown at the venue. The plays highlighted stories of immigrants in the region and the contributions they have made to Fort Collins. 

"It is such an honor being next to these families that I look up to and admire. They are fighting for the rights of our community and trying to make change here in Fort Collins," Castro said. "This is the people who live here in town. This is your community."