The history of US immigration is often told through documents and photographs, but music can also offer an invaluable perspective on the nuances of everyday immigrant life. Based on archival field recordings from 1930s California, this talk weaves together stories of Middle Eastern, East Asian, and European immigrants in an agricultural railroad town marked by racial politics. These recordings reveal sometimes surprising moments of interethnic collaboration, reminding us that the past may not be so different from our multicultural present. At the same time, the songs speak to structural inequities that show up in conversations about diversity and inclusion today: housing discrimination, restrictive naturalization laws, and the construction of whiteness as a racial category. As we continue to grapple with the legacies of diversity and prejudice in the United States, what lessons can we glean from the voices of those who navigated moments of connection and discord nearly a century ago? Alyssa Mathias is a Visiting Assistant Professor of Music at Knox College, where she teaches courses on global traditional and popular music. A former Postdoctoral Fellow at the UCLA Promise Armenian Institute, she holds a PhD in Ethnomusicology from UCLA and has conducted ethnographic fieldwork with musicians in Armenia, Georgia, Turkey, Russia, and the United States. Her research focuses on the possibilities and challenges of arts-based development in the South Caucasus, with case studies in conflict transformation, information technology, and sustainable tourism. She is also working on a multigenerational study of silence in the US Armenian diaspora. A violinist and singer, Alyssa performs a wide variety of music from Europe and the Middle East. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at www.ted.com/tedx