On the occasion of National Immigrants Day, celebrated annually in the United States on October 28, Magazzino presents a book presentation and conversation exploring the psychological experience of migration and identity.
The program will feature Neither Here Nor There, a new book that draws on more than thirty years of clinical practice, anthropological research, and lived experience across cultures to examine what it means to live in between — between languages, identities, family expectations, and social systems.
Written for immigrants, expatriates, and second-generation individuals, as well as for therapists and other professionals who work with them, the book brings together clinical vignettes, theoretical reflection, and practical tools. It addresses themes including cultural disorientation, shame, guilt, migratory grief, language, dreams, the body, resilience, and belonging.
The event will also feature a conversation on Italian photographer Marco Anelli’s First American Portrait, an ongoing, long-term photographic project documenting new immigrants immediately following their U.S. Oath Ceremony. Begun in 2018 after Anelli attended his first naturalization ceremony in New York, the project captures individuals at the moment they formally become American citizens.
About Leide Porcu
Leide Porcu, PhD, LP, is a psychotherapist and psychoanalyst with advanced training in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. She holds a PhD in Anthropology from Columbia University and brings extensive experience working with immigrants, expatriates, executives, and diplomats living and working in New York City.
She obtained her New York State license in Psychoanalysis in 2006. She completed eight years of postdoctoral training at the Institute for Psychoanalytic Training and Research (IPTAR), including re-specialization and full psychoanalytic training, with seven years of supervised clinical practice with patients. Earlier in her career, she worked in clinics and community mental health centers, most notably at the Western Queens Consultation Center, where she developed a deep understanding of the psychological impact of immigration, displacement, and social vulnerability. Since 2010, she has been dedicated exclusively to private practice, working with individuals from diverse backgrounds, life circumstances, and professional roles.
She currently teaches on immigration at the Silberman School of Social Work (CUNY). She is also the author of a forthcoming book with Routledge on immigrant well-being and second-generation experiences, written for both clinicians and a broader audience interested in migration, identity, and mental health. The book begins with a socio-anthropological analysis of migration before giving voice to immigrants from a wide range of backgrounds and social positions. It concludes with practical, clinically grounded tools designed to help transform the strain of migration into opportunities for growth, integration, and psychological well-being. She has previously published essays on humor, dreams, and homelessness and is currently working on further writing on immigration.
In 2021, she served as President of the Outreach, Sport, Youth, and Mental Health Commission of ComitesNY, an elected body that connects Italian citizens living abroad (AIRE) with the Italian Consulate and institutions in Italy. Through this role, she collaborated on and organized numerous initiatives in support of the Italian community in the New York tri-state area.
