I received a very sad email on Saturday morning from Caroline Zane, the wife of writer James Goodman, who reported on immigration issues for The Progressive for a number of years.
“He thoughtfully and powerfully illuminated many people’s individual struggles with our inhumane immigration system.”
“Jim died early this morning from heart failure,” she wrote. It was totally unexpected. “Jim was notorious for not wanting to go to the doctor.” His most recent article, “Bringing Border Enforcement Under the Rule of Law,” appeared on our website on June 20, and he was already working on another. I had been in touch with him by email just two days before.
“Yesterday, when I took him to the ER for breathing problems, he had me pack him a five pound bag of notepads he was working on for his next article,” Caroline wrote. “That was Jim.”
Originally from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Goodman had spent the last few decades in Rochester, New York, where he wrote for the Gannett newspapers the Democrat and Chronicle and the Times-Union. He came to us because he had memories of The Progressive from his youth, and thought this would be a good home for his writing on immigration and the plight of those caught in a more and more politicized system.
“He thoughtfully and powerfully illuminated many people’s individual struggles with our inhumane immigration system,” says Mrill Ingram, former web editor at The Progressive. Bill Lueders, who edited Goodman’s work for both the web and print magazine, remembers, “Jim represented the highest echelon of journalists—the kind who care, the kind who write to make a difference in people’s lives, as he surely did. What a loss to the world.”
In October 2019, Jim Goodman received the David Nyhan Prize for Political Journalism from the Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics, and Public Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School. The award was largely for his work covering immigration for The Progressive. The virtual award ceremony can be viewed on YouTube. Shorenstein Center staff wrote at the time, “James Goodman’s journalism career has been dedicated to telling the stories of victims of injustice. . . . This quality connects his work directly with David Nyhan’s legacy of giving a voice to the voiceless, and acting as the “conscience of his community.”
In accepting the award, Jim said of his work for The Progressive, “I have been struck by the determination of immigrants who, fleeing persecution, come to the United States with high hopes but end up in a Kafkaesque detention system, which has proved to be inhumane and intimidating. Many have gone through so much but refuse to give up. They have maintained an inspirational dignity and steadfastness that has become a driving force behind today’s sanctuary movement, rallying communities, large and small, behind them. My articles have attempted to detail this resistance.”
Goodman was a consummate reporter, always working to get every detail accurate, and faithful to the people with whose stories he was entrusted. “His considerate writing and careful research give voice to people frequently written about but not well represented,” recalls Ingram.
Kassidy Tarala, web editor and audience engagement coordinator of The Progressive, remembers Goodman as one of a kind. “Not only was he one of the greatest writers and reporters I have ever had the pleasure of working with, but he was also such a kind soul. He was always so thoughtful of others, eager to help create change for everyone who comes after him. He taught me so much, and I will forever be grateful to have had the opportunity to get to know him. He certainly did make the world a better place,” she says.
Jim was truly a great writer and his articles meant so much to us. We were proud to have his voice in our pages and on our website. A listing of his excellent articles written for The Progressive can be found on his author page. A memorial was held at 11 a.m. Eastern Time on Thursday, July 7, in Rochester, New York. It is also available as an archived video stream for those unable to attend in person.