“Ms. Sanchez chronicles the lived experiences of farmworkers, migrants, and LGBTQ+ people by telling nuanced stories through both written and visual journalism, bringing to light underreported narratives of hardship and resilience.”

2025 Judges

Zaydee Sanchez is a Mexican-American visual journalist, documentary photographer, and writer whose coverage highlights the lives of labor workers, migrants, and other populations often underrepresented in media. She is based in Los Angeles, California, and is originally from Tulare, an agricultural town in the San Joaquin Valley that inspires much of her work.

Ms. Sanchez’s photography and words have been published in The New York Times, ProPublica, The Wall Street Journal, National Geographic, and palabra, among others.

Her 2019 photography exhibition, “Tell Our Truth,” which documented the stories of migrants seeking asylum during the first Trump administration, toured Los Angeles public libraries for a year. The Los Angeles Commission on the Status of Women has recognized Ms. Sanchez for her devotion to empowering women in her community through her visual journalism.

When asked about how being a freelance journalist has shaped her work, she says: “Most of the stories I tell take months to document, and being a freelance journalist allows me the time to build meaningful relationships with people. Time has been one of the most important lessons I’ve learned about storytelling. I understand that this luxury is often not an option for many journalists. The freedom to plan, prepare, and let a story unfold naturally feels almost magical to me. Often, I start with an idea of what I think the story is about, but through the journey, it is really the people themselves who shape the final story. And that discovery takes time.”

“I believe one of the most significant truths about my work is the value of our individual lived experiences,” says Sanchez. “It is entirely possible to care deeply and have empathy for the people whose stories we tell while still fulfilling our responsibilities as journalists—by providing facts, data, and expert insights to present a complete picture. My own life experiences, along with those of my family, enable me to form authentic connections with the people I document—connections I believe they can sense and appreciate.”

Zaydee sanchez