“Because There Are Young Women Behind Me”

2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 69-85
Author(s):  
Carolina Silva
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Women Leaders ◽  
Young Women ◽  
Immigrant Youth ◽  
Undocumented Students ◽  
Advocacy Group ◽  
Undocumented Youth ◽  
Youth Leaders ◽  
University Support

In this article, I discuss the experiences of young undocumented Latinas, aged between 19 and 22, in a university support and advocacy group for undocumented students. While recent research has investigated the advocacy of undocumented youth, there is a lack of attention on the experiences of undocumented women who advocate. To address this gap, I center the testimonios (testimonies) of five young undocumented women to examine their advocacy experiences. As a result of advocacy, the young women gained visibility as immigrant youth leaders, created a pipeline of support for other young undocumented women leaders, and faced disapproval from educators. I conclude by suggesting that schools and educators can foster the leadership of young undocumented women and acknowledge advocacy as a legitimate tool for social justice in education settings.

Young Women Leaders Program

2009 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Edith Lawrence ◽  
Keonya Booker ◽  
Lauren Germain
Keyword(s):  
Women Leaders ◽  
Young Women

Make Room in the Circle

2019 ◽  
pp. 89-120
Author(s):  
Wesley C. Hogan
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Immigrant Youth ◽  
The United States ◽  
Self Esteem ◽  
Dream Act ◽  
Real Problem ◽  
Youth Justice ◽  
Undocumented Youth ◽  
Driver's License

During the 1990s and into the 2000s, three basic barriers prevented undocumented youth from achieving major milestones of independence—acquiring a driver’s license, submitting college applications, and working legally. The circumstances repeated again and again in the accounts of undocumented youth. Elioenai Santos recalled, “Living like that is a real problem. It’s a real blow to your self-esteem, because you always feel like you are somehow less. It’s awful to always feel like you’re inferior. You see your friends driving around, traveling to other countries, while I don’t have money to go to school.” Nor could they keep their families together, as everyone felt constantly threatened by separation. The result since the early 2000s has been a growing, powerful movement among undocumented youth to redefine “who belongs” as a citizen in the United States. This chapter explores how the Immigrant Youth Justice League, Freedom University, Cristina Jimenez and United We Dream, and other undocumented and undocuqueer youth immigrant activists have fought for DACA and the DREAM Act and against deportation and the border wall. They have fundamentally challenged all US citizens to reimagine who belongs within the circle of belonging.

Young Women Leaders in China

Signs ◽  
1976 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 59-88 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary Sheridan
Keyword(s):  
Women Leaders ◽  
Young Women

Sticking to the Script

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sujatha Fernandes
Keyword(s):  
Young People ◽  
Undocumented Students ◽  
Political Engagement ◽  
Dream Act ◽  
Immigration Reform ◽  
Immigrant Rights ◽  
Undocumented Youth ◽  
Legislative Agenda ◽  
The Media ◽  
American Society

This chapter looks at how storytelling was used by mainstream immigrant rights groups to produce an aspiring class of upwardly mobile and self-reliant undocumented youth while defusing broader migrant rights activism. In the campaign for legalization through a DREAM Act, the undocumented students known as Dreamers told their stories to the legislature and the media. The students were given scripts to follow that emphasized their achievements, assimilation into American society, and rejection of their home countries. In the lead-up to the 2008 national election and the subsequent push for Comprehensive Immigration Reform (CIR), groups of young people were mobilized in mass storytelling trainings across the country to support the electoral and legislative agenda of mainstream organizations. Eventually, many young people rebelled against this orchestration and sought to take control over their own representations. Some even began to move away from storytelling as a mode of political engagement altogether.

The Young Women Leaders Program: A Mentoring Program Targeted Toward Adolescent Girls

2012 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. 132-143 ◽  
Author(s):  
Angela K. Henneberger ◽  
Nancy L. Deutsch ◽  
Edith C. Lawrence ◽  
Amanda Sovik-Johnston
Keyword(s):  
Women Leaders ◽  
Adolescent Girls ◽  
Young Women ◽  
Mentoring Program

“I am not alone”: The Additional Benefits of Critical Media Literacy

2019 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 38-50
Author(s):  
Lori Bindig Yousman
Keyword(s):  
Eating Disorders ◽  
Social Justice ◽  
New Media ◽  
Media Literacy ◽  
Young Women ◽  
Sense Of Community ◽  
Literacy Curriculum ◽  
Critical Media Literacy ◽  
Critical Media

Despite the potential for technology to bring us together, current research shows that new media can actually exacerbate social disconnect and contribute to feelings of isolation, inadequacy, and anxiety. However, young women in treatment for eating disorders reported that participation in a critical media literacy curriculum helped combat isolation. More specifically, participants revealed that the discussion generated throughout the critical media literacy curriculum fostered a sense of reciprocity, companionship, self-expression, and empathy. These findings suggest that critical media literacy curricula can provide a much-needed opportunity for dialogue where individuals not only hone their understanding of media and work towards social justice, but also develop a sense of community and connection that may be missing in today’s networked culture.

Untangling Plyler's Legacy: Undocumented Students, Schools, and Citizenship

2015 ◽  
Vol 85 (3) ◽  
pp. 318-341 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roberto G. Gonzales ◽  
Luisa L. Heredia ◽  
Genevieve Negrón-Gonzales
Keyword(s):  
Civic Education ◽  
Educational System ◽  
Immigrant Students ◽  
Undocumented Students ◽  
The United States ◽  
Undocumented Immigrant ◽  
Supreme Court Ruling ◽  
Undocumented Youth ◽  
States Experience ◽  
K 12

In this article, Roberto G. Gonzales, Luisa L. Heredia, and Genevieve Negrón-Gonzales present a nuanced assessment of how undocumented immigrant students in the United States experience the public educational system. Though the landmark 1982 Supreme Court ruling Plyler v. Doe has resulted in hundreds of thousands of undocumented children being educated in US K–12 schools, much of Plyler's promise still eludes them. Drawing data from multiple studies conducted with undocumented youth in California, the authors argue that schools perform three critical social functions—as integrators, as constructors of citizenship, and as facilitators of public and community engagement—that shape the educational experiences and political and civic participation of undocumented immigrant youth. They suggest that while schools hold the potential to engender a sense of belonging and membership for undocumented immigrant students, they often fall short of this promise. The authors argue that constrained resources in school districts that serve large concentrations of students of color, school structures that sort and deprioritize students in lower academic tracks, and modes of civic education that do not allow undocumented students to participate equally in society or view themselves as equal members of the citizenry limit the potential for schools to create positive educational and civic experiences for undocumented youth. In addition to inequalities in the educational system, undocumented students' immigration status constrains their interaction in each school function, limiting the realization of Plyler's promise.

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