Elvira Arellano and the Struggles of Low-Wage Undocumented Latina Immigrant Women

This chapter examines the labor disruptions faced by low-wage undocumented Latina immigrant women under the current neoliberal regime by telling the story of Elvira Arellano, a Mexican immigrant who followed the migrant trail of low-wage work in the United States. On August 15, 2007, Arellano traveled to Los Angeles to attend an immigration rally; four days later, she was apprehended by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and deported to Tijuana, Mexico. Arellano's case highlights the criminalization of undocumented immigrants in the the aftermath of 9/11 that has led to a dramatic increase in the number of Latinos sentenced to prison terms in U.S. federal courts. This chapter explores how neoliberal globalization processes in both Mexico and the United States have shaped Arellano's life choices, her agency, and politicization as an undocumented immigrant woman.

Perceived ethnic and language-based discrimination and Latina immigrant women’s health

Perceiving ethnic discrimination can have aversive consequences for health. However, little is known about whether perceiving language-based (how one speaks a second language) discrimination poses the same risks. This study examined whether perceptions of language-based and ethnic discrimination are associated with mental and physical health. Among 132 Mexican and Dominican immigrant women, perceiving ethnic and language-based discrimination each predicted psychological distress and poorer physical health. When examined together, only ethnic discrimination remained a significant predictor. These results emphasize the importance of understanding how perceived ethnic and language-based discrimination play an integral role in the health of Latina immigrant women.

Immigrant Women Workers in the Neoliberal Age

To date, most research on immigrant women and labor forces has focused on the participation of immigrant women in formal labor markets. This book focuses on informal economies such as health care, domestic work, street vending, and the garment industry, where displaced and undocumented women are more likely to work. Because such informal labor markets are unregulated, many of these workers face abusive working conditions that are not reported for fear of job loss or deportation.The book explores the labor experiences of primarily Asian and Latina immigrant women, engaged in low-wage work. It assesses the impact of neoliberal globalization on the economic, political, and social lives of immigrant women both at home and abroad, as well as the strategies used by these women to deal with labor disruptions—interruptions in immigrant women's labor patterns due to the social and political processes resulting from neoliberal globalization. Labor disruptions encompass both “for-pay” labor and gendered labor within the family and occur in ethnic enclaves and within the informal economy. The book seeks to elucidate how Asian and Latina immigrant women, with the assistance of community-based organizations, organize and mobilize against disruptions caused by neoliberal globalization and the neoliberal state. In examining the complex dynamics of how immigrant women navigate political and economic uncertainties, the book highlights the important role of citizenship status in defining immigrant women's opportunities, wages, and labor conditions.