The Relationship Between Immigration Enforcement and Educational Attainment: The Role of Sanctuary Policies

This study explores the association between sanctuary policies and the high school completion and college enrollment of Hispanic undocumented youth. Sanctuary policies, which city, county, and/or state governments implement, prohibit local political leaders and police officials from cooperating with federal immigration enforcement officers regarding the questioning, detention, and deportation of undocumented immigrants. This study uses data from the American Community Survey and applies a difference-in-differences design. On average, my preferred specification detected no association with high school completion or college enrollment. These findings suggest that although these policies may help counteract immigration enforcement, they may not reduce uncertainty enough to have a significant relationship with educational outcomes.

Latina/o/x Immigrant Youth’s Motivations for Disclosing their Family-Undocumented Experiences to a Teacher(s): A Latent Transition Analysis

Using the revelation risk model (RRM), we examined factors that might motivate family-undocumented youth (i.e., youth who are undocumented or who have an immediate family member who is undocumented) to confide in a teacher(s). Latent transition analysis with 414 Latina/o/x 9th-12th grade students uncovered three profiles: concerned indirect revealers (i.e., moderate teacher-student relational closeness, highest perceived risk of disclosing, lowest communication efficacy, moderate indirect disclosure, low direct disclosure), relationally-close revealers (i.e., strongest teacher-student closeness, low perceived risk of disclosing, low communication efficacy, and highest moderate indirect and direct disclosure), and confident nonrevealers (i.e., moderate teacher-student closeness, lowest perceived risk of disclosing, highest communication efficacy, and lowest indirect and direct disclosure). Greater fear of deportation at Wave 1 predicted relationally-close revealers becoming concerned indirect revealers three months later. These findings identify experiences that could affect the extent to which family-undocumented youth turn to a teacher(s), which has implications for youth’s well-being.

Shameless Interruptions

While we know that undocumented youth have played critical roles in the fight for migrant rights in the 21st century, we know least about how this is playing out in the Southeastern United States. This chapter illuminates how racial legacies of Jim Crow, the Civil Rights Movement, and Cuban incorporation matter if we are to understand undocumented/undocuqueer activists from Miami. Utilizing cultural geography’s concept of space and place, the chapter suggests a place-specific state of resistance to deportation and detention that speaks to a “Cuban Immigrant Power Structure.”

Signifying “Americanness”: Narrative Collective Identification Work in the Undocumented Youth Movement

This article examines the narrative identity work that undocumented youth activists used to shift the boundary of and claim membership in the social category “American.” Despite the seemingly inflexible, legalistic way American is conventionally defined in the United States (as a native-born or naturalized citizen), activists adopted a fluid interpretation that made room for them. Our theoretical contribution centers on articulating how the construction and deployment of identity codes within narrative processes can open spaces for claiming collective identification and belonging in seemingly closed collectivities. However, the use of such codes may unintentionally close access for others seeking to identify as part of the same collective. Data were collected through ethnographic fieldwork and in-depth interviews, and our analysis integrates insights from sociological research on identity with interdisciplinary work on storytelling. We outline activists’ three main approaches to signifying Americanness, including constructing American as (1) a subjective feeling, (2) a status that can be earned, and (3) a quality that one can demonstrate through political engagement in the United States. We conclude by discussing the implications of such narrative identity work strategies for other undocumented immigrants who may face challenges presenting themselves as equally fitting “Americans.”

“Because There Are Young Women Behind Me”

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.