“Racialized Illegality: The Intersection Between Race and Legal Status Among Black and Latinx Undocumented Immigrants”
Discussant: Chiara Galli, Assistant Professor of Comparative Human Development
Abstract:
Research demonstrates that an undocumented status may inhibit college students’ access to scholarships, financial aid, and institutional support. Because of these challenges, researchers have claimed that immigration status is a ‘master status’ that obscures other social identities and statuses. Drawing primarily on interviews with 30 undocumented students (16 Black, 13 Latinx, and 1 Asian) who attend a community college in the Mountain West region, I examine the experiences of these students as they navigate higher education. I place race and immigration status at the center of my analysis to understand the different ways these identities impact students’ personal accounts. I argue that race and immigration status are intrinsically linked and should not be treated as mutually exclusive “statuses.” First, the analysis of the interviews reveals that race is an essential component in students’ sense of belonging at their higher education institution, in which students participate and join Latinx or Black student organizations. Additionally, I show the saliency of ‘Blackness’ in a new-immigrant destination and how this impacts the surveillance and discrimination of Black migrants. Lastly, I examined the ways students utilize their ethnic networks and relations to find resources for undocumented immigrants, such as employment opportunities, DREAM Centers, and help applying to college. The findings of this study reconceptualize the notion of a “master status,” and support the idea of an intersectional approach when interpreting the experiences of undocumented students.