ERIC Number: EJ1157459
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2018
Pages: 14
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1361-3324
EISSN: N/A
Model (Undocumented) Minorities and "Illegal" Immigrants: Centering Asian Americans and US Carcerality in Undocumented Student Discourse
Lachica Buenavista, Tracy
Race, Ethnicity and Education, v21 n1 p78-91 2018
As the numbers of immigrant apprehensions, detentions, and deportations increase, and in context of anti-immigrant sentiment, education scholars must better contend with the way that carcerality affects undocumented student experiences. Carcerality refers to social and political systems that formally and informally promote discipline, punishment, and incarceration. Guided by Critical Race Theory, I examine interview data from 15 undocumented Asian Americans to show that the portrayal of undocumented student exceptionalism that typically characterizes the discourse on their experiences obscures the centrality of carcerality in shaping how young people with undocumented status navigate their lives. The narratives of undocumented Asian Americans represent a shift in undocumented discourse as these students de-emphasized their academic mobility, demonstrated a hyper-awareness of punitive immigration policies, and were traumatized by and practiced nondisclosure in response to deportation threats. However, while these students developed resistance strategies that they believed would both physically and psychologically protect their presence in the US, some reinforced white supremacist perceptions of the illegality of other undocumented immigrants. Undocumented Asian American experiences illuminate the nuanced relationship between the criminalization of undocumented immigrants, race, and education, and how a legacy of carcerality is vital to deciphering the contemporary educational experiences of undocumented students in the US.
Descriptors: Undocumented Immigrants, Asian Americans, Ethnic Stereotypes, Social Bias, Social Influences, Political Influences, Discipline, Punishment, Institutionalized Persons, Correctional Institutions, Critical Theory, Race, Resilience (Psychology), College Students, Semi Structured Interviews, Young Adults, Late Adolescents, Fear, Negative Attitudes
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: California (Los Angeles)
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A