They Need to Be Heard: Undocumented and Black

• In Event: The Necessary Work: Research by and for Black Women and Girls

Abstract

There is a growing body of research that examines the educational experiences of undocumented/DACAmented students in higher education (Bjorklund, 2018; Hsin & Reed, 2019; Peña, 2019). Most of the research that highlights the experiences of undocumneted/DACAmented students, center the voices of Latinx students. Despite the growing body of research that examines the educational experiences of undocumented/DACAmented students (Bjorklund Jr, 2018), the educational experiences of undocumented/DACAmented Black students are unknown. Black immigrants come from other parts of the world outside of Latin America from regions such as the Caribbean and Africa. Therefore, the opportunity to learn about how geographical politics shape diasporic Black undocumented/DACAmented students in specific ways is important. Given the dominant narrative about undocumented/DACAmented students and the need to support these students, it is imperative that institutions of higher education acknowledge the diversity of undocumented/DACAmented students. Informed by a critical world view and framed by intersectionality (Crenshaw, 1991), this study uses narrative inquiry, a storytelling methodology, to understand the educational experiences of four undocumented/DACAmented Black students in higher education. For Black communities, storytelling is powerful, as it is rooted in African oral traditions, have healing properties, and challenge majoritarian narratives.
Methodologically, this research also takes a humanizing stance which requires that “inquiries involve dialogic consciousness-raising and the building of relationships of care and dignity for both researchers and participants”( Paris, & Winn, 2014, p. 140). Taking a humanizing stance created the space to move beyond an acknowledgment and attention to damage-centered research, which collects the pain and brokenness of communities in order to “hold those in power accountable for their oppression” (Tuck, 2009, p. 409). Therefore, this presentation will be guided by three main questions: (1) What are the methodological challenges and concerns when working with undocumented/DACAmented Black students? (2)What does it mean to take a humanizing stance when learning from undocumented/DACAmented Black students? (3) How does this research open up methodological possibilities for working with undocumented/DACAmented students and other vulnerable populations.

Author

• Kayon A. Hall, Michigan State University