Racialized Control in Schools and the Adverse Consequences on Latinx Immigrant Students

• In Event: Racialized Power and Control in P-20: Navigating Complex Educational Journeys of Latina/o/x

Abstract

Punitive social control policies in U.S. schools have often been characterized as the “school-to-prison-pipeline” and/or the “criminalization” of students. Research indicates Latinx immigrant students experience disproportional surveillance and punitive social control (e.g., Author, 2023). Some scholars have drawn on the conceptualization of “immigrant threat” to understand how increased surveillance and control subjugates immigrants (e.g., Golash-Boza, 2015). The authors argue immigrant threat does not adequately reflect racial disparities in school punishment trends. Drawing from Latina/o Critical Legal Theory (LatCrit), the authors assert that a racialized control theoretical framework better explicates the surveillance and criminalization of Latinx immigrant youth in schools. The paper concludes with a discussion of implications for educational practitioners and researchers.

Authors

• Jennifer M. Bondy, Arizona State University

• Kay S. Varela, Arizona State University

• Anthony A. Peguero, Arizona State University

• Sarah Lindstrom Johnson, Arizona State University

• Sanna King, Mississippi Valley State University