A Historical Account of an Undocumented Student-Led Organization at UC Davis

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Saturday 1:45 pm
  In Roundtable Session: From the University to the Neighborhood: Activism and Mobilization to Remember, Resist, and Reimagine Educational Justice and Renewal

Abstract

This oral history project explores the significance and impact of a student-led undocumented student-led organization at UC Davis. Grounded in Critical Race Theory (CRT), UndocuCrit, and Chicana Feminist Epistemology framework, this study examines how undocumented students navigated higher education and mobilized for institutional and social change. Drawing on undocumented students, the project preserves the collective memory of the organization’s origins. Data collection spanned six months and included interviews with each participant, a life history, followed by a plática centered on testimonio. Findings reveal SPEAK functioned as a counterspace where students challenged marginalization, fostered solidarity, and reimagined. This work contributes to undocumented students in higher education, student activism, and immigration politics, offering a humanizing account that centers dignity, resistance, and belonging.

Author

• Miriam G. Delgado, University of California - Riverside