Direct Damage: How the Stress of Deportations Is Impacting Latina/o Health

• In Event: Immigration Enforcement and Its Ripple Effects: Labor Markets, Mobility, and Health

Abstract

In Trump 2.0 we have seen increased attention on immigration enforcement and deportations based on campaign promises. This climate is creating fear and stress for immigrants and their families can ultimately lead to negative health outcomes. Given the rise of immigration enforcement, there has been scare data projects focused on how deportations are impacting the overall wellbeing of Latino immigrants. This manuscript uses stress theory to examine the direct damage of how immigration enforcement is impacting the physical and mental health of foreign-born Latino/as. Using an innovative survey funded by a collaborative team of researchers across the US, (n=1,000), we asked adults about how immigration enforcement might be impacting their wellbeing. We also asked these adults about their physical and mental health as well as various indicators of stress. We estimate a series of ordered logistic and logistic regressions to understand how personal connections to immigrants are affecting the health of foreign born Latinos. Preliminary findings suggest that knowing a deportee increases the probability of reporting poor health, holding all else constant.  We also find that knowing a deportee increases the odds of having to seek help for mental health problems leading to depression and anxiety. We conclude that stress is the underlying mechanism between immigration enforcement and poor health outcomes. The implication and significance of this work has tremendous impacts for policy makers, health service providers and researchers interested in reducing health disparities among vulnerable populations.

Author

• Edward David Vargas, Arizona State University
  Presenting Author