Violent Othering or Intersectional Belonging: Mobilizing Emotional Fusions on Latina/o/x Immigration

• In Event: 20862 - Section on International Migration Roundtables
  In Refereed Roundtable (60 minute): Table 1: Attitudes Toward Immigration

Abstract

This paper analyzes how civil society mobilized the hearts and minds of a nation by fighting for and against national rhetoric and policies, and for and against each other, concerning immigration policies and working-class Latina/o/x immigrants. I adopt the lenses of emotions, othering, and intersectionality to understand the ideological direction of the nation and the formation of pro- and anti-immigrant/immigration groups. Between 2016 and 2022, I attended more than 50 protests and rallies and more than 30 meetings or town halls. Eight of them were focused specifically on opposing the 45th president’s anti-immigration rhetoric, policies, and actions, including the separation of parents from their children at the U.S.-Mexico border. Many other rallies incorporated immigrant rights and protections into their identity- or issue-based campaigns. Most of these events occurred in Southeast Florida between Miami and Palm Beach, with some of them occurring outside immigrant detention centers. I argue that the practice of othering expanded into systemic and individual acts of “violent othering,” while a national commitment to and understanding of “intersectional belonging” was taught and demanded by those supporting working-class immigrants and young Dreamers from Latin America. Both camps remain relevant today in determining the nation’s cultural direction and praxis of safety and security for all residents.

Author

• Patricia Widener, Florida Atlantic University