Documentation Status Socialization among Mixed Status Latinx Families

• In Event: Real Talk: Supporting Children of Color Amidst Inequity and Racism through Family and Community Socialization

Abstract

Anti-immigrant sentiment against the Latinx community has grown exponentially in the U.S. Discriminatory political legislation such as rescinding DACA, family separation and detainment of asylum seekers, and the constant threat of deportation have shifted how parents communicate with their children about the hostile political climate. One way that parents of color talk about, instill ethnic pride, and prepare their children to deal with prejudice is through ethnic-racial socialization (ERS). ERS is thought to promote children’s positive development. However, few scholars have focused on how Latinx immigrant families socialize their children around issues of immigration, documentation status, and the potential for family separation. Given the protective potential of such messages, it is important to understand how Latinx parents expand or modify their ERS to include documentation status socialization.
Thirty-nine Latinx immigrant mothers (22 undocumented, 17 documented) were interviewed regarding the ways in which their documentation status informs their ERS practices. The large majority of participants were of Mexican origin (90%) with an average length of residence in the U.S. of 20.39 years (SD = 5.77). They had adolescents aged 14 to 17 (M = 15.72). Interviews were conducted between December 2016 and July 2017. An NIH Certificate of Confidentiality was implemented.
An overarching theme of Documentation Status Socialization with five subthemes were identified among undocumented and documented parents. For example, for the Limitations and Restrictions of Undocumented Status subtheme, parents believed that their children needed to learn about their realities from the beginning: “I noticed it was important that they understood everything I talked to them about when they were younger…in school they talk to their friends about their fathers being undocumented or having been deported and they start to get curious...” Talking to kids about documentation status issues also included sharing with them the privilege of having “papers.” For the Documentation Privilege subtheme, parents explained: “Because we have limitations, limitations on obtaining a driver's license, limitations on driving, limitations on medical insurance, limitations on other benefits that only citizens and residents can have… I have always told them, ‘when you are in this country you have no limits, you can do what you want, and as far as you want, you can be a great doctor, a great lawyer or a great president. Whatever you want to do in this country it is available because there are no limits for you, but for us, yes.”
These results provide important insights into the socialization practices Latinx immigrant parents utilize to prepare their children for experiences outside of the home. The current presidential administration is openly hostile toward undocumented immigrants who face the constant possibility of deportation and family separation. Although awareness of the family’s vulnerability may underlie anxieties in children, knowledge of the steps that have been taken to protect the family may also ameliorate their fear of deportation. Given the protective influence of ERS in the development of minority children, further research is necessary to better understand the family dynamics and developmental outcomes that are unique to Latinx immigrant families.

Authors

• Fernanda L. Cross, University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
  Presenting Author

• Saraí Blanco Martinez, University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
  Non-Presenting Author

• Deborah Rivas-Drake, University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
  Non-Presenting Author