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Undocumented Students and Youth Advocacy in the USA

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The Palgrave Handbook of Citizenship and Education

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Abstract

This chapter focuses on conceptions of citizenship as they relate to undocumented student characteristics. In particular, and with a specific focus on the Californian context, it examines undocumented youth activism for access to higher education, including key legal dimensions and allies of students, as well as the use of social biliteracies via media in English and other world languages. The body of literature on undocumented students challenges conceptions of citizenship by highlighting the resilience of this student population through their activism and determination to traverse the legal, social, and educational barriers and opposition they face. After a summary of the literature in these areas, the chapter identifies practices through which undocumented youth have enacted advocacy for themselves and others through civic identities and responsibilities for citizenship and education. While much of the existing literature focuses on access and opportunity, some literature on advocacy provides impact evidence of key legislation that promote higher levels of access and equity for marginalized youth. These include the California DREAM (Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act) (2011), which provides eligible youth state aid, and the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) (2012), which provides a conditional protective order from deportation and access to work permits. Some features of advocacy include undocumented student education, socially responsible biliteracies, and youth empowerment for the making of citizens and the interpretation of citizenship. Where pertinent, such features are elaborated upon further with contextualization; for instance, activism and advocacy for access to higher education may differ according to citizenship status, thereby creating specific challenges for undocumented youth in civic communities.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Literacy, Early, Bilingual, and Special Education (LEBSE), California State University, Fresno, Fresno, CA, USA

    Ana K. Soltero López & R. Joseph Rodríguez

Authors
  1. Ana K. Soltero López
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  2. R. Joseph Rodríguez
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Correspondence to Ana K. Soltero López .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Education, Canterbury Christ Church University , Canterbury, United Kingdom

    Andrew Peterson

  2. School of Education, University of South Australia , Mawson Lakes, South Australia, Australia

    Garth Stahl

  3. School of Education, University of South Australia, Mawson Lakes, South Australia, Australia

    Hannah Soong

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© 2018 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer International Publishing AG, part of Springer Nature

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Soltero López, A.K., Joseph Rodríguez, R. (2018). Undocumented Students and Youth Advocacy in the USA. In: Peterson, A., Stahl, G., Soong, H. (eds) The Palgrave Handbook of Citizenship and Education. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-67905-1_37-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-67905-1_37-1

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  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-67905-1

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-67905-1

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