When the topic of immigration is brought to the table, it is always met with many different, sometimes opposing, viewpoints. This is a central issue in our country today and has been since the foundation of the United States. The continuation of policies that deny access to healthcare, education, housing, etc., for immigrants is harmful and destructive to our society as a whole. The victims of anti-citizenship laws change regularly, from the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 to modern deportations of Latinx peoples and proposals to ban Muslims from entrance to the country.
When we talk about why this topic is so important, it is because of the fact that apart from Native Americans, every single person in the United States comes from a line of immigrants. This means that protection under the law, access to resources, and human rights were granted only to the English colonizers who were predominantly white, upper-class, straight, Christian men. From there the the United States as a nation-state was formed. The nation-state, in this case, is the way in which a country interacts with national identity in the imagined political community. This created the foundations of inequality that make up the way the United States is structured. As a result, any identity differing from those of the original English colonizers did not, and still do not, have the same access to certain resources and opportunities. These inequalities amongst identities prevents one’s ability to progress and access the opportunities that are marketed to them.
Our syllabus focuses largely on the impacts that immigration has on families and youth. Immigrant families of both documented and undocumented status face many different issues that have generational impacts. Division of families due to documentation, naturalization (when you become a documented citizen) and born citizenship, splits families and tears children from guardians. In this course, we aim to center the experiences of immigrant families, specifically youth, and the issues they face in terms of education, naturalization, and family division. These issues deny full access to citizenship, regardless of documentation, and access to the nation-state, effectively stripping immigrant youth of their childhood, thrusting them into having to act and defend themselves as adults.
The course will begin with defining citizenship within the United States and the effects immigration has on the nation-state. We will then move on to explain the historical context of colonialism and the impacts on citizenship and immigration. Then, we will discuss identity as it relates to immigration and immigrant families and youth. Once those are outlined, we’ll explore how people move to the United States for many reasons, and learn about people’s personal experiences as immigrants. From there we’ll connect the theory from the earlier parts of the syllabus to art and music. And finally, to wrap up, we have provided resources for immigrants and advocates/allies to use.
It’s important that everyone stay informed about the biases around immigration and racial identity no matter what your citizenship status may be. Staying informed as a documented citizen could seriously impact the livelihood of undocumented citizens by having an informed vote, and being aware and helpful to undocumented people as they may endure strifes.
Learning Goals
-
Understand how immigration operates within the United States and the repercussions on youth and their families.
-
Recognize that one can be a legal citizen of the United States but still not have access to the nation-state and therefore their citizenship.
-
Explore and challenge taught ideas of legal citizenship and undocumented immigration.
-
Relate immigration to our own lives within the U.S. contexts and understanding that the nation-state is built on the backs of immigrants.