“I Need this Chance to … Help My Family”

A Qualitative Analysis of the Aspirations of Daca Applicants

Bibliographic Data

ID17820148
AuthorsYvonne M Luna (0000-0001-8052-1903, Northern Arizona University, corresponding author), T Mark Montoya (0000-0003-3856-9203, Northern Arizona University)
Year2019
Volume8
Issue9
Pages265-265
Publication date2019-09-19
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueSocial Sciences (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2076-0760 • E-ISSN: 2076-0760
PublisherMDPI AG (PUBLISHER • IT)
DOI10.3390/socsci8090265
OpenAlexW2973758005
LanguageEN
Citations received8
References cited34

This study explores the aspirations of undocumented youth seeking to defer deportation from the United States and obtain temporary employment authorization through Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). The data are twenty-three letters submitted from 2013–2015 to a nonprofit foundation in the US Southwest that provides financial assistance to pay DACA application fees. Conducted within a narrative framework, analysis of emergent themes reveals a story of hope and family that counters the dominant political story of fear and threat to public safety. Specifically, from the DACA applicant’s standpoint, family is their most valuable form of social capital and by providing the means for employment and the education needed to launch a sustainable career, DACA status provides the leverage required to maximize family capital. Our analysis reveals a disturbing disjuncture between their testimonios and the realities of a policy intended to serve as a safety net. The current political climate makes aspirations like theirs increasingly difficult to achieve and may actually exacerbate legal and social liminality

Deportation · Immigration · Political science · Politics · Public policy · Public relations · Safety net · Social capital · Sociology · Law · Migration and Labor Dynamics · Migration, Health and Trauma · Migration, Refugees, and Integration

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Open DOISci-HubOpen Access