Skip to main content Accessibility help
×
Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-4rdpn Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-10T11:12:59.076Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

9 - Social Justice for Child Immigrants

from Part II - International Social Justice Issues That Have an Impact on Children and Young People

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 September 2020

Caroline S. Clauss-Ehlers
Affiliation:
Rutgers University, New Jersey
Aradhana Bela Sood
Affiliation:
Virginia Commonwealth University
Mark D. Weist
Affiliation:
University of South Carolina
Get access

Summary

Immigrant children are a particularly vulnerable population who face higher levels of trauma than their peers. Some are forced to flee the only homes they have ever known due to torture and persecution, only to then resettle in a land completely foreign to them with little in the way of social support. There are currently more than 60 million refugees worldwide, which is more than any other point in the past seventy years and higher than post–World War II levels. Others have grown up in the United States with an undocumented parent and are at much higher risk for poverty, overcrowded living conditions, educational and developmental difficulties, decreased access to healthcare and basic services, and, as a result, higher rates of behavioral health issues. In this chapter we explore the experiences of these special child immigrant populations and specifically emphasize elements of social injustice that this population routinely faces here in the United States. We also highlight existing literature that every child mental healthcare provider should know to work most effectively with this population. We have provided clinical case vignettes that highlight aspects of the existing body of literature in this area.

Type
Chapter
Information
Social Justice for Children and Young People
International Perspectives
, pp. 138 - 152
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2020

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Adam, B. (2017). Treating refugees from Syria and beyond: A moral and professional responsibility. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 56(10), 803804.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Allen, B., Cisneros, E. M., & Tellez, A. (2013). The children left behind: The impact of parental deportation on mental health. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 24(2), 386392. doi:10.1007/s10826-013-9848-5CrossRefGoogle Scholar
American Immigration Council (2017). The Dream Act, DACA, and other policies designed to protect Dreamers. An official report of the American Immigration Council. Accessed September 6, 2019. Available at: www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/research/dream-act-daca-and-other-policies-designed-protect-dreamers.Google Scholar
American Psychological Association (2012). Crossroads: The psychology of immigration in the new century. APA Presidential Task Force on Immigration. Accessed September 6, 2019. Available at: www.apa.org/topics/immigration/immigration-report.pdf.Google Scholar
Amos, D. (2018). The U.S. has accepted only 11 Syrian refugees this year. National Public Radio. Accessed September 6, 2019. Available at: www.npr.org/sections/parallels/2018/04/12/602022877/the-u-s-has-welcomed-only-11-syrian-refugees-this-year.Google Scholar
Angold, A., & Costello, E. J. (2001). The epidemiology of depression in children and adolescents. In Goodyer, I. M. (ed.), The depressed child and adolescent (vol. 2, pp. 143178). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Bernhardt, A., Milkman, R., Theodore, N, et al. (2009). Broken laws, unprotected workers: Violations of employment and labor laws in America’s cities. New York: National Employment Law Project.Google Scholar
Brabeck, K., Lykes, M. B., & Hunter, C. (2014). The psychosocial impact of detention and deportation on U.S. migrant children and families. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 84, 496505.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Brabeck, K., & Xu, Q. (2010). The impact of detention and deportation on Latino immigrant children and families: A quantitative exploration. Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Science, 32(3), 341361.Google Scholar
Bridges v. Wixon, 326 U.S. 135 (1945).Google Scholar
Brown, C. S. (2015). The educational, psychological, and social impact of discrimination on the immigrant child. An official report of the National center on Immigrant Integration Policy and the Migration Policy Institute. Accessed September 6, 2019. Available at: www.migrationpolicy.org/sites/default/files/publications/FCD-Brown-FINALWEB.pdf.Google Scholar
Campos, S., & Friedland, J. (2014). Mexican and Central American asylum and credible fear claims: Background and context. A special report of the American Immigration Council. Washington, DC. Accessed September 6, 2019. Available at: www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/sites/default/files/research/asylum_and_credible_fear_claims_final_0.pdf.Google Scholar
Capps, R., Ku, L., & Fix, M. (2002). How immigrants are faring: Preliminary evidence from Los Angeles and New York City. Washington, DC: Urban Institute.Google Scholar
Carlson v. Landon, 342 U.S. 524 (1952).Google Scholar
Chaudry, A., Capps, R., Pedroza, J., et al. (2010). Facing our future: Children in the aftermath of immigration enforcement. Washington, DC: Urban Institute.Google Scholar
Child Trends Data Bank (2014). Immigrant children: Indicators of child and youth well-being. An official report of Child Trends Data Bank. Bethesda, MD. Accessed September 6, 2019. Available at: www.childtrends.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/110_Immigrant_Children.pdf.Google Scholar
Cole, D. (2002). In aid of removal: Due process limits on immigration detention. Emory Law Journal, 51, 10031039.Google Scholar
Crosnoe, R. (2006). Mexican roots, American schools: Helping Mexican immigrant children succeed. Palo Alto, CA: Stanford University Press.Google Scholar
Crosnoe, R. (2007). Early child care and the school readiness of children from Mexican immigrant families. International Migration Review, 41, 152181.Google Scholar
Detention Watch Network (Part of the International Detention Coalition). Immigration detention 101. Accessed September 6, 2019. Available at: www.detentionwatchnetwork.org/issues/detention–101.Google Scholar
Dreby, J. (2014). US immigration policy and family separation: The consequences for children’s well-being. Social Science and Medicine, 132, 245251.Google Scholar
Early, J., Davis, S. W., Quandt, S. A., et al. (2006). Housing characteristics of farmworker families in North Carolina. Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health, 8, 173184.Google Scholar
Evans, G. W., Lepore, S. J., Shejwal, B. R., et al. (1998). Chronic residential crowding and children’s well being: An ecological perspective. Child Development, 69, 15141523.Google Scholar
Evans, W. N., & Fitzgerald, D. (2017). The economic and social outcomes of refugees in the United States: Evidence from the ACS. An official report of the National Bureau of Economic Research. Accessed September 6, 2019. Available at: www.nber.org/papers/w23498.pdf.Google Scholar
Fuller, B., Bridges, M., Bein, E., et al. (2009). The health and cognitive growth of Latino toddlers: At risk or immigrant paradox? Maternal and Child Health Journal, 13, 755768.Google Scholar
Garcia, E., & Jensen, B. (2007). Helping young Hispanic learners. Educational Leadership, 64(6), 3439.Google Scholar
Gormley, W. T., Gayer, T., Phillips, D. A., et al. (2005). The effects of universal pre-K on children’s cognitive development. Developmental Psychology, 41, 872884.Google Scholar
Gulbas, I. E., Zayas, L. H., Yoon, H., et al. (2014). Deportation experiences and depression among U.S. citizen children with undocumented Mexican parents. Child Care, Health, and Development, 42(2), 220230.Google Scholar
Han, W. (2006). Academic achievements of children in immigrant families. Educational Research and Reviews, 1, 286318.Google Scholar
Henderson, S. W., & Baily, C. D. R. (2013). Parental deportation, families, and mental health. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 52, 451453.Google Scholar
Hernandez, D., Denton, S., & Macartney, S. E. (2008). Children in immigrant families: Looking to America’s future. Social Policy Reports of the Society for Research in Child Development, 22(3), 122.Google Scholar
Hunter, P. (2016). The refugee crisis challenges national healthcare systems. EMBO Press. Accessed September 6, 2019. Available at: www.embopress.org/doi/10.15252/embr.201642171.Google Scholar
Johnson, R. C., Kalil, A., & Dunifon, R. (2010). Mother’s work and children’s lives: Low-income families after welfare reform. Kalamazoo, MI: W. E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research.Google Scholar
Kalhan, A. (2010). Rethinking immigration detention. Columbia Law Review Sidebar, 110, 4258.Google Scholar
Kalil, A., & Crosnoe, R. (2009). Two generations of educational progress in Latin American immigrant families in the U.S.: A conceptual framework for a new policy context. In Grigorenko, E & Takanishi, R (eds.), Immigration, diversity, and education (pp. 188204). New York: Routledge.Google Scholar
Kalil, A., & Ziol-Guest, K. (2009). Welfare reform and health among the children of immigrants. In Ziliak, J (ed.), Welfare reform and its long-term consequences for America’s poor (pp. 308336). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kaushal, N., & Kaestner, R. (2005). Welfare reform and health insurance of immigrants. Health Services Research, 40, 697722.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Lasagna, L. (1964). Hippocratic Oath: Modern version. WGBH Educational Foundation for PBS and NOVA Online. Published November 7, 2001. Accessed September 6, 2019. Available at: www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/body/hippocratic-oath-today.html.Google Scholar
Loo, D., Sidhu, S., & Larroque, C. (2015). Detainment of Central American child refugees sheds light on a global humanitarian crisis. AACAP News, 46(2), 7778.Google Scholar
Lopez, G., & Bialik, K. (2017). Key findings about U.S. Immigrants. Pew Research Center: Fact Tank. Accessed September 6, 2019. Available at: www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/05/03/key-findings-about-u-s-immigrants/.Google Scholar
Lurie, I. (2008). Welfare reform and the decline in health-insurance coverage of children and non-permanent residents. Journal of Health Economics, 27, 786793.Google Scholar
Magana-Salgado, J. (2016). Relief not raids: Temporary protected status for El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras. An official report by the Immigrant Legal Resource Center. San Francisco, CA. Accessed September 6, 2019. Available at: www.ilrc.org/relief-not-raids-temporary-protected-status-el-salvador-guatemala-honduras.Google Scholar
Magnuson, K., Lahaie, C., & Waldfogel, J. (2006). Preschool and school readiness of children of immigrants. Social Science Quarterly, 87, 12411262.Google Scholar
Matthews, H., & Ewan, D. (2006). Reaching all children? Understanding early care and education participation among immigrant families. Washington, DC: Center for Law and Social Policy.Google Scholar
Mehta, S. (2015). American exile: Rapid deportations that bypass the courtroom. An official report of the American Civil Liberties Union. Accessed September 6, 2019. Available at: www.aclu.org/report/american-exile-rapid-deportations-bypass-courtroom/.Google Scholar
Meyer, P. J., Margesson, R., Seelke, C. R., & Taft-Morales, M. (2016). Unaccompanied children from Central America: Foreign policy considerations. An official report of the Congressional Research Service. Accessed September 6, 2019. Available at: https://fas.org/sgp/crs/homesec/R43702.pdf.Google Scholar
National Park Service. “The New Colossus.” Statue of Liberty. Updated January 31, 2018. Accessed September 6, 2019. Available at: www.nps.gov/stli/learn/historyculture/colossus.htm.Google Scholar
Ortega, A. N., Fang, H., & Perez, V. (2007). Health care access, use of services, and experiences among undocumented Mexicans and other Latinos. Archives of Internal Medicine, 167, 23542360.Google Scholar
Ortega, A. N., Horwitz, S. M., Fang, H., et al. (2009). Documentation status and parental concerns about development in young US children of Mexican origin. Academic Pediatrics, 9, 278282.Google Scholar
Passel, J. S., & Cohn, D. (2016). Number of babies born to unauthorized immigrants in U.S. continues to decline. Pew Research Center: Fact Tank. Accessed September 6, 2019. Available at: www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2016/10/26/number-of-babies-born-to-unauthorized-immigrants-in-u-s-continues-to-decline/.Google Scholar
Perez-Foster, R. (2001). When immigration is trauma: Guidelines for the individual and family clinician. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 71, 153170.Google Scholar
Shields, M. K., & Behrman, R. E. (2004). Children of immigrant families: Analysis and recommendations. Future of Children, 14(2), 416.Google Scholar
Sidhu, S. (2017a). Haunted souls: Tales of immigrant children torn from their parents in America. AACAP News, 48(5), 219221.Google Scholar
Sidhu, S. (2017b). Impact of recent executive actions on minority youth and families. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 56(10), 805807. PMID: 28942800CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Sidhu, S., & Boodoo, R. (2017). Domestic case law and legal precedent relating to the rights of asylum-seeking undocumented immigrants. Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law, 45(3), 365373. PMID: 28939736Google Scholar
Sidhu, S. Song, S. (2019). Growing up with an undocumented parent in America: Psychosocial adversity in domestically residing immigrant children. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 58(10), 933935. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaac.2019.05.032Google Scholar
Suarez-Orozco, C., Hee Jin, B., & Ha, Y. K. (2010). I felt like my heart was staying behind: Psychological implications of family separations and reunifications for immigrant youth. Journal of Adolescent Research, 25, 222257.Google Scholar
Suarez-Orozco, C., Yoshikawa, H., Teranishi, R, et al. (2011). Growing up in the shadows: The developmental implications of unauthorized status. Harvard Educational Review, 81, 438473.Google Scholar
Ullmann, E., Barthel, A., Tache, S., et al. (2015).Emotional and psychological trauma in refugees arriving in Germany in 2015. Molecular Psychiatry, 20, 14831484.Google Scholar
UNICEF (2017). Five-fold increase in number of refugee and migrant children traveling alone since 2010. United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF). Accessed September 6, 2019. Available at: www.unicef.org/media/media_95997.html.Google Scholar
United Nations General Assembly Resolution 429 (V) of 14 December 1950. Text of the 1951 Convention Related to the Status of Refugees. Text of the 1967 Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees. Resolution 2189 (XXI) Adopted by the United Nations General Assembly. Geneva: Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. Accessed September 6, 2019. Available at: www.unhcr.org/en-us/3b66c2aa10/.Google Scholar
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (2018a). Children on the run. An official report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. Accessed September 6, 2019. Available at: www.unhcr.org/56fc266f4.html.Google Scholar
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (2018b). Figures at a glance. UN Refugee Agency. Accessed September 6, 2019. Available at: www.unhcr.org/en-us/figures-at-a-glance.html.Google Scholar
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (2017). Global trends: Forced displacement in 2016. UN Refugee Agency. Accessed September 6, 2019. Available at: www.unhcr.org/en-us/statistics/unhcrstats/5943e8a34/global-trends-forced-displacement-2016.html.Google Scholar
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) (2012). Transnational organized crime in Central America and the Caribbean: A threat assessment. An official publication of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. Vienna, Austria. Accessed September 6, 2019. Available at: www.unodc.org/documents/data-and-analysis/Studies/TOC_Central_America_and_the_Caribbean_english.pdf.Google Scholar
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) (2013). Global study on homicide: Trends, contexts, data. Vienna, Austria. Accessed September 6, 2019. Available at: www.unodc.org/documents/gsh/pdfs/2014_GLOBAL_HOMICIDE_BOOK_web.pdf.Google Scholar
United Nations Treaty Collection (UNTC) (1967). Chapter V: Refugees and stateless persons. Section 5: Protocol relating to the status of refugees. New York: UNTC, Accessed September 6, 2019. Available at: https://treaties.un.org/pages/ViewDetails.aspx?src=TREATY&mtdsg_no=V-5&chapter=5&clang=_en/.Google Scholar
US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) (2018). Immigration and citizenship data. DACA: Population data as of September 4, 2017. Accessed September 6 2019. Available at: www.uscis.gov/tools/reports-studies/immigration-forms-data.Google Scholar
US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) (2007). Expedited removal report card: 2 years later. Based on original report on asylum seekers in expedited removal (2005), Vols. I and II. An official report of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom. Washington, DC: USCIRF. Accessed September 6, 2019. Available at: www.uscirf.gov/sites/default/files/resources/stories/pdf/scorecard_final.pdf.Google Scholar
Wadhia, S. S. (2014). The rise of speed deportation and the role of discretion. Columbia Journal of Race & Law, 5, 127.Google Scholar
Wong Wing v. United States, 163 U.S. 228 (1896).Google Scholar
World Health Organization (WHO) (2012). Risks to mental health: An overview of vulnerabilities and risk factors. Accessed September 6, 2019. Available at: www.who.int/mental_health/mhgap/risks_to_mental_health_EN_27_08_12.pdf.Google Scholar
Yoshikawa, H. (2011). Immigrants raising citizens: Undocumented parents and their young children. New York: Russell Sage Foundation.Google Scholar
Yoshikawa, H., Godfrey, E. B., & Rivera, A. C. (2008). Access to institutional resources as a measure of social exclusion: Relations with family process and cognitive development in the context of immigration. New Directions in Child and Adolescent Development, 121, 7396.Google Scholar
Yu, S. M., Huang, Z. J., Schwalberg, R. H., et al. (2005). Parental awareness of health and community resources among immigrant families. Maternal and Child Health Journal, 9, 2734.Google Scholar
Yuruk, B. (2013). 76% of Syrian refugees women, children: UNHCR. United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees: The UN Refugee Agency. Operational Data Portal. Accessed September 6, 2019. Available at: https://data2.unhcr.org/en/news/13033.Google Scholar
Zadvydas v. Davis, 533 U.S. 678 (2001).Google Scholar
Zuniga, V., & Hamann, E. T. (2006). Going home? Schooling in Mexico of transitional children. CONfines (Mexico), 4, 4157.Google Scholar

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure coreplatform@cambridge.org is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Available formats
×

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

Available formats
×