Undocumented belonging. In 1982, the Supreme Court ruled

Undocumented Youth In the United States, there is an approximate 11.1 million people who are undocumented, this includes around 1.1 million children who are under the age of 18, with the majority having migrated with their parents at a very young age (Gleeson 1).

The words undocumented or illegal are often used and thrown around to describe human beings, but it is important to understand the definitions of each term to be have a clear discussion. A person who is undocumented lacks the documentation to enter, reside, and work in a country legally. On the other hand, while the term illegal is constantly attached to a person, in relevance a person can not be illegal themselves. The definition of illegal is forbidden by law or statute.

The act they commit when entering a country without legal documentation however, is illegal. Children who grow up undocumented often do not realize the consequences of their status until it becomes relevant as adults. Undocumented youth are negatively affected due to their immigration status because they battle with  discrimination, stigma, and are placed at a disadvantage in education, employment, and social class.

Research has found they face higher risks of developing mental health issues such as anxiety and depression. The immigration reform Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) signed into congress in 2012, allowed for temporary relief for a majority of these youth. Despite positive contributions, there is a large percent of the population who stigmatizes this youth as criminals, undeserving of such opportunities. Education The stigma of their undocumented status forms a secondary border and therefore, reinforces legal exclusions undocumented youth already face. The primary source of the stigma comes from post K-12 education. As many of the youth before adulthood do not fully comprehend what being undocumented entails, they face a false sense of belonging. In 1982, the Supreme Court ruled in Plyler v.

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Doe that children are ”persons” under the 14th Amendment, and as such, states may not deny them access to public education regardless of their legal status (Gleeson 5). Due to their ability to legally participate and register to school, they are not forced to apprehend their settings at this time. The public school system is known to be the source which traject these youth into American society (Gleeson, 8). When youth become aware of their undocumented status, they tend to remove themselves from public spaces, social groups, disengage in friendships, or any other activity which might place them at risk to expose their lack of legal documentation. (source) This leads to their low performance in school and increases their chances of dropping out.

Early adolescence is a crucial time for youth as they are going through critical transitions, most which undocumented youth are not legally able to participate in. Including obtaining a driver’s license, ID, going to college, ability to receive financial aid, as well as applying to first jobs. Qualitative research has drawn a parallel between these instances to “feelings of anger and hopelessness, particularly near the end of high school.” Interview and observational data, show a link between these stressful circumstances and reported anxiety over obtaining jobs and financing higher education as well as constant fears of deportations” (Gonzales 4).

As youth go through their educational passage it is often in the middle of their high school education, when they begin to entertain the fact of going to college and dream of developing future plans, many will discover for the first time they do not have a Social Security, therefore can’t apply for employment. In a study of unauthorized youth, Gonzales found that it is during the filling out of job applications or college admissions process that many come to learn of their undocumented status. Even when they have the opportunity to pursue a college degree and earn their degree in higher education, they still struggle to then use that degree because of their inability to find employment.

Therefore, the education they obtained is potentially useless for them.Employment Undocumented youth are not only being falsely integrated into our society as minors, but thereafter stripped of American identity when it is time for them to enter the workforce. Undocumented immigrants are faced with little to no job opportunities, due to lack of legal authorization to work. Despite having the education and language skills, they are placed in the same pool of undocumented immigrants who lack those achievements. A generation later, having grown up in the United States, they find themselves where their parents started regardless of efforts made to disrupt that cycle. In this instances, is where they begin to feel the effects and distortion of the American Dream, where children expect to do better than their parents. If they are able to find employment, their rights as employees are very limited and can be non existent depending on the workplace. According to the Department of Labour reports, the top wage and hour violators can be primarily be found in low-wage sectors commonly populated by undocumented immigrants, such as agriculture, restaurants, garment manufacturing and janitorial services (Gleeson 5).

These types of jobs are some of the most physically demanding with higher risks of injuries short and long term. Undocumented youth also struggle with the constant anxiety that accompanies the reality of life in any low-income immigrant family. They deal with the stress of their families’ unstable economic status, which is described as particularly intense both because of the low-wage jobs their parents frequently occupy, as well as the insecurity of these jobs. Financial instability contributing to strained familial relationships is a recurring theme (Negron-Gonzales).

Social Status Ethnographic studies have shown, many undocumented immigrants settle in de facto segregated areas of dense poverty (Roberto #). Because of their lack of resources and fear of asking for help, many families reside in segregated areas where they feel mostly integrated. It is also the lack of financial means that leads them to this areas where they most likely will be sharing a single household with other potentially undocumented families. The neighborhoods they grow up in are highly segregated by class, race, ethnicity and language.

A small amount of immigrants do benefit from being a part of their ethnic enclaves forming interpersonal relationships and gaining social capital. However, most others are placed at a disadvantage from little to no connection to institutions in their communities. As a consequence the only connection these families have are often to others who are also undocumented, giving them access to only sharing lower quantity and quality of information about community and public resources (Orozco 1). Growing up in these communities limits their opportunities for upward mobility, as they are systematically at a disadvantage from a very young age, with socioeconomic drawbacks. Mental Health Due to the heightened levels of stress their immigration status bears amongst other mentioned factors, undocumented youth have a higher risk of mental health issues, such as anxiety and depression. The critical passage to young adulthood is highly misshapen by the realization of their newly found identity as an “illegal” immigrant.

For young adults this means being excluded, inability to reach milestones, lack of social networks, no sense of future direction, or sense of belonging. Emotional distress associated with being undocumented was identified as a common theme in all studies reporting qualitative data (Garcini). Some of the commonly described symptoms of depression included decreased self-esteem, helplessness, loss of motivation, self-blame, and decreased sleep/appetite, as symptoms of anxiety included increased alertness and concern, excessive worry, fear, and uncertainty. The most relevant stressors which were found after a short period of arrival from both parents and youth was marginalization and isolation, fear of deportation, and limited resources. Feelings of marginalization included being restricted to only participate in certain activities in certain spaces, having to isolate from the larger community, separation from family/friends in the country of origin, inability to travel internationally to visit family, inability to speak up, invisibility and their loss of rights as citizens, and lastly having limited access to no upward social mobility were amongst the instances found most distressing. (Garcini).

The trouble to attain employment, struggling financially, limited if any access to health care, unsafe and segregated neighborhoods were all a part of lack of resources. For many they faced racial identity issues for the first time as they come to be racially classified as Latinos and included into a mass rather than uniquely identified. It is also common for immigrants to internalize the perception of their undocumented status others have onto themselves. Meaning they have lower self esteem due to the exclusion and feeling of guilt and shame for having come to this country undocumented, causing a loss of motivation. There is also the distress of having left behind a country and possibly other family causing resentment and guilt.

For those who live with families of mixes status, meaning some of the members of the family have the proper documentation to reside in the country there is a feeling of distinction and jealousy brought by the greater access to resources and opportunities they have.