“They say it’s a crime for us to be here”: Latinx reflections on the myth of the “criminal immigrant” in the Trump era

IF 0.7 Q3 SOCIOLOGY Latino Studies Pub Date : 2024-02-04 DOI:10.1057/s41276-023-00440-4
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Abstract

Media and public discourse perpetuate the myth that immigrants—particularly those from Latin America and the undocumented—are crime-prone. Numerous empirical studies refute this. Fewer studies examine how Latinx communities internalize these faulty associations, or how they perceive criminality of other Latinx people. We address two research questions: How do first- and second-generation Latinx individuals conceptualize immigration-related offenses (e.g., driving without a license or working without authorization) in relation to criminality? How do they view their own law-breaking behavior and that of other first- and second-generation Latinx people? To answer these questions, we analyze data from focus groups in a diverse South Florida community with a large indigenous Guatemalan-Maya population. We find participants’ framing of their own immigration-related offenses, like working without authorization or driving without a license, can be understood through the lens of techniques of neutralization. We also find participants exhibited a unique “immigrant legal consciousness” in which immigration-related law-breaking is distinct from “mainstream” state-centered definitions of criminal behavior.

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"他们说我们在这里是一种犯罪":拉美裔对特朗普时代 "犯罪移民 "神话的反思
摘要 媒体和公众言论长期以来一直在制造一个神话,即移民--特别是来自拉丁美洲的移民和无证移民--容易犯罪。许多实证研究对此进行了反驳。但很少有研究探讨拉美裔社区是如何将这些错误的联想内在化的,或者他们是如何看待其他拉美裔人的犯罪问题的。我们探讨了两个研究问题:第一代和第二代拉美人如何看待与移民有关的犯罪(如无证驾驶或无证工作)与犯罪的关系?他们如何看待自己的违法行为以及其他第一代和第二代拉美人的违法行为?为了回答这些问题,我们分析了来自南佛罗里达一个拥有大量危地马拉-马亚土著居民的多元化社区的焦点小组的数据。我们发现,可以从中性化技术的角度来理解参与者对自己与移民有关的违法行为(如未经许可工作或无证驾驶)的描述。我们还发现参与者表现出一种独特的 "移民法律意识",即与移民相关的违法行为有别于以国家为中心的 "主流 "犯罪行为定义。
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来源期刊
Latino Studies
Latino Studies SOCIOLOGY-
CiteScore
0.90
自引率
0.00%
发文量
39
期刊介绍: Latino Studies has established itself as the leading, international peer-reviewed journal for advancing interdisciplinary scholarship about the lived experience and struggles of Latinas and Latinos for equality, representation, and social justice. Sustaining the tradition of activist scholarship of the founders of Chicana and Chicano Studies and Puerto Rican Studies, the journal critically engages the study of the local, national, transnational, and hemispheric realities that continue to influence the Latina and Latino presence in the United States. It is committed to developing a new transnational research agenda that bridges the academic and non-academic worlds and fosters mutual learning and collaboration among all the Latino national groups. Latino Studies provides an intellectual forum for innovative explorations and theorization. We welcome submissions of original research articles of up to 8,000 words, from scholars and practitioners in the national and international research communities. In addition to scholarly articles, we also invite other type of submissions. Vivencias or ''reports from the field'' are short personal essays between 2000-3000 words that describe and analyze significant local issues, struggles and debates affecting the lives of Latinas/os in different regions of the country. We also welcome interviews with Latinas/os who are contributing in their local communities or nationwide (e.g. authors, artists, community activists, union leaders, etc.). Our aim in publishing the ''reports'' is to inform readers about events that are sometimes over-looked by the national and regional media.The Reflexiones Pedagógicas section includes short essays between 2000-3000 words that address issues of pedagogy and curriculum. This section contributes toward the development and institutionalization of our field in the academy. Páginas Recuperadas are short essays between 2000-3000 words that seek to recover archival documents. These essays make visible, historically significant achievements by individuals, and pivotal events in the experience of Latinas/os in the United States. El Foro is an occasional section that provides a space for essays of approximately 6000 words, addressing current events, in an effort to further engage our readers in a dialogue on the pressing issues affecting Latina/o communities today.Book and media reviews are devoted to scholarship/media on the experience of Latinas/os in the United States. Reviews are no more than 1000 words.
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