MEXICAN IMMIGRANT FAMILIES LIVING IN THE MIDWEST: A MULTIPLE CASE STUDY
Chapter 1
Introduction
It is estimated that approxmately 33.1 million of immigrants (documented and undocumented) live in the United States (Camarota, 2002). Like other groups living in the U.S., immigrants are a heterogeneous group and their reasons for coming to this country vary (Felicov,
1998; Santiago-Rivera, Arredondo, Gallardo-Cooper, 2002). For example, there is a clear distinction between a person who immigrates voluntarily and refugees who involuntarily leave their countries of origin due to fear of persecution. Refugees are individuals who have to flee their countries because of persecution and fear of being killed. A great number of these individuals have been tortured or have seen friends or relatives being tortured (Amnesty
International, 2002). Given that a significant number of refugees are victims of torture or witnesses of torture, their adaptation to their new environment is more challenging than other immigrants (Suarez-Orozco & Suarez-Orozco, 2001).
There are also within-group differences among immigrants who share the same culture.
For example, there are clear distinctions within the Latino immigrant group as not all undocumented individuals who cross the border between Mexico and the U.S are of Mexican descent (Felicov, 1998; Santiago-Rivera, Arredondo, & Gallardo-Cooper, 2002). The scholarship on immigration highlights an array of reasons why individuals from foreign countries come to industrialized countries such as the U.S. (Suarez-Orozco & Suarez-Orozco, 2001). We observe that immigrants from Mexico often come to the U.S. because they can no longer afford to support their families or because working in agriculture is no longer a job that produces sufficient income (Santiago-Rivera, Arredondo, & Gallardo-Cooper, 2002). These are a few of the reasons why other individuals from Latin-America come to the U.S. Conversely, there are a
3
number of individuals who immigrate to the U.S. due to fear of being persecuted. A
Introduction
It is estimated that approxmately 33.1 million of immigrants (documented and undocumented) live in the United States (Camarota, 2002). Like other groups living in the U.S., immigrants are a heterogeneous group and their reasons for coming to this country vary (Felicov,
1998; Santiago-Rivera, Arredondo, Gallardo-Cooper, 2002). For example, there is a clear distinction between a person who immigrates voluntarily and refugees who involuntarily leave their countries of origin due to fear of persecution. Refugees are individuals who have to flee their countries because of persecution and fear of being killed. A great number of these individuals have been tortured or have seen friends or relatives being tortured (Amnesty
International, 2002). Given that a significant number of refugees are victims of torture or witnesses of torture, their adaptation to their new environment is more challenging than other immigrants (Suarez-Orozco & Suarez-Orozco, 2001).
There are also within-group differences among immigrants who share the same culture.
For example, there are clear distinctions within the Latino immigrant group as not all undocumented individuals who cross the border between Mexico and the U.S are of Mexican descent (Felicov, 1998; Santiago-Rivera, Arredondo, & Gallardo-Cooper, 2002). The scholarship on immigration highlights an array of reasons why individuals from foreign countries come to industrialized countries such as the U.S. (Suarez-Orozco & Suarez-Orozco, 2001). We observe that immigrants from Mexico often come to the U.S. because they can no longer afford to support their families or because working in agriculture is no longer a job that produces sufficient income (Santiago-Rivera, Arredondo, & Gallardo-Cooper, 2002). These are a few of the reasons why other individuals from Latin-America come to the U.S. Conversely, there are a
3
number of individuals who immigrate to the U.S. due to fear of being persecuted. A