Illegality: A Contemporary Portrait of Immigration

• Published in: RSF : Russell Sage Foundation journal of the social sciences Vol. 3; no. 4; pp. 1 - 17
• Main Authors: Gonzales, Roberto G, Raphael, Steven
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Russell Sage Foundation 01.07.2017
• Subjects: Adults; Border patrol; Children; Citizenship; Deportation; Employers; Employment; Entry Workers; Families & family life; Family (Sociological Unit); Federal government; Foreign born citizens; Geographic Location; Government spending; Heterogeneity; Immigration; Immigration policy; Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986; International borders; Labor; Law enforcement; Legal status; Legislation; Marriage; Mexicans; Migrant Children; Migrant communities; Migrant Education; Migration Patterns; National security; Nativism; Naturalization; Noncitizens; Obama, Barack; Parents; Parents & parenting; Political participation; Population; Presidential candidates; Prior convictions; Quotas; School Policy; Spouses; Temporary Employment; Undocumented immigrants; Voting rights; United States > US; Texas; Chicago Illinois
• ISSN: 2377-8253; 2377-8261
• DOI: 10.7758/rsf.2017.3.4.01

Formal removal proceedings from the interior of the nation were relatively rare, were subject to judicial review, and for the most part resulted when what was then the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) received an anonymous tip or when an undocumented immigrant committed a serious felony resulting in a fairly lengthy prison term. Since 1996, this infrastructure has been strengthened by increased staffing levels for the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CPB) (which is responsible for border enforcement and monitoring) and the ICE (which is responsible for interior enforcement of immigration law), both key operational components of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). [...]we again observe strong demand among sizable portions of the U.S. public to address undocumented immigration and quite vocal support at least among Republican primary voters for presidential candidates emphasizing a nativist agenda. [...]in the legislative vacuum left by federal government inaction, state level legislation and executive actions on the part of the part of President Obama reflecting the heterogeneity in political sentiment regarding undocumented immigration are filling the void. To the extent that the U.S.-born children of undocumented immigrants do not observe their parents voting, attending public forum, and engaging in other less formal forms of civic participation, they may also participate less as adults despite their citizenship. [...]citizens may act to prevent political participation of immigrants, perhaps due to suspicions regarding legal status, or perhaps due to differential priorities regarding local state and federal government spending levels and services.