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Abstract
Recent literature elucidates the ways in which news coverage of immigration and immigrants reflects, as well as shapes, discourse on citizenship, rights and belonging. Scholars find that undocumented immigrants are particularly vulnerable to media representations of illegality that reinforce bounded citizenship. However, more positive representations of certain groups of undocumented immigrants have emerged in recent years. This article draws upon content analysis of English-language print and online coverage of undocumented immigrants whose anti-deportation campaigns were led by national undocumented youth organisations in the USA. We find that campaigns for undocumented students were more likely to receive coverage than those of non-students. Regardless of a mention of educational status, articles included pro-immigrant quotes four times more frequently than anti-immigrant quotes. News coverage of anti-deportation cases represented citizenship in three related ways: citizenship as acculturation, citizenship as civic engagement (or ‘good citizenry’) and deservingness vis-à-vis victim status. We conclude that the media regularly expose the public to understandings of citizenship and membership that go beyond nationality, in ways that express empathy for particular immigrants during the enforcement (implementation) stage of the policy process. However, selective representations of citizenship may ultimately reinforce public support for restrictionist policies.
Acknowledgements
We thank Chris Gilligan, Jeff Sacha, Elena Shih, Min Zhou and the Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies editors for their helpful comments; and Sufia Toorawa and Jamie Sabellon for their research assistance. Caitlin Patler gratefully acknowledges support from the National Science Foundation [grant number DGE-0707424], Ford Foundation, University of California Institute for Mexico and the United States, UCLA Center for the Study of Women’s Paula Stone Legal Research Fellowship and UCLA Institute for Research on Labor and Employment.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.
Notes
[1] As of June 2014, 675,476 undocumented youth had applied for deferred action and work authorisation under DACA (USCIS, 19 August 2014. “Number of I-821D, Consideration of DACA by Fiscal Year, Quarter, Intake, Biometrics and Case Status: 2012-2014” Accessed September 29, 2014. http://www.uscis.gov/tools/reports-studies/immigration-forms-data/data-set-deferred-action-childhood-arrivals)
[2] At the close of our analysis in 2012, the following states had laws or educational policies allowing eligible undocumented students to pay in-state fees/tuition at public colleges and universities: California (as of 2001), Connecticut (2011), Illinois (2003-2004), Kansas (2003-2004), Maryland (2011-2012), Nebraska (2006), New Mexico (2005), New York (2002), Oklahoma (2003-2004), Rhode Island (2011, via Board of Governors), Texas (2001), Utah (2002), and Washington (2003-2004). States that had barred access to instate tuition or enrollment via laws or policies by the Boards of Governors include: Arizona (2006), Colorado (2008), Georgia (2008, 2010), Indiana (2011), South Carolina (2008), and Alabama (2011). These policies are highly contested. For more information on state actions regarding undocumented students' access to in-state tuition, see: http://www.ncsl.org/research/education/undocumented-student-tuition-state-action.aspx
[3] The DREAM Act (Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors) is a legislative proposal first introduced in 2001. Several versions of this bill would provide conditional permanent residency to eligible undocumented young adults who came to the USA as children, graduated from US high schools and are of ‘good moral character’. The bill would provide an eventual path to citizenship for undocumented youth who complete time in accredited institutions of higher learning or in the US military.
[4] The case that received the most news coverage was for Victor Chukwueke, a Nigerian orphan who was brought to the USA by nuns in order to undergo reconstructive surgery for a disease that had caused severe facial malformations. At the time of his campaign, he was a university student and had been admitted to medical school, pending the establishment of legal residency. Michigan Senator Carl Levin introduced several private bills to help keep Victor in the USA, the last of which was signed by President Obama. This was the first private bill regarding an individual's deportation to become law in several years, and it granted Victor permanent residency with a path to citizenship. (See the text of the bill as filed in the Library of Congress. “S.285 – For the relief of Sopuruchi Chukwueke.” Accessed January 28, 2014. http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/D?c112:1:./temp/~c112JowcyS::)