IMMIGRATION ADVOCACY
Historically our nation has upheld a public image of being a refuge for migrants and an opportunity for pursuing one's happiness and freedom. This belies the oppressive reality of people daily being denied both their Constitutional and basic human rights. One problem (of many) stems from the false narrative constructed about foreign nationals who want to relocate to the U.S. Below I've shared links and info about various nonprofits and organizations that do beautiful work for people forced to flee from home and courageously try to navigate our country's immigration system. I've also shared an introductory reading list of resources I found extremely helpful in helping to correct the misaligned representation of the current immigration situation and the people involved. (Note, these are titles that speak specifically to the situation of migration, as opposed to multiculturalism, and particularly focus on narratives of Mexicans and Central/South Americans.)
Suggested Reading List
The Devil's Highway, by Luis Alberto Urrea
No Option But North: The Migrant World and the Perilous Path Across the Border, by Kelsey Freeman
The Right to Stay Home: How U.S. Policy Drives Mexican Migration, by David Bacon
Let's Talk About Your Wall: Mexican Writers Respond to the Immigration Crisis, ed. by Carmen Boullosa and Alberto Quintero
The Death and Life of Aida Hernandez: A Border Story, by Aaron Bobrow-Strain
Grieving: Dispatches From a Wounded Country, by Cristina Rivera Garza
Citizen Illegal, poems by José Olvidarez
The Undocumented Americans, by Karla Cornejo Villavicencio
The Other Side: Stories of Central American Teen Refugees Who Dream of Crossing the Border, ed. by Juan Pablo Villalobos
Picture Books
Hear My Voice: The Testimonies of Children Detained at the Southern Border of the United States / Escucha Mi Voz: Los Testimonios de Niños Detenidos en La Frontera de Sur de Los Estados Unidos, compiled by Warren Binford
Soñadores / Dreamers, by Yuyi Morales
La Frontera: El Viaje Con Papá / My Journey with Papa, by Deborah Mills, Alfredo Alva, and Claudia Navarro
