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This article proposes a developmental model for the political incorporation of the adolescent and young adult children of immigrants. We assert that key politicising agents – including parents, educational institutions, civic associations, and social media – play significant roles in mediating the political incorporation of 1.5- and second-generation youth. These politicising agents help determine if the children of immigrants will exhibit depressed engagement, participate in ways similar to their peers from non-immigrant families, or exercise civic leadership roles. In particular, we highlight the recent role of social movement-affiliated civic associations that have provided this young population with an intensive civics education and formative opportunities for civic action. We also note how intersectional frameworks adopted by broader millennial movements align with the campaigns of, as well as the political socialisation that occurs within, some of these organisations. To advance our argument, we draw on data from California, the state with the largest immigrant population and home to a vibrant social movement sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the early 2010s, undocumented youth activists were leading the charge to gain congressional support for the federal Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors Act, which sought to provide a pathway to citizenship for eligible undocumented youth in the United States. Led primarily by Latino college students and graduates, this movement became very attentive to and inclusive of the concerns of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer members. Drawing on semi-structured interviews of Latino lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer undocumented youth and other documentary evidence, this article demonstrates how activists can deploy intersectionality as a collective action frame that serves multiple purposes. Specifically, intersectionality can function as: (1) a diagnostic frame to help activists make sense of their own multiply-marginalized identities; (2) a motivational frame to inspire action; and (3) a prognostic frame that guides how activists build inclusive organizations and bridge social movements. We show how this frame guided the ways in which lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer and other undocumented activists interpreted their own life experiences, prompted them to build inclusive organizations, and broadened the scope of their movement. We conclude by arguing that activists have the potential to adopt intersectionality as a master frame that strengthens ties among various movements mobilizing marginalized populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Public health scholarship increasingly recognizes community organizing as a vehicle for unleashing the collective power necessary to uproot socioeconomic inequities at the core of health disparities. In this article we reverse the analytical focus from how organizing can affect health equity, and we consider how the frame of health equity has shaped grassroots organizing. Using evidence from a range of cases in California, we suggest that the health equity frame can guide and justify grassroots groups' efforts to improve the health outcomes of marginalized populations; connect issues such as housing and school discipline to health; and provide a rationale for community organizing groups to directly address the trauma experienced by their own members and staff, who often come from communities at risk for poor health outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This investigation examines the roles of legal status and civic associations in shaping political participation. Analyses of survey and semistructured interview data collected from Latino young adults indicate that the effects of legal status are conditional on the context of involvement. Furthermore, findings suggest that membership in certain types of civic organizations during both adolescence and early adulthood cumulatively shape patterns of political participation. This study has implications for understanding the roles of legal status and formative civic experience in determining the leadership capacities of undocumented immigrants and others from marginalized communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous research has demonstrated that Latino young adults are uninsured at higher rates relative to other ethnoracial groups. Recent implementation of the 2010 Affordable Care Act (ACA) has increased access to health insurance for young adults, in part by maintaining health coverage through their parents until age 26. This paper examines patterns of Latino young adults' insurance coverage during early ACA implementation by addressing three questions: 1) To what extent do Latino young adults remain uninsured relative to their peers of other ethnoracial groups? 2) How do young adults' family socioeconomic background, immigrant characteristics, college enrollment, and employment status mediate their coverage? And, 3) do patterns of insurance coverage differ for employer-provided coverage versus other sources of coverage (including parents’ health insurance)? Using a 2011 representative sample of U.S.-born and 1.5-generation immigrant young adults in California, we find that Latinos are more likely than other ethnoracial groups to remain uninsured. While they are as likely as similar peers to obtain employer-provided health insurance, they are less likely to possess insurance through other sources (including their parents). This study contributes to our understanding of the limits of the ACA in reducing disparities in insurance coverage for Latinos by highlighting the importance of family socioeconomic background, immigrant characteristics, college enrollment, and employment in shaping coverage among this age group. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Through an examination of LGBTQ_(Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender and Queer) participation in the undocumented immigrant youth movement, this research offers a theoretical framework for understanding how social movements can promote the attainment of leadership roles by members of disadvantaged subgroups contained within a larger constituency. Empirical analyses utilize data from web surveys and semi-structured interviews collected from undocumented youth activists in California in 2011-2012. Findings indicate that LGBTQ_ activists encountered significant challenges to disclosing their sexual orientation. Yet these youth comprised a significant proportion of movement participants and they were more dvically engaged than their straight peers. I argue that LGBTQ_prominence among undocumented youth activists can, in part, be attributed to identity processes within this movement. Specifically, the recognition and activation of multiply marginalized identities at various levels of collective identity formation-- at the broader movement, organizational, and individual levels-- catalyzed intersectional mobilization, meaning high levels of activism and commitment among a disadvantaged subgroup within an already marginalized constituency. At the movement level, 1 show how the immigrant youth movement's adoption of the LGBTQ_rights "coming out" strategy empowered undocumented youth around both their legal status and sexual orientation. This case of social movement spillover produced a boomerang effect by promoting LGBTQ_inclusivity among immigrants. At the organizational level, multi-identity work that addressed activists' overlapping identities created inclusive environments for LGBTQ_members. Finally, at the individual level, LGBTQ_ undocumented youth exhibited an intersectional consciousness regarding the multiple forms of oppression they experienced; this, in turn, intensified their activism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Community colleges in the United States (US) remain relatively accessible to students from immigrant families. However, undocumented immigrant students encounter difficulties in staying continuously enrolled in community colleges because they contend with multiple disadvantages. These students often ‘stop out’, or withdraw with intentions to return. This mixed-methods study explores the non-continuous enrolment of students from immigrant families. Drawing on survey data from a randomly selected sample of community college students in California, logistic regression results indicate that although the children of immigrants exhibit an ‘immigrant advantage’ with respect to staying continuously enrolled in community college, those who remain undocumented stop out at disproportionately high rates. Through a comparative analysis of 80 semi-structured interviews with undocumented immigrants and US citizens, I outline the multidimensional ways in which a precarious legal status interferes with students' postsecondary schooling. Specifically, I suggest that undocumented students' legal status often leads them to stop out due to corresponding financial hardship, sub-standard employment options, the precarious legal status of other undocumented family members who rely on their earnings, and excessive stress. This study offers evidence that the condition of ‘illegality’ functions as a ‘master status’ that has an overpowering effect on students' college pathways. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This article examines how nonprofit activist youth groups shape the civic and political trajectories of their adolescent members. Based on analyses of survey and semi-structured interview data gathered from low-income, racially diverse, and immigrant alumni members of grassroots youth organizing groups and from a comparison sample, findings suggest that adolescent activist groups foster high levels of civic and political participation in early adulthood. Similar to other public-oriented volunteer associations—such as student government—activist groups impart civic skills and experiences that facilitate later involvement. Yet activist groups may function as particularly intensive training grounds for future participation by developing members’ political consciousness and engaging them in political processes. In spite of operating within a neoliberal context that sometimes inhibits the political activity of nonprofits, contemporary grassroots youth organizing groups, somewhat like the 1960s’ civil rights groups decades earlier, can propel some young people toward ongoing engagement with social movements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We build upon research on immigrant political incorporation, intergenerational family relations, and civic organizations in order to investigate the relationship between parents' political engagement and their children's civic and political participation. Drawing on survey data from a representative sample of California's 1.5 and second generation youth population, our analyses demonstrate support for the top-down model of political socialization in which barriers to immigrant parents' political engagement suppress the civic and political participation of their US-raised children. However, this is not the case for our unique sample of youth who participated in activist civic organizations. Our findings from follow-up in-depth interviews with survey respondents indicate that, while most youth do not actively politicize their immigrant parents, those who gained significant political experience through activist organizations often seek to orient their immigrant parents to US politics. In describing the efforts of some youth to educate their foreign-born parents about politics and encourage their participation, we evidence trickle-up effects in the political socialization of immigrant families. We argue that future research on activist civic associations should consider the impact of individual-level organizational membership on family-level patterns of political engagement. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In response to political pressure, President Obama authorized the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program in 2012, giving qualified undocumented young people access to relief from deportation, renewable work permits, and temporary Social Security numbers. This policy opened up access to new jobs, higher earnings, driver’s licenses, health care, and banking. Using data from a national sample of DACA beneficiaries (N = 2,381), this article investigates variations in how undocumented young adults benefit from DACA. Our findings suggest that, at least in the short term, DACA has reduced some of the challenges that undocumented young adults must overcome to achieve economic and social incorporation. However, those with higher levels of education and access to greater family and community resources appear to have benefited the most. As such, our study provides new insights into how social policy interacts with other stratification processes to shape diverging pathways of incorporation among the general pool of undocumented immigrants. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Opportunities for upward mobility have been declining in the United States in recent decades. Within this context, I examine the mobility trajectories of a contemporary cohort of 1.5-, second-, and third-plus-generation Latino youth. Drawing on survey data from California that accounts for the precarious legal status of many 1.5 generation immigrants, I find that Latino youths' patterns of postsecondary enrollment and employment do not differ by generation since migration. Additionally, I do not find evidence of racial/ethnic barriers to Latino youths' enrollment in less selective colleges and participation in the labor market. Yet, given the low socioeconomic origins of many Latino youth and their correspondingly low 4-year college enrollment rates, only a small proportion will likely enjoy upward mobility through jobs that require a bachelor's degree. Overall, the cohort of Latino youth coming of age during the Great Recession is poised to experience working-class stagnation. This group's future access to economic and political positions of power will likely be limited by their low enrollment rates in 4-year colleges in general, but in selective postsecondary institutions in particular. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Latinos make up the largest racial/ethnic minority group in the United States, yet we know very little about Latino fathers' involvement in their children's lives. This article adds school participation to conceptualizations of paternal involvement and contributes to an understanding of the role of immigrant acculturation in shaping Latino parenting practices. Drawing on nationally representative data, the author finds that U.S.-born Latino fathers are just as likely as U.S.-born White fathers to participate in children's school activities, after controlling for other covariates. The author also shows that indicators of immigrant acculturation account for some variation in parental school participation among Latino fathers. Findings point to recommendations for engaging Latino fathers in educational interventions that benefit their children and communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article investigates the degree to which Latina mothers in the U.S. participate in school-based parental civic engagement, particularly noting assumptions about Latino school involvement. It comments on the differences between Latinas who have lived in the U.S. for more than a decade and more recent immigrants to the U.S., as well as notes the impact of English-speaking ability on civic engagement. Other topics explored include rates of engagement for Mexicans and Central Americans, immigrant incorporation into the community, and the racial and ethnic barriers to school involvement.

The article discusses female leadership in the U.S. immigrant rights movement, with a particular focus on Latina leaders based in Los Angeles, California. Details on women's leadership in labor unions, hometown associations (HTAs), community-based organizations (CBOs), and student immigrant rights groups are presented. According to the authors, women's prominence within the immigrant-rights movement makes it unique among other U.S. social movements. It is suggested that a high demand for leadership since the late 1980s, combined with women's feminist consciousness and increased status as developed through the migration process, has created this strong body of women leaders. Other topics include organizational dynamics and empowerment.

Scholars have long argued that civic organizations play a vital role in developing members’ civic capacity. Yet few empirical studies examine how and the extent to which civic skills transfer across distinct and separate civic contexts. Focusing on Latino immigrant members of a Los Angeles janitors’ labor union, this article fills a void by investigating union members’ involvement in an independent civic arena—their children’s schools. Analyses of random sample survey and semi-structured interview data demonstrate that labor union experience does not simply lead to more civic engagement, as previous research might suggest. Rather, conceptual distinctions must be made between active and inactive union members and between different types of civic engagement. Results show that active union members are not particularly involved in plug-in types of involvement, which are typically defined and dictated by school personnel. Instead, active union members tend to become involved in critical forms of engagement that allow them to voice their interests and exercise leadership. Furthermore, findings suggest that the problem solving, advocacy, and organizing skills acquired through union participation do not uniformly influence members’ civic engagement. Experience in a social movement union serves as a catalyst for civic engagement for some, while it enhances the leadership capacity of others. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This article explores the potential role of low-wage service sector unions in engaging in equity-minded school reform. The members of many such unions are parents of children attending poorly resourced public schools. In seeking to address the interests of their members, labor unions can draw upon resources, organizing strategies, and political relationships to contribute to grassroots campaigns for educational equity. Data gathered in Los Angeles from labor and civic leaders, as well as janitors belonging to the Service Employees International Union Local 1877, reveal possibilities for low-wage service sector unions to build alliances around educational reform issues and support their members' individual capacities to advocate for their own children in schools. At the same time, low-wage service sector unions face challenges to participating in school reform efforts, including prioritizing education issues among other competing interests and identifying common ground with teachers' unions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents an overview of a strengths-based school discipline initiative that was developed in response to the high suspension and expulsion rates of African American and Latino male students at a racially diverse, urban high school in California. A school task force made up of adult and youth stakeholders devised a series of interventions that included student-led efforts to improve discipline policies and procedures. The initiative builds on the Strengths- Based School Counseling framework explicated by Galassi and Akos (2007), which stimulates and promotes personal accountability, leadership, resiliency, self-management, and social competence in students as opposed to merely reducing student deficits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drawing on semi-structured interviews, participant observations, surveys, and voting records, this mixed-methods study investigates Latinx youths' political socialization and grassroots organizing efforts in a conservative, anti-immigrant regional context. This investigation makes three contributions. First, findings suggest that under hostile political contexts, vertical (adult-to-youth) forms of political socialization may rarely guide Latinx youth in taking political action, and may sometimes even discourage participation. Second, we show that, despite political opposition, youth organizing groups can function as vehicles of horizontal (peer-to-peer) socialization, bolstering members' political engagement and providing them with valuable civic knowledge and skills. Third, youth-led grassroots mobilization efforts can increase young voter turnout, as evidenced by our experimental findings. We argue that grassroots youth organizing groups can empower their members to operate as agents of political socialization among a peer constituency that extends far beyond their friendship networks and schoolmates. • Conservative regional contexts can constrain marginalized youths' political participation. • Vertical political socialization (from adults to youth) can suppress political participation. • Horizontal socialization (peer-to-peer) can catalyze marginalized youths' political participation. • Youth organizing groups can prepare members to function as agents of political socialization. • Voter mobilization experimental findings evidence peer effects on voter turnout. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]