Event

We Are Not Dreamers Book Launch and Discussion

5:00pm

Zoom

MSI community

Join the the Migration Studies Initiative (MSI), a collaboration between the U-FLi (Undocumented and First Generation Low-Income) Center and faculty based in the Population Studies and Training Center (PSTC), for the book launch of We Are Not Dreamers: Undocumented Scholars Theorize Undocumented Life in the United States (Duke University Press, 2020).

The widely recognized “Dreamer narrative” celebrates the educational and economic achievements of undocumented youth to justify a path to citizenship. While a well-intentioned, strategic tactic to garner political support of undocumented youth, it has promoted the idea that access to citizenship and rights should be granted only to a select group of “deserving” immigrants. The contributors to We Are Not Dreamers—themselves currently or formerly undocumented—poignantly counter the Dreamer narrative by grappling with the nuances of undocumented life in this country. Theorizing those excluded from the Dreamer category—academically struggling students, transgender activists, and queer undocumented parents—the contributors call for an expansive articulation of immigrant rights and justice that recognizes the full humanity of undocumented immigrants while granting full and unconditional rights. 

We welcome students, staff and faculty to learn and discuss how we can move forward in supporting undocumented youth without replicating the Dreamer narrative. 

Event Link