Everyday violence, structural racism and mistreatment at the US-Mexico border.
Immigration laws that militarize communities may exacerbate ethno-racial health disparities. We aimed to document the prevalence of and ways in which immigration enforcement policy and militarization of the US-Mexico border is experienced as everyday violence. Militarization is defined as the saturation of and pervasive encounters with immigration officials including local police enacting immigration and border enforcement policy with military style tactics and weapons. Data were drawn from a random household sample of US citizen and permanent residents of Mexican descent in the Arizona border region (2006-2008). Qualitative and quantitative data documented the frequency and nature of immigration related profiling, mistreatment and resistance to institutionalized victimization. Participants described living and working in a highly militarized environment, wherein immigration-related profiling and mistreatment were common immigration law enforcement practices. Approximately 25% of respondents described an immigration-related mistreatment episode, of which 62% were personally victimized. Nearly 75% of episodes occurred in a community location rather than at a US port of entry. Participant mistreatment narratives suggest the normalization of immigration-related mistreatment among the population. Given border security remains at the core of immigration reform debates, it is imperative that scholars advance the understanding of the public health impact of such enforcement policies on the daily lives of Mexican-origin US permanent residents, and their non-immigrant US citizen co-ethnics. Immigration policy that sanctions institutional practices of discrimination, such as ethno-racial profiling and mistreatment, are forms of structural racism and everyday violence. Metrics and systems for monitoring immigration and border enforcement policies and institutional practices deleterious to the health of US citizens and residents should be established.
University of Arizona, Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, Arizona Prevention Research Center, United States. Electronic address: sabo@email.arizona.edu.
Samantha
S
Sabo
University of Arizona, College of Social and Behavioral Sciences, School of Anthropology, United States.
Susan
S
Shaw
University of Arizona, Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, Arizona Prevention Research Center, United States.
Maia
M
Ingram
University of Arizona, Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, Division of Health Promotion Science, United States.
Nicolette
N
Teufel-Shone
University of Arizona, Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, Arizona Prevention Research Center, United States.
Scott
S
Carvajal
University of Arizona, Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, Arizona Prevention Research Center, United States.
Jill Guernsey
JG
de Zapien
University of Arizona, Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, Division of Community, Environment, and Policy, United States.
Cecilia
C
Rosales
Campesinos Sin Fronteras, United States.
Flor
F
Redondo
Campesinos Sin Fronteras, United States.
Gina
G
Garcia
University of Arizona, Mexican American Studies and Research Center, United States.
Raquel
R
Rubio-Goldsmith
D000328:Adult; D001130:Arizona; D019548:Crime Victims / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D054242:Emigrants and Immigrants / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D004641:Emigration and Immigration / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008800:Mexico; D008875:Middle Aged; D011640:Public Policy; D036301:Qualitative Research; D063505:Racism / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D014481:United States; D014754:Violence / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*
Discrimination; Farmworkers; Immigration; Mistreatment; Stress; USA; US–Mexico border