Concerns about the deportation of friends or family members shape U.S.-born Latines' feelings about U.S. immigration policy with implications for collective action for immigrants' rights.

Abstract

As citizens by birth, U.S.-born Latines are not subject to deportation. However, many have undocumented friends or family members who are. We examined whether concerns about the deportation of friends or family members shape U.S.-born Latines' feelings of anger and fear about U.S. immigration policy as well as identity conflict, variables associated with collective action for immigrants' rights. After establishing the effectiveness of our experimental manipulation in a pilot study (N = 378), we randomly assigned a national sample of U.S.-born Mexican and Central Americans (N = 1,244) to imagine the deportation of friends or family members or to a control condition. Participants reported their anger and fear about U.S. immigration policy, their sense of identity conflict, and their willingness to engage in collective action for immigrants' rights. Prior to the experimental manipulation, participants also reported their Latine identity centrality and fear of protesting. Concerns about the deportation of friends or family members increased anger and fear about U.S. immigration policy but not identity conflict. These feelings were independently associated with greater willingness to engage in collective action for immigrants' rights. The political consequences of the criminalization of undocumented status extend beyond undocumented immigrants themselves, strengthening feelings associated with collective action for immigrants' rights among their U.S.-born friends' and family members. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).