Free in the Land of Freedom? The Experience of Latin American Immigrants in the United States

Abstract

This paper, "Free in the Land of Freedom? The Experience of Latin American Immigrants in the United States," examines the situation of Latin American immigrants living in the United States. Looking at the issue from the fields of Sociology and Hispanic Studies, this thesis tries to understand the causes and effects of immigration on a personal level. In the sociological section, I use fourteen in-depth interviews to study the lives of undocumented immigrants in Austin, TX, who emigrated from a town in San Luis Potosi, Mexico. I examine their reasons for coming to the United States, their border-crossing experiences, their current daily lives, and their personal reflections. In the Hispanic Studies section of my thesis, I analyze the novels Esperanza's Box of Saints, How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents, and the movie El Norte. Although each piece portrays a distinct immigrant experience, presenting immigrants who come from different countries and life situations, a common theme runs throughout the works. This section emphasizes the notion that immigration to another country demands an examination of one's self in an attempt to better understand one's place in the world. Studying immigration from the perspectives of sociology and fictional literature suggests that immigrants create and maintain personal connections in order to reach a sense of comfort in their new surroundings.