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Papers and Legitimacy: An Analysis of Legal Documentation and Migrant Salvadorans’ Perceptions of “Being American”

The research highlights Salvadoran migrants’ identities within the United States since their departure from El Salvador during its Civil War. The purpose of this research is to provide a historical context of the Civil War and an analysis of the transitions of documentation that occur upon arriving to the United States. In doing so, I demonstrate how physical documentation builds an influential and detrimental power over the Salvadoran migrants’ participation within the community. It is important to mention the Civil War because of two reasons: one, for its introduction to various stages of enduring violence, and two, for its impact on migration laws towards Salvadoran refugees. This research not only portrays the various shifts of aggression, but it also distinguishes documentation as a juxtaposition between legality and classism. More importantly, the findings reveal a correlation between these dynamics of violent documentation and the Salvadorans’ distorted, misguided, and inconclusive perceptions that they hold about the concepts of belonging and identity.

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:CLAREMONT/oai:scholarship.claremont.edu:scripps_theses-1637
Date01 January 2015
CreatorsMaldonado, Beatriz E
PublisherScholarship @ Claremont
Source SetsClaremont Colleges
Detected LanguageEnglish
Typetext
Formatapplication/pdf
SourceScripps Senior Theses
Rights© 2015 Beatriz E. Maldonado, default

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