“We Understand You Hate Us”: Latinx Immigrant‐Origin Adolescents' Coping with Social Exclusion

Abstract

Little research has focused on how adolescents are faring with the national context of exclusion. Growing evidence suggests that exclusionary efforts signal messages of who belongs (and who does not) in the United States. This study draws from a risk and resilience model to understand how Latinx immigrant‐origin adolescents react and adapt to social exclusion. A total of 41 adolescents between the ages of 13 to 24 (Mage = 18.85) completed a semistructured interview. Results revealed participants' use of avoidant and active coping strategies to deal with exclusion. There was a shift in coping responses across developmental stages. Future research and recommendations are provided to address systems that need to be dismantled to foster a sense of belonging for adolescents.

Dismantling Systems and Improving Contexts to Support the Development of BIPOC Youth

“…Qualitative approaches play a valuable role in generating knowledge about systems of oppression. Studies in this special issue center on the voices of BIPOC youth and illustrate their meaning‐making about systems of oppression, the different contexts and processes by which racial and other forms of oppression are exacted on particular groups of youth, and developmental patterns in recognizing and understanding life experiences that are oppressive (Harris & Kruger, 2022; López Hernández, 2022; Pasco et al., 2022; Sánchez et al., 2022; Torres et al., 2022). This work illustrates the everyday spaces where racialized forms of oppression occur—such as schools, peer groups, social media, restaurants, and public transit—as well as institutions such as police and exclusionary policies, such as anti‐immigration laws.…”

“…It is also important to consider the processes by which anti‐immigrant sentiment pervades and is perpetuated by individuals in society (Torres et al., 2022). An adolescent in López Hernández (2022) explained an incident in which a staff member in a service industry demanded to see documentation from the parent; other adolescents reported being told to “go back to your country” by individuals who do not hold positions in immigration enforcement (López Hernández et al., 2002). These social behaviors bear resemblance to “slave patrols” (Jimenez & Phares, 2000; Walker, 1980) which consisted of citizens who felt it was their civic obligation to regulate the activity of slaves.…”

“…Yet, the work on identifying protective factors must continue, as cross‐sectional designs, power issues, or other research design elements may lead to nonsignificant interactions when protective factors are indeed operating. Finally, López Hernández (2022) describes different ways that Latinx immigrant‐origin youth cope with a societal exclusion, recognizing that all of these youths' coping strategies are adaptive, and avoidant versus active forms of coping have different implications for mental health and functioning. Taken together, findings from this special issue demonstrate the dangers of assuming that various factors and supports are equally protective for all youth and point to the need for continued research on and acknowledgment of such complex associations and uniqueness of BIPOC youths' experiences.…”

Good Trouble, Necessary Trouble: Expanding Thinking and Research on Youth of Color’s Resistance to Oppression

“…One obvious example is dropping out of school, described earlier, which may not be an intended act of resistance to oppression for all youth. Reflecting back on Lopez Hernandez’s (2022) paper from our prior special issue, we wonder whether the lines between what constitutes coping versus resistance are more blurred than the field recognizes, and re‐examination of coping behaviors from a resistance lens may be illuminating. Resistance scholars disagree on whether having a political intention should be requisite to defining a behavior as resistance (cf.…”

Dismantling systems of racism and oppression during adolescence: An agenda for anti‐racist research

“…Adolescents are more than the oppressions they face; they resist, have dreams, and have many other rich lived experiences across many developmental contexts. Indeed, many papers in the special series honored the humanity of Black youth and other youth of color by moving beyond a singular focus on the impacts of racism and oppression to documenting the complexity of whole personhood and celebrating strengths (Carey et al, 2022;Carter & Flewellen, 2022;Dunbar, 2022;López Hernández, 2022;Mathews et al, 2022;May et al, 2022;Rogers & Butler-Barnes, 2022). Additionally, anti-racist research can move beyond damage-centered research by conceptualizing research in ways that are action-oriented and community-informed to "engage diverse publics" (Eaton et al, 2021(Eaton et al, , p. 1214.…”