Immigration enforcement in the United States has undergone a profound transformation, reaching far beyond the historically perceived border checkpoints to permeate the interior of everyday American life. This shift unfolds with stark urgency and human consequence in Carolina Valdivia’s newly published book, Sanctuary Making: Immigrant Families Reshaping Geographies of Deportability. Released by the University of California Press, Valdivia’s work dismantles traditional narratives by revealing how immigration policies and practices have insidiously evolved into mechanisms of pervasive surveillance and fear within immigrant communities.
Valdivia’s expansive research, grounded in interviews with over 100 individuals from immigrant families, provides an unprecedented ethnographic account of the interior enforcement landscape. She vividly portrays how once-familiar and ostensibly secure environments—workplaces, schools, grocery stores, hospitals, and private homes—have been transformed into volatile “hot spots” fraught with the constant threat of immigration raids and deportations. This concept of “geographies of deportability” redefines the contours of legality and danger, crafting a psychological and physical terrain in which undocumented and mixed-status families must navigate their daily lives under the shadow of enforcement actions.
The initial framing of this reality is encapsulated in the chilling opening line of Valdivia’s book: “They took Dad.” This simple sentence sets the stage for a narrative steeped in personal loss, resilience, and the extraordinary strategies families employ to endure the ever-present threat of deportation. Emmy Award-winning journalist Jorge Ramos encapsulates the essence of this work in his review, emphasizing its urgent message about the reconfiguration of the immigrant experience in contemporary America. Ramos acknowledges that the book captures the painful human dimensions behind evolving U.S. immigration policies that systematically target immigrant communities.
Central to Valdivia’s analysis is a detailed examination of how immigration enforcement has migrated from border zones into interior spaces via covert and unmarked operations. Unmarked vehicles and officers operating within neighborhoods reveal an enforcement praxis that blends into the fabric of everyday life, often turning neighbors into informants and intensifying the social fragmentation within immigrant enclaves. An illustrative case from the book highlights Maribel, a DACA recipient, whose family was reported by neighbors following a personal dispute, demonstrating the weaponization of immigration enforcement in local conflicts.
This ambient threat forces many families to alter their behaviors and routines, cultivating an environment marked by hypervigilance and mistrust. Valdivia dubs these sites “hot spots,” where the traditional boundaries between safety and risk collapse, leading to omnipresent anxiety. Notably, she pinpoints that even private homes—the sanctuaries traditionally shielded from state coercion—are no longer immune, becoming fraught spaces where fear and uncertainty prevail. This captures the profound psychosocial impact of interior enforcement on family dynamics and individual well-being.
Another groundbreaking contribution of Sanctuary Making is Valdivia’s elucidation of the critical yet often invisible role of young adults within immigrant families. These young individuals frequently assume the heavy responsibility of coordinating family safety amid enforcement threats, navigating complex legal systems, and managing the emotional labor of sustaining their households. The book highlights their pivotal roles as communicators with legal representatives, emotional anchors for younger siblings, and sometimes primary financial supporters. Young adults often make consequential sacrifices, such as postponing or abandoning higher education, to safeguard their families’ stability.
The mental health ramifications of such pressures are substantial. Valdivia’s research reveals how young immigrants endure intense stress, compounded by isolation resulting from fears of disclosure. The current political climate exacerbates these challenges, deepening the stigma and risks associated with revealing immigrant status to institutional actors like educators or counselors, further hindering access to support systems. This pervasive invisibility around their legal vulnerability perpetuates a cycle of suffering that is rarely addressed in public discourse.
Valdivia positions her work not merely as sociological documentation but as an urgent call for systemic intervention, emphasizing the indispensable role of educators and school counselors in creating protective environments. Through interventions such as “Know Your Rights” workshops, fostering inclusive classroom cultures, and establishing trusting relationships, educational institutions can actively participate in “sanctuary making.” This concept signifies a collective, proactive effort to shield vulnerable students and families from the harmful effects of immigration enforcement, thereby reintroducing safety and belonging into fractured communities.
The theoretical framework presented in the book also serves as a lexicon for scholars seeking to analyze the expanding reach of immigration enforcement. Concepts such as “enforcement in the shadows” and “sanctuary making” provide tools to trace and understand the shifting policies and practices reshaping immigrant lives across localities. Valdivia anticipates that her findings will inspire further research to map these “geographies of deportability” beyond the initial study sites, accounting for evolving patterns of enforcement and community resistance nationwide.
Despite the sobering narratives documented, Valdivia’s work is infused with a cautious optimism centered around grassroots mobilization. The emergent community-level “sanctuary making” initiatives spotlight the rapid-response networks formed by immigrant rights advocates, legal observers, and everyday neighbors who strive to mitigate harm through solidarity and vigilance. These networks represent a dynamic counterforce to enforcement, highlighted by real-time information sharing, volunteerism, and collective protection efforts tailored to specific locales.
The meticulousness of Valdivia’s ethnographic immersion distinguishes Sanctuary Making as a work of rigorous scholarship and empathetic storytelling. Her nuanced attention to the lived realities of immigrant families allows readers to grasp the complexities of navigating life under constant threat. The book’s impact extends beyond academic circles, offering policymakers, community organizers, and the wider public an essential lens through which to understand the human stakes embedded in immigration enforcement politics.
Scholars and reviewers alike have underscored the importance of this contribution to immigration studies. Genevieve Negrón-Gonzales of the University of San Francisco describes Valdivia’s research as a rare and deeply vital investigation into the everyday experience of undocumented life, lauding both the scholar’s compassion and methodological rigor. The resonance of Sanctuary Making within academic and community spheres promises to shape ongoing dialogues about immigration policy, enforcement practices, and immigrant resilience for years to come.
In sum, Carolina Valdivia’s Sanctuary Making dramatically reframes our understanding of how U.S. immigration enforcement penetrates daily life, transforming social and physical spaces into contested zones of risk and refuge. By centering the stories of immigrant families—especially the often-overlooked contributions of young adults—the book reveals the multifaceted strategies of survival and resistance that define contemporary immigrant experiences. This work compels a reevaluation of enforcement’s human cost and, importantly, encourages collective action to build safer, more inclusive communities amid a turbulent political landscape.
Subject of Research: Immigration enforcement, immigrant families, interior enforcement, geographies of deportability, sanctuary making, immigrant youth experiences.
Article Title: Sanctuary Making: Immigrant Families Reshaping Geographies of Deportability by Carolina Valdivia
News Publication Date: June 2024
Web References:
- Book page, University of California Press: https://www.ucpress.edu/books/sanctuary-making/paper
- Carolina Valdivia’s website: https://carolinavaldivia.org/
Image Credits: University of California Press
Keywords: Social issues, social problems, immigration enforcement, immigrant families, deportability, sanctuary making, interior enforcement, immigrant youth, legal vulnerability, ethnographic research
