Undocumented, Unafraid: Immigrants Find Power Revealing Themselves Online

Children have little choice in a parent’s decision to leave home and work in another country. Once grown, the undocumented immigrants in the United States struggle to attend colleges or find work, yet cannot easily return to their native countries. Caught in the middle, many turn to social media to explain the plight with the help of programs like Define America and Coming Out of the Shadows: “the connective powers – and relative anonymity – of the Internet are starting to break down these walls of secrecy, finally enabling undocumented people to find each other and remind each other that they’re not as alone as they think they are,” explains Issie Lapowsky for Wired. Ending a secret life by posting online narratives can be liberating, and communities are emerging that mobilize support over deportations and educate even younger children who are in the same predicament. Such support is not a given though. Two valedictorians in Texas announced their status as undocumented immigrants, and one speech was cheered while the posting on Twitter drew criticism. – YaleGlobal