ABSTRACT
Arizona has long seen anti-immigrant policies that violate civil and human rights, including orchestrated tactics to generate a public spectacle and symbolic war against “illegal immigration.” This chapter discusses children’s trans-border identities, language, family, safety, visions for the future, and views of schooling. The border is a highly politicized geographical space in which the violation of human rights is justified and rationalized under the fabricated knowledge that the border is a place of danger. Most children drew pictures of their families first. While they drew and colored, they discussed where their family was from, indicating a sense of multiple identities including family on both sides of the US/Mexico border. Another dimension of children’s awareness of the border and their families’ precarious immigration status is their expression of fear and/or concerns over their families’ safety. The chapter concludes with concrete recommendations for supporting the well-being and education of immigrant children.
