Dr. Sarah Bruhn, University of Pennsylvania, Postdoctoral Researcher, Population Studies Center
Title: Holding onto Home: How Immigrant Women Resist Displacement
Abstract: Previous scholarship about the social and political geographies of immigrant communities often focuses on restrictive subnational laws and enforcement practices. In contrast, this research examines the impact of inclusionary local policies — and the forces that undermine them — on immigrant families. Specifically, my forthcoming book, Holding onto Home: How Immigrant Women Resist Displacement, documents how Latina immigrant mothers navigate the tensions between an anti-immigrant federal environment, a symbolically welcoming sanctuary city and its schools, and widening gentrification. This study employs a range of qualitative methods, including five years of participant-observation in schools and district programs, 121 in-depth interviews with 50 mothers and 24 caregivers, analysis of public records, and focus groups. By capturing the first Trump administration, the pandemic, the 2020 and 2024 elections, and the opening months of Trump’s second presidency, my book demonstrates how shifting socio-political and geographic contexts shape immigrant mothers’ aspirations and family obligations. I find that women’s abilities to fulfill their roles as mothers are supported by the gendered labor of school district employees, such as family liaisons, many of whom are immigrant women themselves. While inclusive municipal policies and practices offer meaningful resources, my book also reveals how restrictive immigration laws coupled with rising housing costs fracture the protections of sanctuary.
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