Political Protest, Ethnic Media, and Latino Naturalization

Abstract

In the spring of 2006, anti-immigrant legislation triggered historic immigrant rights protests in cities throughout the United States. In places like California, protest of immigrant-targeting legislation is not new. A hostile political context in California during the mid-1990s stimulated naturalization rates, voter registration, and turnout among Latinos therein. The spring 2006 immigrant rights protests provide a unique research opportunity to further examine the relationship between a contentious political climate and Latino immigrants' decision to naturalize. Earlier work highlights the role of Latino civic organizations in naturalizing and mobilizing co-ethnics to vote. This article considers an additional key variable: the ethnic media. Unpublished data from citizenship application workshops sponsored by a national Latino civic organization and a pilot survey of workshop participants were used to examine patterns of participation in the protests and use of Spanish-language media for political information among Latino naturalizers. Although this article examines an unfolding issue, it may hold implications for the future of Latino politics. A link between the recent immigrant protests and the decision to naturalize by Latino immigrants may suggest that a cohort of newly enfranchised Latinos will have high rates of participation.

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