Persistent Inequality ─ Contemporary Realities in the Education of Undocumented Latina/O Students

The children of undocumented migrants in the U.S. are trapped at the intersection of two systems in crisis: the public education system and the immigration law system. Based on a long tradition of scholarship in Latino education and on newer critical race theory ideas, Persistent Inequality answers burning questions about how educational policy has to rise to meet the unique challenges of undocumented students’ lives as well as those which face nearly all Latinos in the U.S. educational system. How solid is the Supreme Court precedent, Plyler v. Doe, that allows undocumented children the opportunity to attend public school K-12 free of charge? What would happen if the Supreme Court overruled it? What is the DREAM Act and how would this proposed federal law affect the lives of undocumented students? How have immigration raids affected public school children and school administrators? To shed some light on these vital questions, the authors provide a critical analysis of the various legal and policy aspects of the U.S. educational system, asserting that both the legal and educational systems in this country need to address the living and working conditions of undocumented Latino students and remove the obstacles to educational achievement which these students struggle with daily.

María Pabón López is a Professor of Law at Indiana University School of Law, Indianapolis.
Gerardo R. López is an Associate Professor of Education in the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies at Indiana University, Bloomington.

Introduction: Undocumented Students in the United States: An Educational and Critical Overview



1. Examination of Plyler v. Doe and its Aftermath, Including Additional Bases for Undocumented Students’ Access to Public Education
2. Documented Dreams, the Underground Railroad and Underground Undergraduates: Higher Education for the Undocumented and the Use of Student Movements to Achieve this Goal

3. Speak No Evil: Language Education Policy from Lau to the Unz Initiatives and Beyond
4. Accountability under No Child Left Behind: Implications for Undocumented Students

5. Examining Potential Dangers of the Law in the Schoolhouse: Critical Implications of Racial Privacy Initiatives and Immigration School Raids
Conclusion