Narrating education of new Indigenous/Latino transnational communities in the South: Migration, life, and its effects on schooling

Over the past 20 years the United States has experienced an influx of newly arriving immigrants. Furthermore, pre-emerging gatewayi states like North Carolina have seen Latino population growth in excess of 200% in metropolitan areas such as Charlotte and Raleigh Durham. In fact, North Carolina has the fastest growing Latino population in the entire country.; This study uses personal narratives to explore immigration patterns to North Carolina and the migration experience of Indigenous/Latino families, as well as, how immigrant communities are affected and produced by border crossings. In addition, this study also examines the effects of both migration patterns and experiences on schooling in North Carolina. The study follows a narration trajectory from participants' life experiences in countries of origin, during migration, as newly arrived immigrants, and life as an immigrant in North Carolina. Ethnographic methods such as personal narratives were used to collect detailed information about participants and their lives. The three largest and fastest growing immigrant populations found in this study were from Mexico, Guatemala, and El Salvador. All study participants had diverse language and cultural experiences representing over 17 Indigenous languages (other than Spanish) and five Indigenous groups. Further, study findings illustrate obstacles experienced by participants and their children (many who are U.S. born citizens) within schools. Lastly, the findings explore the birth of new transnational Indigenous/Latino communities of the South and considerations for the future of schooling in North Carolina and the American South.; iPre-emerging gateways are places that "had very small immigrant populations in the 1980 but experienced sudden very rapid growth in the 1990s." (p. 7)...