COMM 3250 - Vamos Pa’l Norte: U.S. Migration and Communication

(crosslisted) LSP 3250
(CA-AG, D-AG)

Spring. 3 credits. Letter grades only.

M. Cornejo.

Migrants are a heterogeneous group of people (the term “migrants” is used to encompass different immigrant communities). The reasons for relocating to the United States, or another country, the conditions under which they relocate, whether they are authorized to remain in a country, their cultural backgrounds, their ethnic/racial identities, their education level, their gender identity and sexual orientation, and their socio-economic status are merely a few factors that contribute to immigrants’ diverse experiences. Thus, this course will introduce us to different frameworks, research, and practices that can help us understand the important role of communication in different, U.S., migration experiences. On the one hand, communication can help mitigate some of the social and structural barriers that migrants face in the United States and elsewhere. On the other hand, communication can also exacerbate or lead to educational, economic, and health inequities among migrants. We will consider both ways in which communication can function for migrant communities. Overall, migration: (1) is a diverse area of research that can incorporate intrapersonal, interpersonal, community, organizational, institutional, cultural, and policy levels of analysis; (2) is studied using a wide range of methodologies; and (3) is affected by a variety of communication channels. The readings and content of this course primarily focus on the experiences of Latina/o/x immigrant communities in the U.S.

Outcome 1: Evaluate the unique position, contributions, and challenges of U.S. immigrants.

Outcome 2: Compare and contrast the frameworks that can help us understand how inequities are created for immigrants and how immigrants use various communication strategies to mitigate the barriers they experience.

Outcome 3: Appraise why challenging stereotypical depictions of immigrants in the media is important for an equitable and socially-just society.

Outcome 4: Assess how different communication messages (e.g., anti-immigrant rhetoric) contributes to the construction of a stigmatizing immigration system.

Outcome 5: Dissect the strengths and limitations of different scholarly articles, frameworks, research, and practices.

Outcome 6: Apply key findings and observations from scholarly articles into discourses around migrants’ experiences.

Outcome 7: Determine how migration and communication research and practices can enhance our understanding of immigrants’ experiences.