
Helen B. Marrow
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About Helen
Marrow is a sociologist of immigration, race and ethnicity, social class, health, and inequality and social policy. Her work explores Latin Americans' incorporation trajectories and racial and ethnic identities in the United States and Europe, the impact of immigration on social life and race relations in the rural American South, variation in public bureaucracies' approaches to unauthorized immigration (especially in education, law enforcement, and health care), the relationship between immigrant-host contact, threat, trust, and civic engagement, and Americans' emigration aspirations.
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Uses survey data and in-depth interviews with Mexican and Indian immigrants in Atlanta and Philadelphia to examine how interactions between immigrants and the U.S.-born contribute to immigrant integration. Discusses when immigrants feel welcomed by U.S.-born Whites and Blacks, they report higher levels of trust in and greater interest in knowing Whites and Blacks, plus higher civic involvement.
Examines a stark turn toward more restrictionist enforcement and policy-making in “new immigrant destinations”, especially in the U.S. South, after 2005. Overviews how this shift has negatively affected adult first-generation immigrants from Latin America over the last 15 years, and then considers the the implications for the Latino “second generation” – their children.
Takes a relational lens to examine how contact between U.S.-born Blacks and Whites shapes both groups’ attitudes toward immigrants. Draws on an original representative survey in Atlanta and Philadelphia, we show that when Whites have more frequent contact with Blacks, they are more receptive toward both Mexican and South Asian Indian immigrant newcomers
Uses an original, nationally-representative online survey to show that fully one-third of American citizens aspired to live abroad in 2014, primarily for the purpose of exploration. Shows that these aspirations are structured by cultural capital, Americans' social networks with prior migrants, and strength of national attachment.
Examines how Mexican and South Asian Indian immigrants' perceptions of being welcomed by U.S. born whites and blacks temper the relationship between the former's ascriptive characteristics—namely language and race and skin tone—and their identification as American. Shows how these linkages have important downstream consequences, with stronger perceptions of being welcomed increasing Indian immigrants' likelihood of naturalization and decreasing Mexican immigrants' desire to return to Mexico.
Explores, theoretically and empirically, through both smaller qualitative and larger national quantitative data sources, the implications of the Affordable Care Act for the health care of immigrant, ethno-racial minority, and low-income individuals during its early implementation (2010-2016). Provides relevant background on the Affordable Care Act, its political challenges to its implementation, and stratification by documentation status, income, and place of residence, plus overviews of the remaining articles in the volume.
Examines the hypothesis that immigrants' perceptions of discrimination vary across U.S. localities, as threatened responses by native-born residents may increase perceived discrimination among neighboring immigrants. Considers the alternative hypothesis that barriers to the expression and detection of discrimination de-couple native-born attitudes from immigrants' perceptions about their treatment.
Explores how the rural context impacts the American immigrant experience, how rapid Hispanic immigration influences southern race relations, and how institutions like schools and law enforcement agencies deal with unauthorized residents. It presents a cautiously optimistic view of Hispanic newcomers’ opportunities for upward mobility in the rural South, while underscoring the threat of increasing anti-immigrant sentiment and restrictive policymaking.
Examines how rural American residents and institutions in “new immigrant destinations” in eastern North Carolina were adapting, if at all, to Hispanic newcomers in the early 2000s. Suggests that Hispanic newcomers were undergoing a process of “bureaucratic incorporation”, whereby some public service bureaucrats were initiating incorporation.