Immigration has long shaped US society in fundamental ways. With Latinos
recently surpassing African Americans as the largest minority group in
the US, attention has been focused on the important implications of
immigration for the character and role of race in US life, including
patterns of racial inequality and racial identity. This insightful new
book offers a fresh perspective on immigration and its part in shaping
the racial landscape of the US today. Moving away from one-dimensional
views of this relationship, it emphasizes the dynamic and mutually
formative interactions of race and immigration. Drawing on a wide range
of studies, it explores key aspects of the immigrant experience, such as
the history of immigration laws, the formation of immigrant occupational
niches, and developments of immigrant identity and community. Specific
topics covered include: the perceived crisis of unauthorized
immigration; the growth of an immigrant rights movement; the role of
immigrant labor in the elder care industry; the racial strategies of
professional immigrants; and the formation of pan-ethnic Latino
identities. Written in an engaging and accessible style, this book will
be invaluable for advanced undergraduate and beginning graduate-level
courses in the sociology of immigration, race and ethnicity.