What Happens to a Dream Deferred? Identity Formation and DACA

Abstract

This article reports on a qualitative research study that explored the lived experience of seven Latinx DACA recipients. Using narrative inquiry, the study tests the Undocumented Adult Identity Development Model (Robles, 2015), a five-stage identity development model of undocumented Latinx youth. The study gives voice to the hopes, dreams, and challenges these young adults face. Findings revealed that participants demonstrated a high degree of resiliency. Ultimately, participants were able to fashion their struggles into a transformative experience that gave them hope and a positive vison for their future. Success in school and in their career was a means of protesting against the limitations placed upon them. Meaning and purpose was achieved through creating community and by taking ownership of their immigration status, through fighting for their rights and for the rights of other immigrants.