Böcker i New Americans-serien

Vukelich-Selva gives voice to young Latino immigrant students from a school, Prairie Heights, in the upper Midwest. While the students' presence is growing exponentially, they have not been granted full participation in the school's circles of power. Vukelich-Selva takes their stories out of the shadows and places them in the larger historical context of immigrant students and education. She offers insight regarding the importance of the border and related issues of citizenship for Latino immigrant students. She urges educators to listen to and respect the stories of their Latino students and to understand the crucial ways that race, culture, and legal status impact student identity and success.

After the September 11th attacks the United States government sought a response to terrorism. The ensuing "war on terror" brought sweeping new federal regulations and changes in immigration policy. Consequent changes in society's reaction to immigration and the degree to which immigrants have become criminalized are apparent. Hauptman reveals the effects of a moral panic toward immigration after 9/11, explaining social control initiatives like the USA PATRIOT Act of 2001, as a direct result of the concern over immigrants in the United States. Hauptman concludes that the response to the attacks resulted in the criminalization of immigrants in post-September 11th society.