The Experiences of Reintegration into the Family of Origin of Unaccompanied Migrant Youth in Texas

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

From 2013- 2016, the Office of Refugee Resettlement placed over 123,000 unaccompanied migrant youth (UMY)—predominantly from Central America—with a parent or other adult sponsor residing in the US. Although many of these youth were reunited with their parent, they had often separated for extended periods of time. Currently, we know little about the re-integration of these youth in their families. This study fills a gap in the literature by exploring the family related challenges that UMY face following reunification with parents.

METHODS

The sample includes 30 youth recruited from middle and high schools in the summer 2016. There were an equal proportion of female (n=15) and male (n=15) participants. Participants  migrated from Honduras (n=10), Guatemala (n=8), México (n=6), and El Salvador (n=6). We conducted 10 focus groups and gave youth the opportunity to discuss challenges related to family integration.  We interviewed six parents in order to triangulate data. The focus groups and interviews were conducted and transcribed in Spanish. A team of bilingual/bicultural coders analyzed the data from a descriptive phenomenological frame, using thematic analysis.

RESULTS

For many UMYs, reuniting with a parent is reuniting with a stranger. Although most parents had maintained communication with their children, many participants had been separated from their parents for most of their lives. Therefore, the level of trust found in most parent-child relationships is not present in these relationships. One participant said, “I always feel uncomfortable because I don’t really see her as my mom.” To complicate these relationships further, youth feel torn between their loyalties to the caregivers who raised them, versus toward the parents they felt had abandoned them. One participant noted that, “I do respect them, but not in the same way I respect my grandpa who raised me. […] I love my grandpa more than my parents.” This dynamic creates distance that both the parents and youth experience. One mother reported how hurt she felt when her daughter tells her, “you abandoned us.”

Results further revealed that actual experiences of reuniting with parents differ from expectations. Youth described their disappointment when they realize the relationship with their parents was not what they had anticipated. Youth imagined they would make up for the time living apart by engaging in activities with their parents; however, in reality the parent’s work schedule precludes this. One participant reported that, “[…] my mom is never here with me. She works all the time.” This causes participants to question their choices to escape the violence in their home countries in exchange for a life of loneliness in the United States. It also contributes to a sense of disconnection and lack of belonging.

CONCLUSION AND IMPLICATIONS

ORR and community/school organizations can play a role in helping parents and youth integrate following long-term separation. Youth arrive at a crucial period of development and they need support adjusting to their parents. Without support, youth are at risk of many of the social ills that they were escaping in their countries of origin.