Latin American Studies: Migration and Refugees

An introductory guide to doing research in Latin American studies in the UCSD Library

Introductory Materials on Migration, Immigration and Refugees

Seminar on the Acquisition of Latin American Library Materials (SALALM ) Action Guide to Immigrant Advocacy Very useful guide (with a link for ongoing editions) identifying resources to learn more about the situation of detainees on the Southern US border, organizations to support, and methods to advocate for better policies and humane treatment of undocumented immigrants.

The Torn Apart Project: This website uses digital technologies to map the significance of US Immigration and Cutoms Enforcement (ICE) detention centers. Volume I locates all ICE detention centers on a US map, and provides additional access points to alternative views of the ICE landscape, including information such as photographs and data. The Allies tab links to a directory of organizations providing various kinds of support to undocumented immigrants. Volume II digs deeper, tracing the financial context of ICE; who has funded and who has profited from this phenomenon, including the role of money, businesses, and politicians and government agencies.

UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR)
The small links to in the top, right-hand corner provide important portals to specific kinds of information:
REF WORLD-Laws relating to refugees, human rights, citizenship, etc. (searchable by issue and country)
MEDIA CENTRE-News
DATA

Border and Migration Studies Online
A collection that explores and provides historical background on more than thirty key worldwide border areas, including: U.S. and Mexico; the European Union; Afghanistan; Israel; Turkey; The Congo; Argentina; China; Thailand; and others. Featuring at completion 100,000 pages of text, 175 hours of video, and 1,000 images, the collection is organized around fundamental themes associated with border and migration issues.

UN News: Refugees and Migrants
UNHCR Viewpoint: Refugee or Migrant, Which is Right?
UNHCR Operational Portal Refugee Situations
Information sharing portal with data about UNHCR and partners’ response to the current emergencies and other protracted refugee crises.
International Organization on Migration
See also: World Migration Report 2022 (IOM): https://worldmigrationreport.iom.int/wmr-2022-interactive/
World Migration Report 2022 (IOM)

Good Databases for Research on Immigrants and Migration

Family & Society Studies Worldwide
Publications indexed are drawn from a wide range of social science disciplines including anthropology, sociology, psychology, demography, health sciences, education, economics, law, history, and social work. Covers 1970-present.

Sociological Abstracts
1963-present. Abstracts journal articles, monographs, dissertations, conference proceedings, other research covering sociology, social work, and related social sciences. Also includes selected web resources.
Sociology: A SAGE Full-text Collection
Includes the full-text of 28 journals published by SAGE and participating societies, some journals going back twenty years. Database consists of bibliographic records as well as the complete text of each journal article in pdf format.
PAIS International (Public Affairs Information Service)
1972-present. Lists print and electronic articles, books, and government publications on issues of public policy, including politics, government, economy, marine policy, law.
Worldwide Political Science Abstracts
1975-present. Research within the political science discipline and its complementary fields, including international relations, law, and public administration/policy. Use the Get it at UC button to find full text, print, and/or request the item from another library.
Ethnic NewsWatch
1960-present. Full text U.S. ethnic community newspapers, newsletters, magazines. Includes African-American, Arab/Middle Eastern, Asian-Pacific, European-American, Hispanic, Jewish, Native-American. Searchable in English and Spanish.

Government Resources

US Citizen and Immigration Resources (USCIS)
Oversees lawful/legal immigration to the United States
US Customs and Border Protection (CBP)
CBP works to secure the U.S. border, facilitate lawful international trade and travel, and enforce immigration and drug laws.
US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)
ICE has investigative and enforcement responsibilities for federal immigration laws, customs laws, and air security laws.

"Alien" Incarceration Reports

These reports are not uniformly posted to a single government website, so they are posted here to provide easier access:

HeinOnline
Full text of law reviews/legal periodicals plus primary sources such as the Code of Federal Regulations; Federal Register; Foreign Relations of the United States (FRUS); Treaties and Agreements Library; United States Code; U.S. Attorney General Opinions; U.S. Congressional Documents; U.S. Federal Agency Documents, Decisions, and Appeals; U.S. Federal Legislative History Library; U.S. Statutes at Large; State Session Laws Library; State Statutes: A Historical Archive; Acts of the Parliament of Canada (Annual Statutes); World Constitutions Illustrated; World Treaty Library. Also includes special topics databases.
Canadian Content
Acts of the Parliament of Canada (Annual Statutes)
Provincial Statutes of Canada

Case Law
Preview of United States Supreme Court Cases
U.S. Supreme Court Library

International Resources
Acts of the Parliament of Canada (Annual Statutes)
Foreign Relations of the United States (FRUS)
History of International Law
Law Library of Congress Reports
Open Society Justice Initiative
Provincial Statutes of Canada
U.S. Treaties and Agreements Library
World Constitutions Illustrated: Contemporary & Historical Documents and Resources
World Treaty Library

International Treaties and Agreements
U.S. Treaties and Agreements Library
World Treaty Library

Journals and Periodicals
Bar Journals
Law Journal Library
NOMOS: American Society for Political and Legal Philosophy
Preview of United States Supreme Court Cases

Special Collections
Air and Space Law
American Enterprise Institute (AEI)
Brennan Center for Justice Publications at NYU School of Law
Business and Legal Aspects of Sports and Entertainment (BLASE)
COVID-19: Pandemics Past and Present
Cataloging Legal Literature
Civil Rights and Social Justice
Criminal Justice & Criminology
Democracy in America
Gun Regulation and Legislation in America
Indigenous Peoples of the Americas: History, Culture & Law
John F. Kennedy Assassination Collection
LGBTQ+ Rights
Labor and Employment: The American Worker
Law Academy Project
Legal Classics
Military Legal Resources (U.S. Army JAG School)
Military and Government
NOMOS: American Society for Political and Legal Philosophy
Open Society Justice Initiative
Pentagon Papers
Religion and the Law
Reports of U.S. Presidential Commissions and Other Advisory Bodies
Slavery in America and the World: History, Culture & Law
Voting Rights & Election Law
Water Rights & Resources
Women and the Law (Peggy)

U.S. Federal Content
Administrative Conference of the United States (ACUS)
Bremer-Kovacs Collection: Historic Documents Related to the Administrative Procedure Act of 1946
COVID-19: Pandemics Past and Present
Civil Rights and Social Justice
Code of Federal Regulations
Executive Privilege
Federal Register Library
GAO Reports and Comptroller General Decisions
History of Supreme Court Nominations
Immigration Law & Policy in the U.S.
Indigenous Peoples of the Americas: History, Culture & Law
John F. Kennedy Assassination Collection
Labor and Employment: The American Worker
Law Library of Congress Reports
Military Legal Resources (U.S. Army JAG School)
Preview of United States Supreme Court Cases
Reports of U.S. Presidential Commissions and Other Advisory Bodies
U.S. Code
U.S. Congressional Documents
U.S. Congressional Serial Set
U.S. Federal Agency Documents, Decisions, and Appeals
U.S. Federal Legislative History Library
U.S. Presidential Impeachment Library
U.S. Presidential Library
U.S. Statutes at Large
U.S. Supreme Court Library
Water Rights & Resources

U.S. State Content
Civil Rights and Social Justice
LGBTQ+ Rights
National Survey of State Laws
Prestatehood Legal Materials: A Fifty-State Research Guide
Session Laws Library
State Attorney General Reports and Opinions
State Constitutions Illustrated
State Reports: A Historical Archive
State Statutes: A Historical Archive
Subject Compilations of State Laws
Water Rights & Resources
ProQuest Congressional
Indexes Congressional materials from 1789-present. Includes full text access to U.S. legislative information, including bills and pending legislation, legislative history, hearings, testimony, Congressional Record, CRS Reports, public laws, etc.(For full text of most historic reports and documents, try the U.S. Congressional Serial Set via Readex.) Now also includes Serial Set Maps 1789-2007; Executive Branch Documents 1789-1952; and Presidential Materials 1789-Present

Fact Sheet on the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR)
The Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) which oversees the system of immigration courts. This document is helpful to understand asylum seeking procedure. The EOIR is under the Department of Justice (headed by the Attorney General, thus it is part of the Executive Branch of the Federal Government), not the Judiciary branch.

Data and Statistics

Migration & Remittances Data - World Bank
Includes fact book that provides a snapshot of migration and remittances for all countries, regions and income groups of the world, annual remittances data, bilateral migration matrix, and some downloadable datasets.
OECD iLibrary Migration indicators
In particular, note the table for Inflows of foreign population by nationality

International Labor Organization (ILO) Global Estimates on Migrant Workers
International Migration Stock 2019
Overview of numbers of International migrants breaking them down by region. Generated by the UN department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA).
U.S. Census Data
US Census Bureau Foreign Born
United States Census data and reports about immigration. Data includes Census 2000 demographic profiles by country of birth. Reports primarily cover special topics and trends.
Ethnic diversity and immigration from Statistics Canada
US Census Bureau: Migration/Geographic Mobility
US Department of Homeland security Immigration Data & Statistics
Topics include naturalization, refugees, apprehensions, deportations, etc. Additional statistical reports are listed under the "Publications" link.
UNHCR Operational Portal Refugee Situations
(Also Above). Information sharing portal with data about UNHCR and partners’ response to the current emergencies and other protracted refugee crises.
US Yearbook of Immigration Statistics
Yearbook of Immigration Statistics (formerly entitled Statistical Yearbook of the Immigration and Naturalization Service) is published by the US Office of Immigration Statistics, Office of Management, Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
UN International Organization for migration
Intergovernmental body acting with its partners in the international community to assist in meeting the challenges of migration, advance understanding of migration issues, and uphold the dignity and well-being of migrants. Includes country synopses and publications such as the World Migration Reports.
CA Demographic Reports -- Immigration and Migration
Demographic research and analysis extracted from the 1990, 2000, and 2010 Censuses, the American Community Survey, various years of the Current Population Survey, Annual Social and Economic Supplement, and migration (which describes movements within the same country or state) and immigration (which describes movements between countries).
UN Data
"A World of Data." Single search interface for data produced and collected by various United Nations (UN) organizations.
US Census Data
Primary census data tool. Use AFF to find demographic data on ancestry, foreign-born population, and migration patterns.
US Census Data by Subject
Points to census data resources, arranged alphabetically by subject.
US ICE Removal Statistics
ICE statistics on individuals removed from the U.S.

ICPSR Data Archive
The Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research. World's largest archive of social science data. Election data, opinion polls, more. Special collections on Health, Education, Aging, Crime, Substance Abuse. Raw data; no tables. To download data, create a personal account using your ucsd.edu email address while accessing the database from a UC San Diego computer, UCSD-PROTECTED wireless, or the VPN.

Human Rights Information

LInks to Information on Migration and Refugees emphasizing and examining the situation from a human rights angle

U Minn Human Rights Library
EXCELLENT starting point for your research -- the index/table of contents includes: "Refugee and Asylum Resources"
Human Rights in Latin America
Links gathered by the Latin American News Information Center (LANIC)
UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights
Useful Tabs:
Issues By Theme (find migration)
Human Rights By Country
US Department of State – Country Reports on Human Rights Practices
Human Rights Watch
The "Regions," "Topics," and "Reports" tabs are all good places to start
Amnesty International: Countries
Information on Human Rights Issues By Country
Freedom House
The Reports, Regions, and News tabs are all good places to start

Public Opinion Data

Latin American Public Opinion Project (LAPOP)
The Latin American Public Opinion Project has produced over sixty surveys analyzing public perceptions of the role of government, political tolerance, citizen participation, and corruption among other issues. Uniquely, it includes The Americas Barometer, which is viewed as the most comprehensive survey of democratic public opinion and behavior that covers the Americas. Data is available for 2004, 2006 and 2008.
LAPOP's System for Online Data Analysis (SODA)
Analyze LAPOP data online (free for anyone).
LAPOP Datasets (2004-current) Licensed by UCSD
Download the 2004 - current datasets directly from LAPOP (UC San Diego students, faculty, staff only)
LAPOP Datasets repository (1978-2003) Licensed by UCSD
Download the repository data (pre-2004) from the UC San Diego Dataverse (UC San Diego students, faculty, staff only)
Latinobarómetro Data
The Latinobarómetro is an annual survey conducted amongst 18 countries in Latin America. The survey, which has been conducted since 1995, asks respondents about topics such as globalization, democratic governance and political institutions, "social capital," the environment, and gender issues. SSDS has microdata files for this survey starting with 1995.
Description
Latinobarómetro is an annual public opinion survey conducted since 1995 by Latinobarómetro Corporation, a non-profit NGO based in Santiago, Chile. Each survey consists of approximately 19,000 interviews and represents over 400 million inhabitants and, since 2004, covers all 18 Latin American countries.

Many questions are standardized and therefore facilitate time-series analysis. Standardized measures include: attitudes toward democracy, civic culture, economic issues, gender issues, the environment, inequality, social capital, and trade policy. Results of the surveys are of interest to social and political actors, international organizations, governments and the media.

Note: A survey was not conducted in 1999.

Responsible Use Statement
Access to Latinobarometro data is restricted to enrolled students, faculty and staff at UC San Diego. These data may not be copied or redistributed in whole or part to third parties outside of UC San Diego. Please contact Data Services if you have any questions about Latinobarómetro survey data access and usage.

Please note that journal articles, conference papers, books, book chapters, and other publications or reports that employ Latinobarómetro data should acknowledge Latinobarómetro Corporation as the owner/source of these data and include a statement that the views expressed within the publications are solely those of the author.

Technical Notes
Data files are available for all 12 annual surveys in both SPSS (.sav) and Stata (.dta) formats. The documentation for each survey is also available in PDF format.

Please note that the Stata files differ from the original SPSS files distributed by the vendor in the following ways: 1. variable labels over 80 characters have been truncated to 80 characters, 2. SPSS user-defined missing values appear as regular values in Stata, and 3. variables containing a period character have been converted to an underscore character.

Roper Center for Public Opinion: Immigration
1935-present. Located at the University of Connecticut, the Roper Center is the principal archive for summary-level (aggregate) and micro-level (raw) public opinion survey data from the major polling organizations in the United States and other nations.