Transcontinental Migration through the Americas
Caitlyn Yates
PhD Student – UBC Socio-Cultural Anthropology
June 24, 2021 | 12-1 pm
[ Abstract ]
The specter of migrants crossing the U.S.-Mexico border frequently dominates media depictions and public discussions about immigration in the United States. Overwhelmingly, these migrants are depicted as originating in Latin American countries. Yet, in 2019, just shy of 13,000 migrants from countries on the African and Asian continents were apprehended by Mexican authorities while transiting toward the United States. These extra-continental migrants – as they are colloquially labeled – arrive to Latin America and use existing migrant routes to arrive in the United States and Canada. Their long and complex journeys are often overlooked in both the literature and public discourse on immigration issues. My doctoral research will contribute the first anthropological analysis of these transitory migration experiences by asking: how do migrants from outside the Western Hemisphere navigate transit through the Americas, and how do Latin American states respond to these migration dynamics differently from migrants originating within the Western Hemisphere?
[ Bio ]
Caitlyn Yates is a PhD student in Socio-Cultural Anthropology at the University of British Columbia. Her research focuses on human security, transit migration, extra-continental migration, migrant smuggling, and borders in Latin America. She has conducted ethnographic and policy related fieldwork throughout Latin America on migration and mobility related research projects. Currently, Yates is a fellow in the Central America and Mexico Policy Initiative (CAMPI) at the Robert Strauss Center for International Security and Law and an affiliate of UBC’s Centre for Migration Studies. She holds a BA in Anthropology from Trinity University and a Master of Global Policy from the LBJ School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin.
[ About the Migration Grad Student Power Hour ]
The Centre for Migration Studies Grad Student Power Hour provides opportunities for UBC graduate students to share their research on migration beyond their home departments and network with faculty and students from across the university and in the broader community sector. The Power Hour will begin with 10 minutes of networking opportunities, followed by a 30 minute talk and 20 minutes for discussion. Anyone is welcome to attend. We look forward to seeing you there!
Please RSVP for this online event below.
