Immigrant Youth's Contributions to Families and Society as Language and Culture Brokers

When we consider the relative costs and contributions of immigrants to U.S. society, the general assumption is that adults make contributions, while children are only a drain: they 'take' from the educational and health systems without giving anything back. This is an assumption that bears reconsideration. In this talk I show how society benefits from the largely invisible work and unremunerated that the children of immigrants do as language and culture brokers. I argue that this is part of the labor cost equation that should be contemplated in this era of global economic restructuring. Using illustrations from ethnographic data in three immigrant communities over a decade, I show children at work in a variety of contexts and discuss how children experience their work. About the Lecturer: Marjorie Faulstich Orellana. Professor and Director of Faculty for the Teacher Education Program, UCLA