Reform Without Justice

Placed within the context of the past decade's war on terror and emergent and countervailing Latino rights movement, Reform without Justice addresses the issue of state violence against migrants in the United States. It questions why it is that, despite its success in mobilizing millions, the Latino immigrant rights movement has not been able to effectively secure sustainable social justice victories for itself or more successfully defend the human rights ofmigrants. Gonzales argues that the contemporary Latino rights movement faces a dynamic form of political power that he terms "anti-migrant hegemony". This anti-migrant hegemony, found in sites of power from Congress, to think tanks, talk shows and the prison system, is a force through which a rhetorically race neutral and common sense public policy discourse, consistent with the rules of post-civil rights racism, is deployed to criminalize migrants. Critically, large sectors of "pro-immigrant" groups,including the Hispanic Congressional Caucus and the National Council of La Raza, have conceded to coercive immigration enforcement measures such as a militarized border wall and the expansion of immigration policing in local communities in exchange for so-called Comprehensive Immigration Reform.Gonzales says that it is precisely when immigration reformers actively adopt the discourse and policies of the leading anti-immigrant forces that the power of anti-migrant hegemony can best be observed.

A riveting and groundbreaking account of the modern battle over U.S. immigration policy. Alfonso Gonzales has not only managed to unravel the direct relationship between global capitalism and massive Latino migration to this country, he has fashioned an illuminating analysis of the internal class and racial conflicts that shaped the immigrant rights movement over the past decade - between liberal establishment groups merely seeking immigration reform and grassroots Latino leaders of a new human rights movement., Gonzales offers a powerful, passionate indictment of the homeland security state and the bipartisan support responsible for its expansion, rebutting the 'common sense' logic that criminalizes the undocumented and sanctions their suffering and exploitation. Arguing that migrants are not only victims of state violence but also political actors and activists, Reform Without Justice testifies to the democratic possibilities of Latino politics., In his masterful work, Gonzales asks how the United States could have arrived at a plan for comprehensive immigration reform that fails to provide justice for migrants. He analyzes the larger structural forces at work and depicts the compelling voices of grassroots migrant activists. This is a must read., Reform Without Justice is a timely and courageous text that should be required reading for scholars and activists alike. It is an important contribution and bravely offers the critical perspective necessary for the achievement of truly just and humane migration policy., It is timely, well written, and documented. It should find a wide audience among those interested in Latino politics.

Alfonso Gonzales is Associate Professor in the Department of Ethnic Studies and the Director of the Latin American Studies Program at the University of California Riverside.