Relative Privilege, Risk, and Sense of Community: Understanding Latinx Immigrants’

Empowerment and Resilience Processes Across the United States by Sara L.

Buckingham and Anne E. Brodsky (2020)

Jelleca V. Abao

PSY111 Section Xx

Prof. Nor-Ain Mangangcong H. Esmail, MA, RPm

December 24, 2021

I. Summary of the article

The purpose of this study is to examine how Latinx immigrants interact or respond to

diverse communities, through resilience and empowerment processes, additionally how sense

of community, privilege, and risks relate and influence these processes. It was a qualitative

research which the researchers collected data through a semi-structured interview in a focus-

group discussion. The study's findings were based on the narratives revealed by the

participants.

Those who indicated an interest in participating in a focus group were randomly selected.

The participants were being grouped randomly for each 12-focus group. Once participants

got to know one another and informed consent was already provided, the interview and

discussion forum started. Discussions were audio-recorded, and participants used pseudonym

to protect confidentiality prior to the focus group. Participants used English and “Spanglish”

in answering questions. Then facilitator established primary questions posed to the groups,

asked sub-questions, and used probes to follow up on emergent information.

The study found out that immigrants who perceived action-resilience goals usually

involved withstanding and adapting rather than resisting. They believed that external change

was not required. On the other hand, those immigrants who take empowerment goals

believed that external change was valid and necessary. They used their privilege such as

citizenship to take actions to persist change. It was revealed that living in areas which are less

stringent in terms of authority figures and policies, engage more in empowerment. Whereas

immigrants living in more risky areas seemed to dedicate their actions to resilience. In sense

of community, immigrants who perceive that the land were not their own, neither will engage
or work towards changing this oppressive system, whereas immigrants who feel sense of

belonginess in a certain community, will likely pursue and facilitate empowerment goals.

This study concludes that Latinx immigrants across the United States routinely engage in

resilience and empowerment to cope with adversity. Fundamental risks, sense of community,

and privilege have influenced the action taken by the Latinx immigrants to deal with the

societal problem. Empowerment indeed helps for community transformation, hence for

external change interventions empowerment processes should spur to immigrants.

II. Discussion

The content of the article is about community resiliency and empowerment of the

immigrants experiencing and navigating prejudice and discrimination in United States. The

content fits in with the material covered in our reference/book which is the ‘Introduction to

Community Psychology, Becoming an Agent of Change’, authored by Leonard J. et. al.

(2019) because the study examined the processes and action plans of the community for

dismantling against discrimination and oppression experiences across ecological levels in

community.

One of the objectives of this course Community Psychology is to investigate and address

escalating problems of inequality, oppression, and racism (Jason et al., 2019). Hence, there

are many cases reported that within-group diversity immigrants experience, discrimination

based on characteristics, such as immigration status and skin color, and this usually occur in

workplaces or any public settings.

Moreover, the information in the article is consistent with what our class covered. This

research is about community empowerment and resiliency, that also includes some of the
relevant issues in our society, oppression and discrimination. The information is consistent,

and all are connected to our lessons, as it reveals how oppression or discrimination affects

people particularly those in a marginalized group. We already discuss oppression that causes

social injustice. To face this problem, community take different actions whether in resilience

or empowerment. And these two actions take part of how community behave or act in a

certain context. The information is important as it helps me to understand more how

marginalized group resolve social problems and how it affects them.

Moreover, I realized that privileges, risks, and sense of community indeed influence

people in dismantling societal problem. Though these greatly helped in coping with the

societal issue. Still, it is important that marginalized group should develop critical awareness,

it is still essential that people understand the factors of oppression, and factors that influence

their situation, this can help them to overcome these challenges, taking steps in the process of

empowerment, and disbelieving as being inferior.

In addition, this is a new learning for me which is how resiliency resolve community

problems. Immigrants’ shared perspectives and actions helped me to understand the reasons

of why other people rather adapt to the context than changing the system. They may have one

of the factors such as privilege however they are living in a risky area such as stricter policies

and authoritative figure, which made them to choose resilience as way to cope adversity. This

information piqued my interest because community psychologists are responsible for

developing interventions that teach people how to leverage their privilege or resources to

oppose oppressive systems or societal challenges in high-risk situations.

The article has appropriate citations and the data gathered are subjective because these

are based on the experiences and perspectives of the immigrant people. The qualitative
 method of research helps to understand the processes of how the Latinx immigrants in United

States resolved the community issues such as oppression and discrimination. The researchers

added more reliable information or literature to support the research which made it more

comprehensible and reflective. However, because researchers used focus-group discussion, it

could be that there are some participants require active listening to express their responses in

a more subtle way and there are some responses that need to be elaborated.

In essence, the data gathered by the researchers provides greater contribution for

designing effective interventions and spur movements for positive social change, particularly

about resolving issues of oppression and discrimination towards immigrant people. This also

an eye-opener to the society of how these people trying to deal the issue and how it affects

them. This research is relevant. Empowerment and resilience are indeed important in

addressing social problems. Community should have both. They must learn to bounce back

from the challenges and learn how to negotiate power and participation in order to gain more

control over matters.

References

Bukingham, S. &. (2020). Relative Privilege, Risk, and Sense of Community: Understanding

Latinx Immigrants' Empowerment and Resilience Processes Across United States.

Societu for Community Research and action, Department of Psychology, University of

Alaska Anchorage, AK, USA. American Journal of Community Psychology, Volume 67,

Issue 3-4.

Jason, L., Glantsman O., O'Brien J., & Ramian, K.,. (2017). Introduction to Community

Psychology, Becoming an Agent of Change. College of Science and Healthful Text

Publication.