Undocumented to Hyperdocumented: A Jornada of Protection, Papers, and PhD Status

Aurora Chang

doi:10.17763/haer.81.3.d84532vu27772424

A journal of Harvard Education Publishing Group

Did not find sass auth token, checking tmp directory.
Getting new auth cookie, if you see this message a lot, tell someone!

Error message

Unable to create CTools CSS cache directory. Check the permissions on your files directory.
Unable to create CTools CSS cache directory. Check the permissions on your files directory.

Abstract

In this personal essay, Aurora Chang describes her experience of hyperdocumentation—the effort to accrue awards, accolades, and eventually academic degrees to compensate for her undocumented status. In spite of her visible successes and naturalization,Chang still confronts the rage and intolerance of American "commonsense"beliefs about immigration. Her narrative questions the pursuit of documentation as a means to legitimacy and acceptance in American society.