“Going from not being aware of what’s happening to me being aware”: The civic learning of one undocumented Latina girl in Los Angeles

In this ethnographic case study, I use theoretical constructs, such as place-based education, critically relevant civics education, and Latinx lived civics, to present the civic learning of one undocumented Latina girl, Emily, in Los Angeles across three spaces: 1) at home, living in a working-class, immigrant household; 2) in her community, which faced environmental impacts from local industry; and 3) at school, where she engaged in interdisciplinary projects about her community. I ask, what civic learning is possible for a youth from their home and from their school- and community-based activities? My findings indicate that Emily learned to (a) live as part of a collective, (b) examine systemic inequities in her community, and (c) be a changemaker were crucial components of her overall civic learning. My findings show that students of color do not always experience civic disempowerment. Rather, they learn valuable civic knowledge, skills, and commitments from all aspects of their lives—at home, at school, and in their communities—where they develop their identities as active participants in a democracy, recognizing and exercising their ability to influence the world around them. Based on the findings of this study, I advocate on behalf of providing young people of color with more civic experiences that build their self-efficacy via their cultural practices and focusing on their local community, while also acknowledging that they learn how to act civically from different aspects of their lives, not simply at school.