Nadie Es Ilegal

Honorable Mention: Gustavus Myers Book Awards, 2007

No One Is Illegal debunks the leading ideas behind the often-violent right-wing backlash against immigrants, revealing their deep roots in U.S. history.

This vital book highlights the history of white vigilante violence in the U.S., drawing parallels with today’s Minutemen Project; examines the role of U.S. corporations in the Mexican economy, and the role of immigrant labor in the U.S. economy; reveals how patterns in U.S. immigration policy and campaigns to scapegoat immigrant workers are shaped by the needs of business and politicians; and offers an insightful analysis of the most recent battles over immigrant rights.

The authors also remember the long tradition of resistance to vigilante and state-sponsored racism among immigrants organizing in the factories and the fields, and chart a course toward justice and equality for immigrants in the U.S.

About the author

Mike Davis is a MacArthur fellow as well as being a social commentator, urban theorist, and sociographer, and is best known for his investigations of class structures in his native Southern California. He is the author of many books including Ecology of Fear and The Monster at Our Door.

Justin Akers Chacón is a professor of U.S. History and Chicano Studies in San Diego, California. He has contributed to the International Socialist Review and the book Immigration: Opposing Viewpoints.