
Stephanie L. 2025 | BASIS Independent Silicon Valley
- Project Title: Chasing the American Dream: Bringing Equity to Naturalization
- BASIS Independent Advisor: Dr. Parson
- Internship Location: UC Santa Cruz
- Onsite Mentor: Janna Haider, PhD Candidate, UC Santa Barbara
Naturalization is the process by which immigrants obtain citizenship. Although the current US naturalization system is not overtly discriminatory, a multitude of factors such as cost and a lack of transparency surrounding the process prohibit many interested immigrants from equitably accessing the legal process. The purpose of this Senior Project is to examine the current US naturalization system and determine the root causes of the disparities between naturalization rates of different demographics. At the conclusion of my research, I hope to produce a paper that answers the following question: In what ways can the US naturalization system be modified to be less discriminatory and more equity-based and inclusive? I will conduct a thorough review of the available scholarship on the barriers to naturalization and analyze census data to identify naturalization trends amongst different immigrant demographics. Time permitting, I will also conduct further research into the qualitative exchanges between immigrants and the courts as well as the naturalization processes of other nations, specifically Japan, India, and the European Union as one governing body. Amidst our current socio-political climate in which even the Constitutional right to birthright citizenship is in jeopardy, it is more important now than ever to fully understand what the US naturalization system truly constitutes and how certain demographics are placed at an inherent disadvantage in the process.