Abstract:
An estimated one in five Hondurans live outside of Honduras, and 25% of the Honduran GDP is measured in remittances from migrants living abroad. This means that all Hondurans are implicated in international migration. Utilizing qualitative interviews with Honduran migrants and their families in the context of modern Honduran society, this thesis focuses on the ways in which international immigration structures impact the lives of Hondurans. Over the past two decades, the reasons and mechanisms of migration have changed dramatically and have become increasingly dangerous due to US and Mexican immigration policy. This thesis explores the experience of migrants and their families by focusing on deportees, migrants who are injured in the journey, and those who disappear en route. I conclude that structural violence intersects every aspect of Honduran migration, from the construction of push and pull factors motivating migration to the implications of natural, legal, and structural barriers.
