Making ends meet without a public safety net: Experiences of food insecurity among undocumented Latino immigrants

Maintaining food security, or the acquisition of sufficient, safe, and nutritional foods in socially acceptable ways, has long been a difficult task for the most vulnerable factions of the population. In response, the U.S. government has provided a safety net of resources, like food stamps, for those with insufficient means to buy food. Nonetheless, undocumented immigrants are explicitly denied access to this safety net, which may exacerbate food insecurity. Risk factors, such as low levels of education, low income, limited English proficiency, and Latino ethnicity may partially explain the high rates of food insecurity among Latino immigrants in the U.S. However, due to a combination of these risk factors and a non-existent government safety net, undocumented Latino immigrants might be particularly vulnerable to food insecurity. The present study examined the experiences of food insecurity for a sample of 32 adult undocumented Latino immigrants who live in a suburb of Washington, DC. Close to 97% of the participants reported very low or low food security, yet none had received food stamps. Using a grounded theory approach, the text from the in-depth qualitative interviews were analyzed and coded to understand the experience of food insecurity without government support. Emergent themes centered on the barriers and stressors that impacted food acquisition, strategies utilized to make ends meet and cope with food insecurity, and their perceptions and knowledge of government aid programs. Policymakers and program planners should consider the unique needs and experiences of this population regarding food security when creating interventions and policy.