Reducing Harm from Structural Xenophobia for Reproductive Equity

What state and federal immigration policies reduce inequalities in immigrant adolescent and young adult reproductive health behaviors, service utilization, and outcomes?

Amid recent implementation of xenophobic federal and state immigration policies in the United States, Samari's Scholars research will investigate how these policies influence immigrant adolescent and young adult reproductive behaviors, access to reproductive healthcare, and, ultimately, birth outcomes. Drawing from large administrative datasets, Samari will study the mechanisms through which xenophobic policies mitigate or exacerbate health services utilization and outcomes for U.S.- and foreign-born young women of immigrant origins. Samari will also conduct interviews with community-based organizations and stakeholders that work on reproductive health among immigrant adolescents and young adults. A public health demographer, Samari will develop expertise in policy analysis, research about youth, and qualitative methods with the mentorship of Julien Teitler, Professor of Social Work at Columbia University, and Jennifer Hirsch, Professor of Sociomedical Sciences at the Columbia Mailman School of Public Health.