Informal Settlements in the United States: A Case Study in the San Joaquin Central Valley

Colonias are informal settlements in the United States. These informal settlements are ungoverned by local government, but instead overseen by larger county, municipal, or state entities. Dilapidated infrastructure (water and sewer systems, gutters, drainage, sidewalks, curbs, roads, sewer lines, and streetlights), underperforming schools, high and chronic poverty rates, and inadequate social and human services (garbage collection, community centers, banks, post offices, parks, and emergency services that aid in matters of fire and crime) circle colonias. This qualitative case study highlights the lived experiences and voices of eight undocumented inhabitants living in a colonia within the San Joaquin Central Valley. Informed by two distinct yet overlapping theoretical lenses, strength-based theory and resiliency, this study focuses on the unique experiences of colonia inhabitants to examine the social and environmental challenges they face as well as how they navigate these challenges through acts of resilience to ultimately transform the space that functions to culturally isolate, marginalize, and exclude them, into a space of resourcefulness, social belonging, and strength.