Understanding the lived experiences of immigrants in the United States

When it comes to diversity research, immigrants have a long history of falling into an invisible group of people. This paper serves as an important first step into the vast amount of research that has yet to be done in regard to the lived experiences of immigrants that are legally living and working in the United States. Research for this project included open-ended, semi-structured individual interviews that took place with five immigrants. The participants immigrated to the U.S. on different visas, work in different industries, and are from different countries - thus allowing the interviews to reveal patterns of lived experiences of immigrants that are not based upon another minority trait, such as race or sex. Findings from this study include countless barriers, hoops, and complications that immigrants face and are forced to overcome in their everyday lives, that the everyday American Citizen would never even think about. This paper is a first step into the depth of information we as researchers have yet to uncover when it comes to this “invisible” group of people