Indiscriminate Disasters and Disproportionate Effects: A Community Left Behind A Qualitative Interview Study on the Undocumented Community in the Northern California 2017 Fire

Abstract: Natural disasters are distressing and destructive for all who are exposed to them; however, certain populations are more vulnerable to their devastating effects than others. In the wake of the 2017 Northern California wildfire, scores of undocumented immigrants were significantly affected. Although the conflagration spread indiscriminately, the subsequent impacts were disproportionately felt by the undocumented community. This qualitative study examines two designed dimensions: (1) the day-to-day characteristics of the undocumented community and (2) the impact of the Northern California wildfire 2017 on the local undocumented community. These elements are explored and analyzed using the concept of biopolitics, as well as a vulnerability and resilience framework. The study finds that undocumented immigrants have little to no opportunity to improve their socioeconomic position; live in fear of authorities; have limited access to emergency relief funds; and are additionally impacted by the prevailing anti-immigration sentiment emerging from the current White House administration. These and other sociopolitical factors leave undocumented persons marginalized, neglected and unprotected. As a population with a predetermined high vulnerability and minimal resilience, the undocumented community appears to have been left behind by the federal government following the 2017 NorCal fire.