La llegada de 68,500 niños no acompañados de América Central a los Estados Unidos en 2014 provocó un debate sobre si eran refugiados obligados a huir o inmigrantes voluntarios buscando oportunidades económicas. Lo que la dicotomía de la migración forzada/voluntaria pasa por alto, y lo que este artículo intenta corregir, son las dimensiones superpuestas de la coacción y la elección en las decisiones migratorias. Este artículo se centra en una causa emergente de migración entre jóvenes indígenas—la migración impulsada por deuda. Basado en una etnografía multi-localizada en Guatemala, México y los Estados Unidos, este artículo examina el papel de la deuda en un ciclo de (re)migración y deportación entre los jóvenes Mam y K'iche. Detalla las múltiples e íntimas consecuencias de este ciclo sobre los jóvenes y sus familias, argumentando que el derecho internacional de los refugiados no reconoce el poder coercitivo de la deuda sobre el movimiento contemporáneo de los jóvenes.

Abstract

In 2014, the arrival of 68,500 unaccompanied children from Central America to the U.S. sparked a debate about whether they were refugees compelled to flee or voluntary migrants seeking economic opportunity. What the dichotomy of forced/voluntary migration overlooks, and what this article seeks to address, are the overlapping dimensions of compulsion and choice in migration decisions. The article focuses on an emerging type of migration among indigenous youth: debt-driven migration. Based on multisited ethnography in Guatemala, Mexico, and the U.S., this study examines the role debt plays in a cycle of (re)migration and deportation among Mam and K'iche’ youth. It explores the multiple and intimate consequences of this cycle for young people and their families, arguing that international refugee law problematically fails to recognize the coercive power of debt on the contemporary movement of young people. [unaccompanied children, youth, Guatemala, human rights, law, migration]

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