"Shielded by the Blood of Christ:" Evangelical Migrants in Mexico and the United States

This two-part project will examine the experience of evangelical Christian migrants on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border. In Mexico, the highest rates of evangelical conversion have occurred among impoverished populations, including indigenous communities. In many cases, the rise of evangelical Christianity is linked to the physical and emotional challenges of migration to the United States. The first part of this project will examine the relationship between evangelicalism and U.S. migration in an indigenous town in central Mexico. The second part will cross the border to explore how evangelical Mexican immigrants grapple with questions of legality, illegality, and divine authority in Phoenix - and will ask how their sentiments compare to those of evangelicals who are U.S. citizens. By exploring the tensions and emerging solidarities between immigrant and non-immigrant evangelicals in the context of present-day Arizona, this project is aimed at bringing a fresh perspective to highly polarized national debates.