Government To Fund Study On ‘Fear Of Deportation’ Leading To ‘Systemic Inflammation’

The Department of Health and Human Services has agreed to fund a study on “systemic inflammation” among “Latinx young adults” who fear that they will be deported.

Taxpayers will fork over $36,978 for University of Houston researchers to study how the fear of deportation can potentially result in adverse health outcomes for “Latinx youth,” a grant listing reveals.

“Fear of deportation is prevalent in this population, with nearly 39% of Latinxs expressing concern about the possibility of themselves or someone they know being deported,” the grant description reads. “Fear of deportation has been linked to high levels of anxiety and depression among Latinx populations, yet little is known about the underlying mechanism driving this relation.”

The study, which “aims to shed light on the influence of structural racism on health through biological processes,” explains that academics “will recruit 150 Latinx college students with temporary or no legal status and 150 Latinx students with permanent legal status to complete online questionnaires and provide a saliva sample.”

The grant description also lists a number of different hypotheses, including the conjecture that engaging in political activism can somehow mitigate “systemic inflammation.”

“It is hypothesized that political activism … will mitigate the associations between fear of deportation, systemic inflammation, and depression and anxiety.” It also hypothesizes that “discrimination” and “skin color” will “act as moderators of links between fear of deportation, inflammation, and mental health.”

The study further justifies itself, adding at the conclusion that it will “support the training of a first-generation, Latina immigrant who seeks to address health disparities through doctoral study and an independent research career in psychology.”

The program, which has a start date of September 1st, 2024, and an end date of August 31st, 2027, will be bankrolled by the National Institutes of Health as part of its “Minority Health and Health Disparities Research” program. The funds have not been disbursed yet, the grant listing indicates.

The Trump administration has deported roughly 11,000 illegal aliens in the first 18 days since the inauguration. The initial deportation operations are focused on criminal illegal aliens, including murderers, rapists, and members of violent gangs and drug cartels.

The University of Houston did not respond to a request for comment.