Expanding on Know your Rights

By: Francisco Pedraza, Maria Blandon, Mariana Rojas Ribero, Clara Mungia, Jonathyn Osuna

19 January 2026

Know your rights literacy among Latino immigrants

Key findings on a new measure of how well people understand their rights when confronted by immigration enforcement officers. Source: 2025 Latino Immigrant National Survey.

OVERVIEW

This analysis, led by the ASU Center for Latinas/os and American Politics Research, explores how well Latino immigrants in the U.S. understand their legal rights when approached by immigration officers. Knowing your rights can make the difference between staying safe, being detained, or facing unlawful deportation.

Groups with lower literacy: young adults ages 18-29, Central Americans, and people previously detained.

Higher literacy: Spanish language respondents, college-educated, and adults ages 50-59.

Summary lesson: Most Latino immigrants understand some rights, but many are unsure how to act when confronted by immigration officers.

KEY FINDINGS

Respondents average a 3.2 score on a “know your rights” scale ranging from -14 to +14.
85% scored 0 or higher by answering at least half of the items correctly.
95% know they don’t have to sign papers.
94% know officers must show a warrant signed by a judge to enter the home.
Only 40% know they have the right to ask officers to identify themselves.

3 LESSONS TO APPLY FROM THIS STUDY:

Focus “know your rights” training on the rights that are least understood.
Design “know your rights” training to center those who are most vulnerable.
Select those with highest proficiency in “know your rights” as candidates for “train-the-trainer” models to boost community teaching efficiency.

DATA & MEASUREMENT APPROACH

We piloted the Know Your Rights Literacy measure described here on the 2025 Latino Immigrants National Survey, a blended web-based (n=741) and telephone interviews (n=259) survey, fielded April 23 - May 15, 2025. The sample of n=1,000 consisted of 44% naturalized citizens, 27% permanent residents, and 29% some other status.

599 respondents took the survey in Spanish language, the remaining 401 in English language. 44% of respondents are long-term residents who have lived in the United States for more than 25 years, and about 20% have resided in the United States for five or less years. The survey was implemented by BSP Research.

Participants reviewed eight true and six false statements about their rights when immigration officers visit their home. Incorrect responses subtracted one point, while correct answers added one point, creating a literacy scale ranging theoretically from -14 to +14. Every respondent correctly answered at least two items.