https://doi.org/10.1177/0011000018759769 The Counseling Psychologist 2018, Vol. 46(2) 241–268 © The Author(s) 2018 Reprints and permissions: sagepub.com/journalsPermissions.nav DOI: 10.1177/0011000018759769 journals.sagepub.com/home/tcp Regular Manuscript “They Were Going to Kill Me”: Resilience in Unaccompanied Immigrant Minors Rachel Becker Herbst 1,2 , Raha Forooz Sabet 1 , Amelia Swanson 1,3 , Lauren G. Suarez 1 , Denise S. Marques 1 , Edward J. Ameen 1,4 , and Etiony Aldarondo 1 Abstract Unaccompanied and undocumented immigrant minors (UUIM) have become the focus of increased attention. Unfortunately, public discourse is often decontextualized, simplistic, and polarized. Empirical literature fails to capture the experiences of UUIM and identify strategies to promote their well-being. In this article we begin to address these gaps through qualitative inquiry. We analyzed written narratives of 292 Latino UUIM using a theoretical thematic analysis. Participants described motives for, and experiences of, the migration process. Guided by Ungar et al.’s (2007) conceptualization of resilience, five subthemes emerged: access to material resources, relationships, identity and cohesion, social justice, and perilous journey. The results from our study highlight (a) the youth’s difficult and often traumatic experiences in their homeland, (b) the factors that made migrating to the United States appealing to them, and (c) the dangerous journey they experienced. Implications for practice, research, and advocacy are discussed. 1 University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL, USA 2 Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, USA 3 University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA, USA 4 American Psychological Association, Washington, DC, USA Corresponding Author: Rachel Becker Herbst, Division of Behavioral Medicine and Clinical Psychology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA. Email: rachel.herbst@cchmc.org 759769TCP XX X 10.1177/0011000018759769The Counseling PsychologistBecker Herbst et al. research-article 2018