Just like Us by Helen Thorpe was a systematic study of four young Mexican women growing up in the suburbs of Denver, Colorado, with two of the women living in the country as legal residents and the two others live as undocumented. The definition of sociology is defined as “the systematic study of human behavior and groups”. (Scheuble, 2014). This definition can be directly applied to Thorpe's novel and in particular to the girls' illegal immigrant status. Throughout his novel he explores situations and problems that occur in America particularly in relation to illegal immigrants. For example, Thorpe goes on to write about how Yadira was forced to purchase a fake Social Security card through the black market. After Raúl Gómez García shot two police officers, employers in the metropolitan area began demanding additional proof of legality, and students who could not provide Social Security cards and government-issued identification found themselves in inability to carry out their usual summer jobs. (Thorpe, 2009 page 65). Buying fake IDs had been a rite of passage, a marker of adulthood, and it gave Yadira the pride a teenager feels when getting a driver's license. Yet purchasing false documents was something illegal immigrants did, the very category he sought to escape. Karl Marx was an economic determinist and his sociological belief in the conflict between owners and workers, as well as the belief that all historical change was caused by a series of class struggles between the bourgeoisie of the "haves" and the proletariat of the "have-nots" ” can be directly related to Marisela's experiences. During her senior year Marisela relied heavily on the passage of the DREAM Act so she could attend college. She failed to run in… medium of paper… the neighborhood where Marisela grew up, where her father once witnessed a gang shooting at a local store where he was trapped in (Thorpe, 2009 p. 37). Finally, children's education is essential for the growth of illegal children. Very often these children are sent to schools which tend to be located in difficult areas and the education is not of the best quality. Girls specifically talk about news reports regarding a student protest at Abraham Lincoln High School in Denver and how they were receiving an inferior education compared to the predominantly White school (Thorpe, 2009 p. 71). Works CitedThorpe, Helen. Just Like Us: The True Story of Four Mexican Girls Coming of Age in America.New York: Scribner, 2009. Print.Scheuble, L. (2014). Introductory sociology lesson. University Park: Pennsylvania State University.