The Xaripu Community Across Borders: Labor Migration, Community, and Family

by Barajas, Manuel

• ISBN13: 9780268022129
• ISBN10: 0268022127
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2009-04-15
• Publisher: Univ of Notre Dame Pr

Summary

During the past three decades there have been many studies of transnational migration. Most scholarship has focused on one side of the border, one area of labor incorporation, one generation of migrants, and one gender. Manuel Barajas presents the first cross-national, comparative study to examine an indigenous Mexican community's experience with international migration and transnationalism. He presents an extended case study of the Xaripu community, with home bases in both Xaripu, Michoacn, and Stockton, California. He elaborates how various forms of colonialism, institutional biases, and emergent forms of domination have shaped Xaripu labor migration, community formation, and family experiences across the Mexican/U.S. border for over a century. Of special interest are Barajas's formal and informal interviews within the community, his examination of oral histories, and his participant observation in several locations. Book jacket.

Author Biography

Manuel Barajas is associate professor of sociology at California State University, Sacramento.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	p. ix
Introduction: Labor Migration, Community, and Family across Borders	p. 1
An Overview of the Book	p. 4
Biographical Sketches of Xaripu Labor Migrants	p. 10
Theoretical Perspectives on Labor Migration	p. 27
Structural Perspectives	p. 29
Transnational Perspectives	p. 33
Internal Colonialism	p. 39
Moving beyond Traditional Perspectives	p. 44
Interactive Colonization	p. 45
Methods	p. 55
A Social-Historical Context of Xaripu's Land Displacement and Labor Migration Experience	p. 63
Origins of Xaripus	p. 64
The Colonization of Michoacán (1521)	p. 67
Mexican Independence (1810)	p. 72
The Mexican Revolution (1910)	p. 76
Agrarian Reform in Mexico (1917-1930s)	p. 82
Bracero Period (1942-64)	p. 87
Post-Bracero Period (1964-1980s)	p. 93
Contextualizing Xaripus' Labor Migration in the History of Colonialism	p. 97
The Logic of Colonialism in Modern Labor Relations	p. 99
Colonial Labor in the Fields	p. 100
Labor Conditions in California Agriculture	p. 104
Out of the Fields	p. 125
Race, Gender, and Colonialism in Modern Labor Relations	p. 142
Haciendo Comunidad across Borders	p. 145
Contextualizing and Conceptualizing Xaripu Transnationalism	p. 146
Beyond Social Interaction: Convivir	p. 153
Convivencia	p. 154
Nepantla	p. 163
Empowerment	p. 174
The Challenge of Building a Cross-Border Community: Global Inequalities	p. 180
The Family across Borders: Exploring Gaps in Perception and Practice of Gender Empowerment	p. 183
Perspectives on Gender Relations within Immigrant Families	p. 184
&iq;Quién Manda? (Who Has the Authority?)	p. 191
The Division of Household Labor	p. 199
The Impact of Transnationalism on Perceptions of Family and Gender Equity	p. 203
The Complexities of Gender Empowerment within the Family across Borders	p. 210
A Pueblo's Search for Empowerment across Borders	p. 213
Appendix	p. 223
Notes	p. 233
Works Cited	p. 277
Index	p. 309
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