Making Ends Meet: Income-Generating Strategies Among Mexican Immigrants (New Americans (LFB Scholarly Publishing LLC).) (New Americans (Lfb Scholarly Publishing Llc).)

255 Pages·2002·1.18 MB·English

by  Socorro Torres Sarmiento

The New Americans
Recent Immigration and American Society
Edited by
Carola SuÆrez-Orozco and Marcelo SuÆrez-Orozco
A Series from LFB Scholarly
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Making Ends Meet
Income-generating Strategies Among
Mexican Immigrants
Socorro Torres Sarmiento
LFB Scholarly Publishing LLC
New York 2002
Copyright ' 2002 by LFB Scholarly Publishing LLC
All rights reserved.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Sarmiento, Socorro Torres.
Making ends meet : income-generating strategies among Mexican
immigrants / Socorro Torres Sarmiento.
p. cm. -- (The new Americans)
Includes bibliographical references (p. ) and index.
ISBN 1-931202-25-7 (acid-free paper)
1. Mexican Americans--Economic conditions. 2. Mexican
Americans--Social conditions. 3. Mexican Americans--Employment.
4.Immigrants--United States--Economic conditions. 5.
Immigrants(cid:151)United States--Social conditions. 6. Globalization--
Social aspects(cid:151)United States. 7. United States--Economic conditions-
-1981-2001. 8. United States--Social conditions--1980- 9.
Tzintzuntzan (Mexico)(cid:151)Emigration and immigration--Social aspects.
10. United States--Emigration and immigration--Social aspects. I.
Title. II. New Americans (LFB Scholarly Publishing LLC)
E184.M5 S28 2002
330.973’0929’0896872--dc21
2002003819
ISBN 1-931202-25-7
Printed on acid-free 250-year-life paper.
Manufactured in the United States of America.
Dedication
To:
Mar(cid:237)a de la Luz HernÆndez de Torres
Jose Luis Torres Mart(cid:237)nez
Margarita Torres HernÆndez
Infinitamente gracias por la fuerza que siempre
me dieron y me siguen dando(cid:133)
A Salvador, Carolina S., Salvador G. y Luis A
Entonces siempre acuerdate de lo que un d(cid:237)a yo
escrib(cid:237) pensando en t(cid:237), pensando en t(cid:237), como
ahora pienso(cid:133)
J. J. Goytisolo
Mar(cid:237)a de la Luz, Enrique, JosØ Luis, Lupita y Pablo
Porque somos mucho mÆs que dos
M. Benedetti
v
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Table of Contents
Dedication........................................................................................v
Table of Contents..........................................................................vii
List of Figures..............................................................................viii
List of Tables..................................................................................ix
Foreword (Translation of Prologo)...............................................xi
Pr(cid:243)logo...........................................................................................xv
Acknowledgments........................................................................xix
Introduction.....................................................................................1
Chapter 1: Theoretical Considerations in the Analysis of
International Migrant Labor and the Impact on
Family Structure.........................................................7
Chapter 2: Research Methodology.............................................31
Chapter 3: Tzintzuntzan Historic Socio-economic Development
and Migration............................................................43
Chapter 4: Tzintzuntzeæo(cid:146)s Migratory Experience: First Stage
...................................................................................71
Chapter 5: Economic Restructuring and the Migrant Labor
Market in Southern California..................................93
Chapter 6: Tzintzuntzeæo Families and Working Conditions.113
Chapter 7: Tzintzuntzeæo Women and Income-Generating
Strategies.................................................................145
Chapter 8: El Gasto: Social And Economic Strategies For
Survival...................................................................165
Chapter 9: Concluding Observations on the Tzintzuntzeæos(cid:146)
Income-Generating Strategies, Settlement and
Transnationalism.....................................................179
Notes............................................................................................207
Bibliography................................................................................217
Index............................................................................................233
vii
List of Figures
3.1 Map of Michoacan, Mexico.....................................................45
5.1 Over 18 Year Old Racial/Ethnic Distribution Los
Angeles County, 1990............................................................98
5.2 Under 18 Year Old Racial/Ethnic Distribution.......................99
5.3 Map of Orange and Surrounding Counties..........................100
5.4 Employment Distribution By Major Sectors Los
Angeles County, 1991.........................................................103
5.5 Key Industries In Orange County.........................................104
6.1 Map of Washington, State (Tacoma, Everett)......................133
9.1 Map of Dutch Harbor, Alaska..............................................193
viii
List of Tables
3.1 1970 Tzintzuntzan Occupational Structure............................58
3.2 Tzintzuntzeæos(cid:146) Occupations Before Their First Trip...........60
4.1 Husbands(cid:146) And Wives(cid:146) Occupations Before Their
First Trip...........................................................................72
4.2 Occupation Of Women And Men Before
"Legalization"...................................................................82
4.3 Married Men From Tzintzuntzan Family Structure
And Legal Status...............................................................88
4.4 Single Men On Their First Trip To The U.S. Who
Later Married....................................................................89
4.5 Occupation Of Men In The U.S..............................................90
5.1 Employment Distribution By Origin And Sex....................105
5.2 Occupations Of Persons Living In Barrios And Non-
Barrios In Orange County.............................................107
5.3 Major Problems Facing Orange County, According To
Latinos............................................................................109
6.1 Tzintzuntzeæos(cid:146) First Job Experience on Their First
Trip to the U.S...............................................................116
6.2 Tzintzuntzeæo Employment In 1992....................................118
6.3 Tzintzuntzeæo Employment In 1997....................................120
6.4 Tzintzuntzeæo Employment In Tacoma, Washington.........134
6.5 Tzintzuntzeæo Employment In Tijuana, Baja
California.......................................................................143
7.1 Tzintzuntzeæo Women(cid:146)s Employment Original
Sample............................................................................148
7.2 1997 Tzintzuntzeæo Women(cid:146)s Occupations, Original
Sample............................................................................149
7.3 Tzintzuntzeæo Women(cid:146)s Employment: Tacoma,
Washington....................................................................151
7.4 1997 Tzintzuntzeæo Women(cid:146)s Occupations........................151
7.5 Tzintzuntzeæo Women(cid:146)s Employment: Tijuana, Baja
California.......................................................................154
7.6 1997 Tzintzuntzeæo Women(cid:146)s Occupations........................155
ix