1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9910777510703321

Autore

Vila Pablo <1952->

Titolo

Crossing borders, reinforcing borders [[electronic resource] ] : social categories, metaphors, and narrative identities on the U.S.-Mexico frontier / / Pablo Vila

Pubbl/distr/stampa

Austin, : University of Texas Press, 2000

ISBN

0-292-79632-3

Edizione

[1st ed.]

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (305 p.)

Collana

Inter-America series

Disciplina

306/.0972/16

Soggetti

Group identity - Mexican-American Border Region

Group identity - Mexico - Ciudad Juárez

Group identity - Texas - El Paso

Ciudad Juárez (Mexico) Social conditions

El Paso (Tex.) Social conditions

Mexican-American Border Region Social conditions

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Note generali

Bibliographic Level Mode of Issuance: Monograph

Nota di bibliografia

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Nota di contenuto

Frontmatter -- CONTENTS -- PHOTOGRAPHS -- PREFACE -- ACKNOWLEDGMENTS -- INTRODUCTION -- Chapter 1 THE MEXICAN SIDE: DISCOURSES OF REGION -- Chapter 2 THE MEXICAN SIDE: DISCOURSES OF NATION -- Chapter 3 THE EMPLOTMENT OF THE MEXICAN ON THE U.S. SIDE OF THE BORDER -- Chapter 4 MEXICAN IMMIGRANTS AND THE “ALL POVERTY IS MEXICAN” NARRATIVE PLOT -- Chapter 5 OPERATION BLOCKADE, OR WHEN PRIVATE NARRATIVES WENT PUBLIC -- Chapter 6 DIALOGICAL SOCIAL SCIENCE AND THE POSSIBILITY OF NARRATING BETTER STORIES -- Appendix CATEGORIES, INTERPELLATIONS, METAPHORS, AND NARRATIVES: A BRIEF THEORETICAL DISCUSSION -- NOTES -- BIBLIOGRAPHY -- INDEX

Sommario/riassunto

Along the U.S.-Mexico frontier, where border crossings are a daily occurrence for many people, reinforcing borders is also a common activity. Not only does the U.S. Border Patrol strive to "hold the line" against illegal immigrants, but many residents on both sides of the border seek to define and bound themselves apart from groups they perceive as "others." This pathfinding ethnography charts the social



categories, metaphors, and narratives that inhabitants of El Paso and Ciudad Juárez use to define their group identity and distinguish themselves from "others." Pablo Vila draws on over 200 group interviews with more than 900 area residents to describe how Mexican nationals, Mexican immigrants, Mexican Americans, African Americans, and Anglos make sense of themselves and perceive their differences from others. This research uncovers the regionalism by which many northern Mexicans construct their sense of identity, the nationalism that often divides Mexican Americans from Mexican nationals, and the role of ethnicity in setting boundaries among Anglos, Mexicans, and African Americans. Vila also looks at how gender, age, religion, and class intertwine with these factors. He concludes with fascinating excerpts from re-interviews with several informants, who modified their views of other groups when confronted by the author with the narrative character of their identities.