The Politics, Economics, and Culture of Mexican-US Migration

Images and accounts of the Mexican - US migration process and the border region abound. Representations of border crossers, plans for the construction of a security fence, the shifting economic relationship between the US and its southern neighbors, and the changing character of the Rio Grande area have played a pivotal role in shaping contemporary political discourse. The Politics, Economics, and Culture of Mexican-US Migration, which has attracted contributors from four different countries, offers multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary evaluations of these developments. It also considers the impact of migration in both the US and Mexico. Some of the contributions are case-studies, while others have a broad 'survey' character. All place the current debate about migration and the changing nature of the north American continent within its wider context in a way that is of relevance and interest to both the specialist and the more general reader.

Images and accounts of the Mexican - US migration process and the border region abound. Representations of border crossers, plans for the construction of a security fence, the shifting economic relationship between the US and its southern neighbors, and the changing character of the Rio Grande area have played a pivotal role in shaping contemporary political discourse. The Politics, Economics, and Culture of Mexican-US Migration, which has attracted contributors from four different countries, offers multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary evaluations of these developments. It also considers the impact of migration in both the US and Mexico. Some of the contributions are case-studies, while others have a broad 'survey' character. All place the current debate about migration and the changing nature of the north American continent within its wider context in a way that is of relevance and interest to both the specialist and the more general reader.

Images and accounts of the Mexican - US migration process and the border region abound. Representations of border crossers, plans for the construction of a security fence, the shifting economic relationship between the US and its southern neighbors, and the changing character of the Rio Grande area have played a pivotal role in shaping contemporary political discourse. The Politics, Economics, and Culture of Mexican-US Migration, which has attracted contributors from four different countries, offers multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary evaluations of these developments. It also considers the impact of migration in both the US and Mexico. Some of the contributions are case-studies, while others have a broad 'survey' character. All place the current debate about migration and the changing nature of the north American continent within its wider context in a way that is of relevance and interest to both the specialist and the more general reader.

Introduction - Edward Ashbee, Helene Balslev Clausen& Carl Pedersen *  PART I: AMERICAN IDENTITIES * Somos Americanos : Mexican Immigration and US National Identity in the Twenty-first Century - Carl Pedersen * Mexican Mestiz Identity in the Twenty-first Century - Helene Balslev Clausen * PART II: CAPITAL AND LABOR * The Other Side of the Migration Story: Mexican Women in the US - Silvia E. Giorguli Saucedo, María Adela Angoa Pérez& Selene Gaspar Olvera * From Precarious, Low-Paying Jobs in Mexico to Precarious, Low-Paying Jobs in the United States - Elaine Levine * Sending Money Home: The Dynamics of Mexico-US Remittances - Mario Villarreal & Megan Davy * The Impact of NAFTA on the Mexican-US Border Region - Elena Labastida-Tovar * Transnational Social Networks and International Trade - Magdalena Barros Nock * PART III: THE BORDER REGION * Beyond Border Crossing and Soulless Places: The Role of Mexico's Northern Border Cities in the Construction of Transnational Social Spaces - Cristóbal Mendoza * Changing Representations of the Border - Mario Alberto Velázquez * Boundaries in Border Films: The Other as "Our" Redemption - Jan Gustafsson * Baldwin Park, Historical Narratives, and American Identities - Anne Magnussen * Textual Representations of the Border and Border-Crossers: Constructing Latino Enemies in The New York Times - Ken Henriksen * Mexican Immigration and the Question of Identity in the United States - Raphael Gomez * PART IV: POLITICS AND PUBLIC POLICY * Immigration and the 2006 US Mid-Term Elections - Edward Ashbee * Immigration, Social Policy, and Politics in the US - Alex Waddan * From the Margin to the Middle?: The Origin, Transformation, and Direction of the Minutemen - Pia Møller * Migrants, Votes, and the 2006 Mexican Presidential Elections - Helene Balslev Clausen & Mario Alberto Velázquez * Sovereignty along el Río Bravo / the Rio Grande: Changes in US Immigration Law and Mexican Foreign Relations Law - Ernesto Hernández-López