Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: This paper explores the transnational context of the city of San Antonio, a U.S. city with a majority Mexican origin population. It draws on case studies developed from extended interviews with Mexican immigrants, second- generation, and Mexican American residents of the city.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to revise and analyze the profile prevalent in the academia that explains the cultural values and behaviors of Mexicans. The main assumption of this paper is that the complexities of the changing world and power differences have not been incorporated sufficiently into the study of cultural interactions. Most studies on Mexican culture tend to be based on fixed profiles of national cultures.
In this paper I propose a simple idea about a very complex topic: the nature of the Mexican culture related to work and the transformations that have been occurring during the last twenty years. The first part provides the theoretical framework on which this study is based. The second part provides a brief introduction to the predominant narratives in the academic discourse regarding the values and behaviors of Mexicans. Thereafter, there is an analysis of some changes that have taken place in Mexican society. The last part provides some elements that can be incorporated to understand better the complexities of Mexican cultural identity and everyday practices.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: Ethnic enclaves have been portrayed as a valuable resource for immigrants, helping them adapt into U.S. labor markets. A chief benefit of working within ethnic enclaves is ethnic solidarity, which enables immigrants to find employment in the United States despite their skill levels, limited English ability, and discrimination. Some studies find that immigrants working within ethnic businesses earn higher wages than those working within non-ethnic businesses. My study tests whether ethnic solidarity improves Mexican migrants’ labor markets, utilizing the Mexican Migration Project data. In addition to ethnic solidarity, my study also tests whether other forms of obligation such as familial and friendship obligation impact migrant labor markets. I do not find evidence that ethnic solidarity assists Mexican migrant workers in the U.S. labor market. To the contrary, I show that ethnic solidarity leads them to low paying jobs within the informal economy. However, familial and friendship obligation assist Mexican workers employed within Mexican businesses by providing them wages comparable to those earned at white firms. In this study, I shatter the hypothesis that Mexican workers receive labor market advantages from their ethnic solidarity with Mexican business owners, but I highlight how familial and friendship obligation do provide them with improved labor market outcomes.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: This work explores thirteen years (1992-2005) of coverage of such cases in Mexican
newspapers. By situating the analysis in America's growing culture of
lethal control (i.e., the killing state), this paper takes a critical
look at the history of resistance to death sentences and executions of
Mexican nationals in the U.S. Specifically, the analysis focuses on how
the Mexican media has challenged the culture of control and its
attendant "criminology of the other" in journalistic accounts and
political cartoons. The paper offers evidence that the execution of
Mexican nationals and the concurrent bi-national dispute over due
process rights has produced a flurry of outrage and interest in the
Mexican media about the treatment of Mexican nationals in the U.S.
criminal justice system. We argue that this counter-discourse represents
a deeper subversive narrative than simply one of opposition to the
imposition of the death penalty in the United States. The Mexican
media's coverage of Mexican Nationals condemned to die in the U.S. is,
indeed, a far more expansive tale of Mexico's longstanding struggle
against American imperialism and racial domination.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: This paper investigates the determinants of political participation across three populations: Anglo-Americans, Mexican-Americans, and Mexicans. It focuses on the ways in which disparities in the levels of resources, motivations, and opportunities can explain gender and ethnic/national inequalities in participation. We find gender differences in the levels of resources, motivations, and opportunities that prepare individuals for politics, and we find even starker gaps across Anglo-Americans, Mexican-Americans, and Mexicans. In regression analysis, we find differences in the levels of resources, motivations, and opportunities effectively account for gender differences within each of the three populations. However, differences in the levels of these participatory inputs partially, but do not fully, account for the gaps in participation across Anglo-Americans, Mexican-Americans, and Mexicans.