Immigration

Pathways to Political Incorporation: Exploring the Relationship Between "Here" and "There"

Project Date:

November 2004

Award Amount:

$34,000

Summary

Throughout history, immigrants have held ties with their native lands after migrating; but today’s immigrants have greater opportunities to forge transnational identities. Does this mean that we are moving to a higher-level civil society that transcends citizenship and legal residency boundaries, or is the new transnationalism simply a more technologically advanced expression of old migrant behaviors? What difference does this make for immigrant political incorporation?

In order to address these questions, Roger Waldinger and his collaborator Eric Popkin will study the connection between Salvadorans in Los Angeles and those in El Salvador. The project will use in-depth interviews with organizational leaders in Los Angeles and El Salvador, as well as ethnographic participant observation to examine cross-border mobilization efforts and the political behavior of hometown associations. Waldinger and Popkin argue that the Salvadoran state’s support for its citizens abroad represents a new variable in the interaction between migrants and their sending communities that affects the political life of Salvadoran immigrants. After conducting the studies, the researchers will outline their findings, evaluate theoretical implications, and outline a more systematic research project on Salvadoran immigrant politics in the United States.

Reports and Publications

Waldinger, Roger. 2008. "Between 'here' and 'there': Immigrant Cross-border Activities and Loyalties," International Migration Review, Vol. 42 (1): 3-29. (PDF)

Soehl, Thomas and Roger Waldinger. 2010. "Making the Connection: Latino Immigrants and their Cross-Border Ties," Ethnic and Racial Studies, Vol. 33 (9): 1489-1510. (PDF)