Abstract
This chapter investigates the power of place through the lens of transnational migration. We argue that within the growing political economy of globalization, the power and significance of place have intensified. We ground our analysis in the experiences of Latino migrants who work in the exclusive resort town of Aspen, Colorado. Aspen touts an international reputation for high-end service and a stunning landscape of pristine mountains, all configured to welcome wealthy tourists. And like many communities, towns, and cities in the USA, Aspen depends upon cheap immigrant labor to fuel its local service economy. Using a “place-sensitive” lens, we document a power struggle between city council representatives working to displace the presence of poverty and racism within their pristine environment and Latino immigrants who challenge this effort through strategies of emplacement. Within this struggle, we see the significance of a localized sense of place for those who are made to feel invisible.
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Notes
- 1.
In some circumstances it can be fatal, as graphically illustrated by the 400+ deaths of Latin American women working in Maquila factories in Juarez.
- 2.
- 3.
For a more detailed analysis of the politics of immigrant health care, see Lisa Sun-Hee Park’s Bearing the Burden (forthcoming NYU Press).
- 4.
Emergency Medicaid, for which undocumented immigrants qualify, covers labor and delivery. Also, Colorado is one of 12 states that provide prenatal care coverage for “qualified” immigrants who have resided in the USA for less than 5 years (see Kaiser Family Foundation & Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. 2004. Covering New Americans: A Review of Federal and State Policies Related to Immigrants’ Eligibility and access to Publicly Funded Health Insurance. Menlo Park, California. November).
- 5.
Prenatal care for undocumented pregnant immigrants can be serviced through presumptive eligibility programs in many states. Presumptive eligibility allows uninsured pregnant women to obtain immediate prenatal care while their Medicaid eligibility is processed (National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health. 2005. Prenatal Care Access among Immigrant Latinas. New York. December).
- 6.
Here, Paulson cites Jonette Christian from Mainers for Immigration Reform, who gave a presentation at the Aspen Institute in October 1999.
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Park, L.SH., Pellow, D.N. (2011). The Case of the Missing Mountain: Migration and the Power of Place. In: Burton, L., Matthews, S., Leung, M., Kemp, S., Takeuchi, D. (eds) Communities, Neighborhoods, and Health. Social Disparities in Health and Health Care, vol 1. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-7482-2_7
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