The migration of indigenous people between Mexico and the US has increased since the 1980s. The traditional pattern of male migrants has become more complex, with gender becoming more significant as a factor in migration. This project involves the dissertation research of an anthropology student from the University of Michigan, studying migrants from the Oaxacan town of Yalalag to Los Angeles. As many as 52% of the recent migrants from the town currently living in LA are female. The student will investigate the cultural meaning of transmigration through intensive interviewing of a sample of 100 households, open-ended interviews, participant observation, a household survey in Oaxaca and also participant observation and interviews in LA. The focus of the project is on the changes in gender roles attributable to migration as well as transmigratory information and capital flows. The project will analyze the identity of migrants as not simply varying along a linear progression from `traditional` to `modern` but rather on a more complex and nuanced blend of local Yalalag, national Mexican, local southern Californian and national US identities. The research will advance our understanding of the lived experience of migrants and will be useful to policy makers who must deal with migration, and will contribute to the training of a young social scientist.
