Showing papers by "Jeffrey H. Cohen published in 1998"

Consequences of Migration and Remittances for Mexican Transnational Communities

Abstract: To better understand the positive contributions return migrants and migrant remittances make in Latin American society, this paper offers a reevaluation of existing conceptual frameworks. Previous research dwelt upon the unproductive nature of expenditures and the difficulties facing return migrants as they reintegrate themselves in home communities, among other problems caused by migration. Drawing upon recent feminist scholarship and the growing body of literature focused on the positive aspects of “migradollars” (U.S. dollars returned by migrants) upon home communities, we propose that remittance investments should be analyzed for their progressive and satisficing effects. We focus on the potential range of household strategies for remittance investment, the ways migrant circulation patterns relate to family and household decision making, and the impact of remittances and migration upon community structure. Finally, using ethnographic data from rural Mexico, we illustrate our argument and demon...

Craft Production and the Challenge of the Global Market: An Artisans' Cooperative in Oaxaca, Mexico

Abstract: In 1987 the Artisans' Society of Santa Ana was founded to bring the global market for handmade woolen textiles to Santa Ana del Valle, Oaxaca, a rural Zapotec community. Santa Ana is part of Oaxaca's well-documented treadle loom industry, but remains in the shadow of its economically dominant neighbor, Teotitlan del Valle. The Artisans' Society was established in response to Teotitlan's control and was generally well supported by villagers. However, the cooperative has not accomplished its goal of gaining better market access for local weavers. Over the last decade the Society has struggled, nearly collapsing in 1995. The example of the Artisans' Society allows an opportunity to examine the advantages and disadvantages of cooperatives as avenues toward economic development. The problems facing Santanero weavers are not solely local. The evidence presented suggests our anlysis must take account of the control and flow of information and market knowledge; the place of the cooperative in regional, national a...