Synopses & Reviews
"In a time when we have great need to understand Mexican immigrants and their place in U.S. society, Zlolniski offers a superior analysis of why and how advanced capitalist economies employ undocumented workers. After reading his book, we will never think again of immigration as something that exclusively comes from outside. The immigrants, too, have agency in his account, as he narrates and analyzes an important case of unionization, pointing to significant new possibilities in American life."and#151;Josiah Heyman, Professor of Anthropology, University of Texas at El Paso
"Zlolniski makes a critical contribution to our understanding of the underside of advanced capitalism. He shows us its complexities: It is not only about misery, it is also about shaping subjective and political possibilities. If there is one concept that comes to mind it is the complexity of powerlessness."and#151;Saskia Sassen, author of Guests and Aliens
"This is a well-written and accessible ethnography of Mexican immigrants in Silicon Valley, the working poor who live in the shadow of affluence. Zlolniski presents a nuanced analysis of the thin line between formal and informal work, how families strategize and cope with the myriad challenges wrought by poverty, and the structural limitations to human agency. Zlolniski's perceptive ethnography illuminates hidden social worlds and struggles for dignity through collective action."and#151;Patricia Zavella, author of Women's Work and Chicano Families: Cannery Workers of the Santa Clara Valley
"Stringing together multiple livelihoods, moving among wage labor, the informal economy, and political activism, the immigrants Zlolniski profiles refuse to submit completely to the structural cards stacked against them. In this important and carefully situated study, Zlolniski engages internationally relevant debates over the changing nature of work, the abandonment of employer liability, and the propensity for the media to construct myths that simplify and underestimate the hard work of immigrant families in Silicon Valley."and#151;David Griffith, author of Fishers at Work, Workers at Sea: a Puerto Rican Journey through Labor and Refuge
Synopsis
"How does one put into words the rage that workers feel when supervisors threaten to replace them with workers who will not go to the bathroom in the course of a fourteen-hour day of hard labor, even if it means wetting themselves on the line?"--From the Preface
In this gutsy, eye-opening examination of the lives of workers in the New South, Vanesa Ribas, working alongside mostly Latino/a and native-born African American laborers for sixteen months, takes us inside the contemporary American slaughterhouse. Ribas, a native Spanish speaker, occupies an insider/outsider status there, enabling her to capture vividly the oppressive exploitation experienced by her fellow workers. She showcases the particular vulnerabilities faced by immigrant workers--a constant looming threat of deportation, reluctance to seek medical attention, and family separation--as she also illuminates how workers find connection and moments of pleasure during their grueling shifts. Bringing to the fore the words, ideas, and struggles of the workers themselves, On The Line underlines how deep racial tensions permeate the factory, as an overwhelmingly minority workforce is subject to white dominance. Compulsively readable, this extraordinary ethnography makes a powerful case for greater labor protection, especially for our nation's most vulnerable workers.
Synopsis
This highly accessible, engagingly written book exposes the underbelly of Californiaand#8217;s Silicon Valley, the most successful high-technology region in the world, in a vivid ethnographic study of Mexican immigrants employed in Silicon Valleyand#8217;s low-wage jobs. Christian Zlolniskiand#8217;s on-the-ground investigation demonstrates how global forces have incorporated these workers as an integral part of the economy through subcontracting and other flexible labor practices and explores how these labor practices have in turn affected working conditions and workersand#8217; daily lives. In Zlolniskiand#8217;s analysis, these immigrants do not emerge merely as victims of a harsh economy; despite the obstacles they face, they are transforming labor and community politics, infusing new blood into labor unions, and challenging exclusionary notions of civic and political membership. This richly textured and complex portrait of one community opens a window onto the future of Mexican and other Latino immigrants in the new U.S. economy.
Synopsis
This lively, informative study provides an intimate view of the lived experience of race in urban America from a unique vantage: the corner store. Sociologist Monica McDermott spent a year working as a convenience store clerk in white working class neighborhoods in Atlanta and Boston in order to observe race relations between blacks and whites in a natural setting. Her findings illuminate the subtle cues and genuine misunderstandings that make up race relations in many urban communities, explore how racial interactions and racial identity are influenced by local context, and provide evidence of what many would prefer to believe does not exist: continued anti-black prejudice among white Americans. McDermott notes that while most black-white interactions are civil and unremarkable on the surface, interactions between blacks and whites living in close proximity are characterized by continual attempts to decipher the intent behind words, actions, and gestures, and that certain situations and topics of conversation, such as crime or gender relations, often elicit racial stereotypes or negative comments. Her keen insights on the nuances of race relations will make this book essential reading for students and anyone interested in life in contemporary urban America.
Synopsis
"Fresh and thought-provoking. McDermott contributes to the understanding of how even small daily encounters can be powerfully affected by racial stereotypes and preconceptions."and#151;Julia Wrigley, author of
Other People's Children"A true 'insider's' account of how many whites now live and negotiate the color-line, McDermott deftly lifts the veil of the public ideology of tolerance to reveal the gritty durability of the racial divide. This book provides an important new sociological approach on racial attitudes and relations."and#151;Lawrence D. Bobo, Martin Luther King Jr. Centennial Professor, Stanford University
"This bold new urban ethnography reveals the meaning of whiteness for the working class in their everyday lived experiences. McDermott offers an insightful, honest, and comprehensive account of everyday black-white interactions. This is a must-read for anyone who wants to understand the tangled realities of race and class in 21st century America."and#151;Mary C. Waters, author of Black Identities: West Indian Immigrant Dreams and American Realities
"Working Class White is an essential read for anyone concerned about the enduring problem of race in America."and#151;Katherine S. Newman, author of Chutes and Ladders: Navigating the Low Wage Labor Market
About the Author
Christian Zlolniski is Assistant Professor in Anthropology and in the Center for Mexican American Studies at the University of Texas at Arlington.
Table of Contents
List of Tables vii
Preface and Acknowledgments ix
Introduction 1
Chapter 1. The Cities and the Sites: and#147;The Crescentand#8221; in Atlanta and and#147;Greenfieldand#8221; in Boston 19
Chapter 2. Experiences of White Racial Identity 38
Chapter 3. Situational Contexts and Perceptions of Prejudice 59
Chapter 4. The Implications of Diversity among Blacks for White Attitudes 79
Chapter 5. Race, Crime, and Violence 104
Chapter 6. Race, Gender, and Sexuality 130
Conclusion 148
Appendix 1. Cashiers, Neighbors, and Regular Customers 157
Appendix 2. Notes on Methodology 159
Notes 163
References 167
Index 187