Life Course, Generation, and Social Location as Factors Shaping Second-Generation Transnational Life

Abstract

Factors that affect second-generation Mexican American's capacity to maintain transnational relations with relatives & other individuals in Mexico are investigated. Several determinants that significantly influence ethnic communities' capacity to establish transnational ties are identified including existing racial, class, & gender hierarchies in the US. An overview of the formation & objectives of the Ticuani Youth Group, an organization established in New York is presented, emphasizing the organization's attempts to improve the lives of people living in Ticuani, Mexico, & combat racial stereotypes of Mexican Americans. Multiple problems that resulted in the group's eventual demise are identified, eg, conflicts with organizations established by first-generation Mexicans & group members' unwillingness to address the extent of political corruption in Ticuani. Additional attention is directed toward exploring the effects that membership in the Ticuani Youth Group had upon members' lives. The effects that cultural assimilation pressures have upon immigrant communities' formation of transnational relations are also considered. 35 References. J. W. Parker