Date of Submission
Spring 2020
Academic Program
Political Studies
Project Advisor 1
Miles Rodríguez
Abstract/Artist's Statement
The first section of this paper is largely set in the physical space of San Agustín Yatareni, a community which is introduced, and posed as a “typical” rural, indigenous, Oaxacan community that sees high rates of emigration to Poughkeepsie, New York, and the surrounding Hudson Valley. Combining observational research, posts pulled from social media, and personally-conducted interviews, this section describes the village, its unique system of government, the effects of a remittance-based economy, and the community’s attitudes toward out-migration. The second section is generally set in the physical space of New York, outlining how exactly these migrants came to live in and around Poughkeepsie, and how they were received by the general public. Then, in the context of a growing anti-immigrant political climate, I discuss how this (largely undocumented) community is neglected by the government. Next, I outline various institutions constituted by this under-resourced immigrant population, institutions which share the political principles that are ingrained in the town’s political system. I conclude by raising questions of citizenship in light of the growing prominence of international migration.
Open Access Agreement
On-Campus only
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
Recommended Citation
Mazzye, Ava R., "Oaxakeepsie: Connecting San Agustín Yatareni, Oaxaca, and Poughkeepsie, New York" (2020). Senior Projects Spring 2020. 10.
https://digitalcommons.bard.edu/senproj_s2020/10
This work is protected by a Creative Commons license. Any use not permitted under that license is prohibited.
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