By: Student
Throughout United States history, Latinos have settled in
our country for various reasons, such as the annexation of Mexican land and job
opportunities. California is a main spot
for Latinos because it was technically Mexican land until 1848. I visited San Diego two summers ago and I
realized how many people were on the streets looking for work. These Latinos would be on the corner of every
street in the early morning waiting for a job to come up. My main question is: why are so many Latina/os
(mostly Mexican) searching for precarious employment on the streets of a large
city like San Diego? These Latina/os are
considered day laborers in San Diego, which means that these people get paid
from the start to finish of a job, and sometimes, jobs aren’t even available
every day. Many day laborers are
unauthorized immigrants that cannot be hired for government jobs. Do these day laborers have homes or families
in San Diego or are they strictly there trying to make a living?
In August of 2015, The San Diego Union-Tribune published
that approximately 205,000 unauthorized immigrants are residing in San Diego County. Barrio Logan is a neighborhood located to the
north of Downtown San Diego that is densely populated. According to city-data.com, this area has
nearly three times the amount of people per square foot than the rest of San
Diego. In addition, nearly half of the
Barrio Logan residents are of Latino descent.
In 2013, this neighborhood had one of the highest asthma rates in all of
California due to all the industries within close distance to homes. This shows that the people of Barrio Logan
were living in poor conditions, as well as living in tight quarters. The cost of living in San Diego is very
expensive, so some of these unauthorized immigrants may gravitate towards
Barrio Logan due to the lower rent prices.
When it comes to work, these immigrants basically have to take whatever
they can get. They have to pay the bills
somehow, so roaming the streets for work seems like the best possible way. It seems as if they escape their country to
have a better life, but the living situation is still far from ideal. George J. Sanchez, the author of Becoming
Mexican American, stated that many immigrants passed over the railroads in
the early 1900s in order to enter America for better opportunities. The
railroads allowed these immigrants to find work along the way. Many would settle in areas close to the
railroad, unless they found someone who needed them to work elsewhere. Since San Diego is considered a major city in
the state of California, unauthorized immigrants would flee here for work due
to the high population.
Unauthorized immigrants coming to the United States has been
going on for many years, and I believe it won’t stop any time soon. Once all of the jobs are taken in the major
cities in California, these immigrants will move to different states in order
to find work. For example, as Professor
Londono stated in class, New Jersey recently has had a rapid influx of
Latina/os coming to find jobs. New
Jersey is very close to New York City, which already has a high population of
Latinos. Once New Jersey becomes densely
populated, these immigrants will try to find work somewhere else. I feel as if every Latino wants to give their
family a good life, but it’s extremely hard when the cost of living in today’s
society is higher than ever. These big
cities are densely populated to begin with; so finding room and work for all of
the unauthorized immigrants is nearly impossible. In sum, I believe that Latinos reside in San
Diego strictly for work opportunities.
They are trying to make the best out of the situation they have and
follow the low paying jobs.
Works Cited
Sanchez,
Tatiana. “County 3rd largest for unauthorized immigrants.”
The San Diego Union-Tribune, 26
August 2015, http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/2015/aug/26/migration-policy-institute-study-immigration/.
Web.
Sanchez, George J. Becoming Mexican American:
Ethnicity, Culture, and Identity in Chicano Los Angeles, 1900-1945. New York:
Oxford UP, 1993. Print.
“Barrio Logan neighborhood in San Diego,
California (CA), 92101, 92113, 92136 detailed profile.” City-Data, http://www.city-data.com/neighborhood/Barrio-Logan-San-Diego-CA.html. Accessed 13 September 2016.
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ReplyDeleteThank you for your post, some interesting points about San Diego, a city I personally have little experience with. I'm curious about the type of people who hire the "day laborers", and if there's an overall stigma towards those looking for work and those who hire them. Is it generally white/lighter skinned people hiring the day-laborers? I just feel like often the same people who protest undocumented workers or have anti-Latino bias are the same who perpetuate the environment that maintains this level of demand without supporting opportunities for their societal advancement. I also wonder what, if any special programs to find employment exist in these more densely populated areas of Latinos.
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