Migrants in the City
For
my city migrants report I decided to go to the southeast corner of Cave
Creek and Bell Road. I chose this location because it is where migrant
workers gather to find work as day laborers. This location has been
made famous by the media because this is where the city built a
gathering place for the workers in order to keep some sense of
organization. Supporters say it keeps people off of the parking lots
and it gives the workers a place to find some shade while proponents say
that it is a way of condoning illegal immigration. I went by to see
what it is like.
I showed up a bit late because I am not used to getting up at 5 am because I don’t work in the construction industry anymore. I have worked most of the jobs that these men do, I know how hard it is to get up early five or six days a week and work in the blistering sun for ten hours. I looked around and noticed that some men where not taking part in the program that the city had built for them. When I asked them why they do not participate in the program they said that they don’t want to deal with the politics. They also claimed that they don’t want to sit and wait as other guys go to work while they sit around because they didn’t get there early enough. They said that they would rather wait outside and do it the old fashioned way, where someone just pulls up in a truck and yells out how many they need and they pile in and go to work.
As I looked
around I also noticed that there are a lot of businesses that cater to
the Latino community. I saw a Western Union that helps Latinos send
money back home. It is projected that ten billion dollars are sent to
Mexico every year. That is an incredible amount of money. I also saw a
Latino music store, a cowboy boot store and a clothing boutique. It is
a representation of the economic power that Latinos are acquiring. I
believe that in time Latinos will blend more and more with the American
culture and the same thing that happened with Italians in the east coast
will happen in the West coast. The Latinos will be such an integral
part of the culture and economy that no one will even notice them as
being outsiders; it will be another race’s turn to be criticized and
used as scape goats.