Aquí y Allá: Migración Mexicana en Estados Unidos, Apropiación y Creación del Espacio Trasnacional

Abstract

This article analyzes how Mexican migrants in the United States appropriate and build spaces to enjoy a comfortable stay in a physical and cultural environment different from that of origin. Harvey's (1990) definition of space as a three-dimensional dynamic place: 1) The lived and produced space; 2) perceived space and 3) imagined space. It brings us closer to the material, symbolic and anthropological dimensions of culture, where the distance between homeland and migrant is seen as an obstacle to overcome to reach harmony. The cases of the Twin Cities, Minnesota and Grand Rapids, Michigan are addressed. The documentary research method was used in the first case and field research for the second. We show how, through cultural practices, migrants’ appropriate sites, creating spaces that transcend borders.