"Bringing Spain back”: The construction of virtual diasporic communities of Spaniards in Mexico

Following the global economic crash of 2008, thousands of Spaniards were forced to leave their country in search of better conditions in other parts of the world. Some set off for European countries like Germany or England, while others crossed the Atlantic into the “New World”. Several migrants, mainly young, arrived in Mexico looking for jobs or better economic conditions. Given these circumstances, social media platforms have attained strategic significance, and not only for Spaniards already living in Mexico who want to stay in contact with their relatives, friends and culture in Spain. These platforms are also an invaluable tool for those thinking of traveling to the Latin American country and who need information related to economic, migratory and security issues. This work focuses on understanding how social media platforms serve both to solve problems of daily life and to encourage cohesion and enable the construction of communities among Spaniards abroad.