“From Jibaro to Crack Dealer: Confronting the Restructuring of Capitalism in El Barrio”
In the article entitled, “Jibaro to Crack Dealer: Confronting the Restructuring of Capitalism in El Barrio,” author Phillipe Bourgois discusses the Puerto Rican immigrants living and working in New York City. The Jibaro (or as the author used hillbilly) cultural emphasis of respect, or respeto in Puerto Rican society had warped into the socially inferior position as being a different race in the United States . He also goes over how these immigrants, who came to the United States with dreams of improving their lives and that of their families, soon realize that it may be impossible, given all of the social and economic divisions. These then down-and-out people are then enticed into the underworld of illegal drug dealing and other street crimes. In his conclusion, Bourgois states that, “America was built on racial hierarchy and on blame-the-victim justifications for the existence of poverty and class distinctions."
As I read this article, I thought about my own immigrant family’s situation. My mother was a registered nurse, working much like a doctor in Chile for she has all the qualifications to perform the job. When she moved to the United States, she was not only prohibited from being a nurse and given the looked-down-upon job of a Certified Nurse’s Assistant, but she also became a major target for discrimination from not only white people (because she has a heavy accent) but also from black people (because she’s white). This came not only as a shock to her, but also a huge humiliation for her. She had worked so hard to become a nurse, and here people completely disregard her ideas because she has the inferior title of CNA. My mother did not resort to criminal activities like the people in this article, but she kept working and obeying all the laws of this country. She learned the language; she became a part of the community. I do not know why these people chose to involve themselves in such dangerous activities in the pursuit of wealth, because nothing is worse losing one’s dignity.
Professor's notes:
Great topic and excellent use of a personal example; but there is also room to include another example and a more expansive link between the readings and the ideas presented in the final paragraph.