Trans(actions) : Trans(acciones)

Image by Salim Virji: Borrowed from Creative Commons

I recently finished reading an engaging text for a seminar on transnational migration. As part of the course requirements, we were asked to draft a detailed review. Here’s what I came up with.

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Dominican-Americans and the Politics of Empowerment

By: Ana Aparicio

Gainesville: University Press of Florida, 2006. 210 pp.

Reviewed by: Deepak Lamba-Nieves, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

On September 1, 1992, journalist David González published an article in the New York Times titled: “Dominican Immigration Alters Hispanic New York”. In the piece, González provides an account of how the Dominican population in New York City was quickly growing and how they were making inroads into its highly contested political sphere. More than just an informative note, the news story provided insights into the tensions that were brewing between Puerto Ricans and Dominicans, as the former group sought to defend its electoral turf and reputation as an ethnic group that made important claims for minorities throughout the city. Although González did a good job of weaving together different voices and points of view in the text—which provide a sense that the competition is not as fierce as some sources claimed—by the end, one gets the feeling that the road to political advancement for Dominicans in New York City was fraught with hurdles and disputes with fellow Hispanics.

Interestingly, Ana Aparicio’s book, Dominican-Americans and the Politics of Empowerment—published fourteen years after González’ report—tells a different story of how Dominicans living in the Washington Heights neighborhood participated in the local political arena, from the 1980s until the early years of the twenty-first Century, and transformed the institutional and community landscape of “‘the Dominican Mecca’ in the United States” (3). Her main argument centers on the idea that Dominican-American organizers were able to advance politically, not by relying on a neatly defined and bounded ethnic identity as a source of power, but through a series of local alliances with “native-born minorities” which included Blacks, Puerto Ricans and Mexican-Americans. What distinguishes her approach from previous studies on Dominican political activity in the United States, is a focus on second generation activists who were able to formulate a powerful political discourse that hinged on a flexible and strategic redefinition of being Dominican in the United States. Thus, her work attempts to bridge the literatures that focus on the political involvement of first and second generations migrants, and expand discussions on race, ethnicity and identity pertaining to minority populations in the United States.

Early in the book, Aparicio reviews some of the literatures that inform her work. Through this exercise, the author establishes her theoretical framework, which is informed by the literature on transnational migration and migrant politics, segmented assimilation theories, and scholarly debates on the urban underclass and identity politics. Although this broad range of subjects offers an opportunity to converse with contemporary scholars from the  sociological and anthropological traditions, the author seems to be mostly interested in contesting and critiquing the work of Portes and Zhou (1993) on “segmented assimilation” and challenging earlier assumptions regarding migrant political engagement and transnational livelihoods.

According to Aparicio, the theory set forth by Portes and Zhou posits that second generation migrants have three options for social mobility: (1) parallel incorporation into the white middle class; (2) permanent poverty and assimilation into the underclass or (3) a path to successful mobility through the preservation of the values and family structure of the immigrant community. Most of her attention is spent trying to debunk this oft-cited theory through empirical examples that challenge “three ever-present myths: (1) that primordial ties ultimately bind people to an ethnic group; (2) that a bound, homogeneous, essentialized ethnic group exists; and finally, (3) that those who take refuge in the presumably non racialized bosom of an ethnic group are promised success” (146). Regarding contemporary theories on migrant transnationalism and political action, she argues that although transnational ties are certainly an important part of migrant’s lives, we mustn’t assume, as some scholars claim, “that immigrant groups maintain an exclusive national identity” (22) or that diaspora associations are mostly populated with first generation migrants interested in homeland politics.

To tackle these important topics, her study focuses exclusively on the political histories of Dominicans in the Washington Heights neighborhood, and the work of two key community-based organizations: Quisqueya United and Dominican Nation. As Aparicio states, “the original research design was aimed at examining the manner in which second generation Dominicans influenced or altered community activism and community organizations in Washington Heights” (46). As is quite common in qualitative research projects which focus on an inductive approach, the data gathered through interviews, focus groups, personal histories and participant observations, led the author to review her analytical frame and assumptions as the fieldwork evolved. As the scholar explains (46-47):

I had originally assumed a zero-sum game, in which I placed the first generation in the now well-recognized category of transmigrant politicos and understood the second generation to be focused on the local New York political environment. The fieldwork experience was to teach me more than I could have ever anticipated […] my field of vision expanded quite dramatically.

It becomes clear to the reader that Aparicio approached the fieldwork phase—which began in the summer of 1999 and concluded in the spring of 2001—from an exploratory vantage point. This technique allowed her to discover important nuances and details that are evident in the case study narratives. Although a list of interviews and sources is not provided, the text is filled with quotes from a wide array of subjects—from different backgrounds, professional roles and generations—that contributed valuable insights on organizational life and the Dominican experience in Manhattan.

By carefully tracing the histories and evolution of the organizations under study, Aparicio is able to draw key findings that support her claims regarding the second generation’s role in local political life, and challenge the assumptions embedded in the segmented assimilation model. Her findings demonstrate that “as political mobilization throughout Latin America declined in urgency for Dominican activists residing in New York, they began to focus on what was happening to their local community of Washington Heights” (90). Furthermore, as national and local policies, such as Reagan’s War on Drugs, began to target poor and minority neighborhoods like Washington Heights, Dominican activists sought to empower themselves and challenge their status as racialized, disposable subjects. Creating community-based organizations—led mostly by second-generation activists—and formulating strategic alliances with different communities of color, were key steps in their struggle to gain political status in New York City.

Through a careful comparison of how the leadership of Quisqueya United and Dominican Nation defined community organizing, Aparicio is able to offer a new typology that describes the different approaches, or models of community empowerment that flourished amongst Dominican organizations in Washington Heights. She describes “ethnic entrepreneurs” as those activists who were focused on securing resources and providing services to area residents. Their outreach to other minority groups focuses on securing funds and political favors to the community. “Community mobilizers” on the other hand, “privilege a grassroots base and aims at mobilizing community members […] they reach out to other people of color in grassroots efforts, often to challenge state policies and practices” (96). According to the author, each approach offers important benefits to the community at large. Nevertheless, instead of formulating a normative position or raising concerns regarding potential divisions that may arise, Aparicio assumes that the differences are part of community politics. Her final assessment rests on the words of a community leader, Osiris Robles: “there are going to be differences. We have to allow these differences to develop, as long as we know how to work with these differences…And I hope all projects reach their full potential because our community stands to gain” (122).

The most eloquent findings of the book are formulated in Chapter 6, titled Race, Identities and the Second Generation. In this section, the author explains how the second generation embraces “Blackness” and contends with issues of “race, racism and marginalization in the United States” (125). What sets this chapter apart is the clarity and depth that Aparicio displays when she describes how race and racial identity are defined and lived by Dominican youths in Washington Heights. From the predominant racial discourses in the Dominican Republic, to the harassment lived by many neighborhood youths, Aparicio presents detailed accounts supporting the idea that “the identity issue that most second-generation Dominicans engage with is ‘what kind’ of Black identity they embody” (138). Furthermore, the chapter includes a detailed discussion of how scholars have approached the issue of race in migration studies and offers some well articulated critiques that question the validity of the “segmented assimilation” theory while tying its fundamental principles to the outdated arguments of the “culture of poverty” school.

While the research findings offer several thought provoking ideas regarding migrant politics, racial identity and the role of the second generation, some of the author’s conclusions seem off the mark. Aparicio recognizes that transnational connections constitute an important part of the contemporary Dominican migrant experience—especially within the political realm—but she distances herself from those debates, and argues that the transnational approach has been overplayed in the contemporary migration literature. Her critique is based on the idea that the leaders and organizations she studied in Washington Heights “prioritize New York-based concerns over home country issues” (164). This position demonstrates a very narrow reading and interpretation of the current debates on migrant transnationalism and reveals a serious analytical flaw, as the author attempts to make broad theoretical claims based on findings that are circumscribed to a discreet area of interest in the migration literature.

Nevertheless, Aparicio’s conclusions regarding the important role played by the second generation in shaping contemporary political and racial discourse in Washington Heights   are important contributions to the literature on Latino politics and migration. Her argument that, “understanding the continuum of activism, the reasons behind these organizing choices, and the ways in which racialized immigrants use numerous identities, networks and coalitions to initiate or participate in political projects requires a more nuanced analysis” (165) is an important one, since it compels scholars to pay more attention to the complex dynamics that govern local political processes.

Dominican-Americans and the Politics of Empowerment is a thoroughly researched text that covers important ground on the relationship between migration, race, identity and community politics. It also introduces a series of critiques that will surely lead to further debates on migrant transnationalism and assimilation theories. Furthermore, the book suggests that some of the tensions that have existed between Puerto Ricans and Dominicans in New York will be mitigated by a new generation that understands the value of interethnic collaboration and collective empowerment. While some may find fault with some of the conclusions and the limited number of cases analyzed, it is, without a doubt, a required reading for those interested in Dominican migration and urban politics.