The Death of Ramon Gonzalez and the 21st Century Dilemma

assassinations carried out by the government and by private armed gangs and
paramilitary forces. These actions are one more reason for people to emigrate. xii
As discussed in the first edition of The Death of Ramon Gonzalez,
anthropologists Kearney and Carole Nagengast had initiated what is now a rapidly
growing literature on “transnational communities” that are built across borders by
emigrants leaving the villages of Mexico. xiii Formally organized “home-town
associations” and “bi-national organizations” of Oaxacans work to ensure that some of
the income earned in the United States is returned to home villages. In San Jeronimo
Progreso, migrant income apparently is being spent largely on paving streets, but it is
going into other community improvements as well. In the face of acrid controversy, the
town council of San Jeronimo used such money to build a large and impressive archway
marking the turn-off to the town.
Bi-national organizations have worked politically to protect migrant rights and
contribute to strengthening communities on both sides of the border. They have been able
to win funds beyond those they collect from members. One large bi-national organization
has received more than US$160,000 from U.S.-based foundations to invest in Oaxacan
communities, including projects for water supply and experiments in sustainable
agriculture. The ability to benefit from remittances is strongly linked to the survival of
traditional forms and the invention of new kinds of community organization in the home
villages, as well as in the migrant networks. xiv
In San Jeronimo Progreso and many other villages, the communal organization is
enforcing a tax on emigrants from the community. If emigrants do not pay the levy, the
council sometimes padlocks their homes and/or sells their assets, including land. In San