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Schmalzbauer studies changing state of Montaña (continued)
Studying changing demographics
Schmalzbauer teaches students that the typical Latino immigrant in Montana is an adult male who works in the construction industry in Big Sky or in agricultural jobs. Many are recruited by local employers and have H-1B visas, used by U.S. employers to hire skilled foreigners for temporary help. Soon a wife and children follow. Schmalzbauer meets many such families at the local food bank, where she volunteers as an interpreter. Wages vary widely, she notes, from $15 an hour at a golf course to $7 an hour for day labor through agencies.
The recent influx of Latinos sparked three months of heated debate on the editorial page of Bozeman's newspaper during spring 2007. Schmalzbauer says the letters to the editor revealed xenophobia in an otherwise accepting community.
"Some of the negative feedback comes from Californians who left California to escape Latino immigration there," she says. "That's why we wanted to start a healthy dialogue, debate and lecture series in Bozeman. Bridget Kevane, MSU Modern Languages professor, is spearheading this at MSU through the new Latino Studies program. Buck Taylor of the Gallatin Community Clinic is heading a group of local human service workers who are strategizing how to better meet the needs of the Latino community and educate the public on the issue. After all, statistics show that over half of the population growth in Montana is Latino."
As she befriends local migrants, Schmalzbauer finds a thriving, albeit fledgling, Latino community. Schmalzbauer says a major indicator of the growing population is the dozen local Western Union offices, which are vital for the transfer of dollars to Latin America. Other telltale signs are the number of Mexican-owned restaurants in the valley and a Spanish mass at a local Catholic church.
The changing U.S. and local demographics make relevant a new MSU Latin American and Latino Studies minor, Schmalzbauer said. It is designed to prepare students for the close cultural, political, and economic relationships developing between Latin America and the U.S.
Schmalzbauer's honors for her work include the 2006 Sussman Award for "Searching for Wages and Mothering from Afar: The Case of Honduran Transnational Families," published in the "Journal of Marriage and Family." She recently received a $5,700 grant from the American Sociological Association Fund for the Advancement of the Discipline/National Science Foundation for "Off the Migratory Map: Uncovering Family Survival Strategies."
"The importance of Leah's work is that it's talking in a global sense about immigration and the effects it has on us locally," says Kevane. "Hopefully, this generation of students won't have stereotypes or fears that others may have (of) the Mexican community."
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| Leah Schmalzbauer volunteers as an interpreter for Spanish speakers at Bozeman's Food Bank, where she meets some of the Latino/Hispanic laborers. |
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