Dwelling in the dearth: Colonia Mexico 68 in poverty & exclusion

Abstract

The growth of irregular settlements in Ciudad Juarez has largely contributed to the expansion of the city, where informal city expansion was later transformed to regular urbanization. The reason for this is not far-reaching as the agglomeration of migrants into the city frequently redefined its growth. Simultaneously, the economic significance of the city in the global capital process has further made it a destination point for the engagement of labour from the hinterland of Mexico to central and southern America. This paper investigates the historical context of the emergence of the lived experience amidst poverty and the social exclusion process in Colonia Mexico 68, a settlement to the west of the city of Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua, Mexico, a vicinity surrounded by multinationals otherwise known as Maquiladoras. The inhabitants are known to be poor and live in poverty and exclusion. The investigation is based on ethnographic research using the Bristol Social Exclusion Model. (BSEM) to measure poverty and social exclusion despite the spatial proximity of the maquilas that empowered the residents. A random sampling of the population was executed through interviews and pictorial evidence. Supporting documented interviews were conducted with the staff of Asentamientos Humanos to further understand the narrative and lived experience of the inhabitants. Luckman and Berger’s subjective reality paradigm was adopted in the execution of the ethnographic findings. It was observed that social policy that focuses on education, training, social security, housing, and health provision would further improve the lives of the inhabitants and foster more forms of inclusion.