Visible Borders, Invisible Economies: Living Death in Latinx Narratives

Visible Borders, Invisible Economies explores the political and economic exploitation of Latinx subjects, migrants, and workers through Latinx literature, photography, and film. It reveals how anti-immigrant politics create a reserve army of the living, laboring dead by using specialized forms of violence to subjugate Latinx subjects and migrants. Art clarifies what power obscures, showing how the national-security state performs anti-immigrant and xenophobic politics while ensuring maximal corporate profits through the manufacture of disposable migrant labor.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 280 pages
Publication date: 22 November 2022
Publisher: University of Texas Press

The Outstanding Book Award, presented by the National Association for Ethnic Studies, recognizes a profound exploration of the political and economic exploitation of Latinx individuals, migrants, and workers through the lens of Latinx literature, photography, and film. This award-winning book delves into the complex dynamics of globalization in the United States, where seemingly contradictory phenomena coexist. On the one hand, free trade is promoted alongside the fortification of the southern border, while immigration is reimagined as a national-security threat. In this political landscape, US politics exhibit a harsh stance against Latinx migrants and subjects, even as post-NAFTA markets become heavily reliant on migrant and racialized workers. However, it is important to recognize that there is no inconsistency here. Rather, anti-immigrant politics serve as a strategic tool whereby capital employs specialized forms of violence to establish a reserve army of the living and laboring dead.

Visible Borders, Invisible Economies takes a compelling approach by turning to Latinx literature, photography, and films to expose this hidden scheme in vivid detail. Works such as Valeria Luiselli's Tell Me How It Ends and Alex Rivera's Sleep Dealer vividly portray the experiences of Latinx subjects and migrants who are subjected to social death, their political existence erased by disenfranchisement and racist violence, while their bodies continue to labor for corporate profits. Through the art of storytelling, this book sheds light on the power dynamics that often go unnoticed, revealing how the national-security state perpetuates anti-immigrant and xenophobic politics while simultaneously ensuring maximal corporate profits through the manufacture of disposable migrant labor.

This award-winning book offers a critical analysis of the complex interplay between globalization, politics, and the experiences of Latinx individuals and communities. It highlights the ways in which capital exploits and marginalizes these groups, while also exposing the mechanisms that perpetuate their exploitation. By examining the intersection of Latinx literature, photography, and film, this book provides a powerful lens through which to understand the ongoing struggles and resilience of Latinx people in the United States.

Dimension: 229 x 152 x 25 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781477326572