Colombian community in East Boston — Context
Colombian immigrants in the U.S.
Approximately 1.1 million of Colombian-origin people reside in the United States, says a recent survey published by the Pew Research Center. The study makes a difference between the foreign born Colombians (61%), and those who have been born in the States (39%).
Most of Colombian immigrants in the United States live across the East Coast. According to a report made by the Migration Policy Institute (MPI) 260,000 Colombians reside in Florida, 100,00 in New York, and 70,000 in New Jersey. Massachusetts is the sixth state with more Colombians. In Boston, its capital, Colombia is the leading country of origin among South American immigrants.
There are over 7,000 Colombians in Boston, and most of them are gathered in one single neighborhood.
Colombians immigrants in East Boston
According to a recent publication of the Boston Redevelopment Authority (BRA), 40,000 people live in East Boston, making it the fourth most populated neighborhood in the city.
When you walk around East Boston there are more chances that you hear people talking in Spanish than in English: 53% of its residents identify themselves as Latino or Hispanic.
East Boston has the highest share of residents who speak Spanish at home (52.3%), followed by Roxbury (25.2%) and Jamaica Plain (21.9%). Also, it’s the neighborhood where more residents speak a language other than English in their house: 68.5%.
New Bostonians 2013–2015, Boston Redevelopment Authority.
The BRA accounts that 49.7% of Eastie’s residents are foreign-born, and the top countries of origin among them are El Salvador (27.2%) and Colombia (23.0%).
More than 4,000 Colombians live in one single neighborhood in Boston. But that’s not all: most of them come from the same small town.
The Don Matías case
What does this Colombian town has to do with Boston?
Don Matías is a small town located 31 miles north of Medellín, Colombia’s second largest city. It looks like many other Andean villages of South America but it has something special, something that is literally invisible but that defines it: more than 10% of its population have migrated to Boston.
The first economical income of Don Matías is not the dairy it produces, the pork meat industry, or the textile industry that can make 20,000 jeans in one day. No. The first economical income of Don Matías is the remmitances it receives from the United States.
Since the late 1960s people of the town began migrating to Boston. Right now they’re a big community, they have a significant impact on the neighborhood’s economy, and somehow they are politically represented. This year Boston’s mayor named Claudia Correa, a Don Matías woman who arrived to the city 17 years ago, as his Neighborhood Liaison with East Boston.
How can I transform this into a journalism project?
Even though there are many Colombians in the United States, there are not many networks or organizations that keep them in touch and help them exchange experiences in a foreign country. The MIP report suggests a possible explication for that:
The decades-long civil and political conflict that tore Colombia apart also left a trust deficit within the diaspora population that has presented challenges for organizing the community. Nevertheless, the Colombian diaspora in the United States is beginning to establish a network of diaspora organizations while also channeling monetary and other contributions to the country through family members and the Catholic Church. In response to the weakness of diaspora networks, the government of Colombia is trying to promote greater activism among Colombians abroad and their children”.
RAD Diaspora Profile: The Colombian Diaspora in the United States.
Yes, there have been attempts to promote civic participation and organize Colombian community, but it appears that they’re not working now. You can find links to “virtual networks” of Colombian immigrants in the website of that country’s consulate in Boston, however they direct nowhere.
Immigrants whom I have spoken to say that there isn’t a place in Boston where they can go to receive information about their legal status, job opportunities or cultural activities. In contrast, Salvadoran immigrants in East Boston have Centro Presente, a place that intends to organize the community and where they also receive support in legal services.
I believe that journalism can be very useful in this case. A good story, if it’s told in a compelling and creative way, can ignite a conversation among Colombian immigrants and strengthen their sense of community. Besides that, it can help to make them visible to other cultures in the city.
Considering that most of Colombian immigrants have two or three jobs and almost no time to go to meetings, the use of digital technologies is essential to make them participate in the elaboration of the story.
Whatever story a journalist tells about Colombians in East Boston should be aware of this context to set his or her goals and to be able to measure the impact that the work could have in the community.
