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Journal of Undergraduate Research

Keywords

independence, self-identity, native people, American, women

College

Family, Home, and Social Sciences

Department

Anthropology

Abstract

Summer was rapidly approaching and I was busy making plans to visit Oaxaca, Mexico in search of answers. Several cases of labor abuse involving Mixtec Indians from that region working in Californian fields had emerged and I wanted to find out if Mixtec communal living patterns were being altered here in America as opposed to their traditional way of living in the villages of Oaxaca. I was set to leave in April when a friend of mine invited me to her Indian reservation in northeastern California for the weekend. I became so intrigued with the community of Independence, California that I decided a change in plans would be necessary. A once in a lifetime opportunity was staring me in the eye, and I could not pass it up. One of the biggest challenges an anthropologist faces is the time factor in which s/he was become acquainted with the local population and gain their trust, the latter being the most difficult to achieve. I had visited Independence once and, riding on the coat tail of my friend, gained the confidence of the people in a relatively short time. Oaxaca, Mexico would have to wait, and soon I was packing my bags to go back to Independence.

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