Mixtec Migrants in Mexico City: A Case Study of Urbanization

This article examines the formation of a village association among a group of Mixtec migrants from the village of San Bartolo Soyaltepec living in Mexico City. Five aspects are considered in some detail: (1) the formation of the village association in the urban environment; (2) the degree to which the village association resembles the system of government in the rural village; (3) the nature of the interaction between the village association and the government in the village; (4) the impact of the village association on the social organization of the community; and finally, (5) the role which the village association performs as a cultural institution mediating the process of urbanization for both the migrants and the society of Soyaltepec. It was found that the formation of the village association is of critical importance in the adaptation to urbanization which ultimately involves changes in the social organization of the rural community as well.