The Informal and Underground Economy of the South Texas Border: The Informal and Underground Economy of the South Texas Border

Acknowledgments

We wish to thank the many thousands of people of the South Texas borderlands who have shared their life stories with us since the initiation of the Borderlife Project at the UTPA in 1982. This book would not have been possible without our students at UTPA and Texas A&M International University. Embedded in the local environment, our students, through ethnographic interviews and semi-structured surveys, artfully collected and shared the experiences and stories of informal and underground participants in the region. Some of the draft chapters were presented at the Association of Borderlands Studies annual conferences over the past few years, a wonderfully collegial environment in which to share academic papers. We wish to thank all the conference participants who came to the sessions and offered feedback and support. We are indebted to Theresa May, editorin -chief of the University of Texas Press, who gave us valuable encouragement for the project, from the early stages of writing through the reviewing and editing. Her suggestions were always timely and valuable. We also wish to thank the reviewers of this volume for their critical insights ; they challenged us to improve the text and found worth in our effort. Any remaining errors are ours alone. Chad Richardson’s Acknowledgments I would like to gratefully acknowledge the support of key UTPA administrators (Guang-zhen Wang, Kristin Croyle, Van Reidhead, and Paul Steele), as well as UTPA colleagues (José Pagán, Darrin Rogers, and Dejun Su), and an outstanding department secretary, Jesse Medina. Acknowledgments Richardson-final.indb xiii Richardson-final.indb xiii 8/7/12 10:30:07 PM 8/7/12 10:30:07 PM xiv Acknowledgments But special mention needs to be made of some student assistants whose research and collaboration were invaluable, including Carlos Sepulveda, Omar Camarillo, and, especially, Amelia Flores. Amelia deserves special mention, not only for the quality of her work, but also for her heroism in the face of tragedy and obstacles that would have overwhelmed almost anyone. Mike Pisani’s Acknowledgments For me, the study of the informal economy began while I was a doctoral student at UTPA. Professors José Pagán, John Sargent, Alberto Dávila, and Chad Richardson, all of UTPA at the time of my studies, were instrumental in my training. All have been true mentors. While my dissertation focused on informality in Central America, I was able to quickly adapt my training to the local South Texas environment where I studied (UTPA) and where I taught full-time in Laredo at Texas A&M International University (TAMIU). At TAMIU, Michael Patrick fostered and encouraged my interest in South Texas and David Yoskowitz became a valued coauthor. Both have moved on to new institutions but remain my good friends. During my time at TAMIU, there were many others who had a positive impact on my research; they include Larry Boyd, Jorge Brusa, Beau Duncan, Baldomero García, Roberto Heredia, Ray Keck, Tony Rodriguez, Jerry Thompson, Carol Waters, and Michael Yoder. Many at Central Michigan University (CMU) have facilitated my ongoing research of the South Texas borderlands. First in line for thanks include Professors Van Miller and Luis Perez-Batres, departmental colleagues who make up our research cluster. I am very lucky to have these two great colleagues and even better friends to be associated with. In the College of Business I thank the financial support and encouragement of the dean’s office, including current dean Chuck Crespy and previous deans Dan Vetter, Mike Fields, and John Schleede. In addition, I thank my current and previous chairs of the Management Department for their financial support, including Mahmood Bahaee, Kevin Love, and Kumar Palaniswami. Special thanks go to Mary Jones, Management Department secretary, who provided invaluable support services cheerfully and expeditiously. More broadly within CMU, I thank the Office of Sponsored Research & Programs, past president Mike Rao, and current provost Gary Shapiro for financial support and encourageRichardson -final.indb xiv Richardson-final.indb xiv 8/7/12 10:30:07 PM 8/7/12 10:30:07 PM Acknowledgments xv ment. Additionally, I am indebted to CMU for a semester-long sabbatical in the fall of 2008 that launched the initial writing of this book project. Lastly, I wish to thank the love of my life, Jana, for allowing me the time and space to complete such a project. She has always been there for me, in more ways than she knows. Our three children—William, Carina, and...