ABSTRACT
This chapter locates Guatemalan migration in a global terrain marked by unequal access and opportunities. It directs our gaze south of the border and examines the effects of border enforcement on local indigenous migrant communities. In this terrain mobility and immobility has historically been distinguished by the degree of force involved. The chapter focuses on the social economy of contemporary migration related to deportations, debts and dangers. Deported Guatemalan migrants come back to a country of origin lacking an effective state programme for reception and integration. While working abroad, remittances have contributed economically to the improvement of family conditions, and in some instances to more gender equality and other social changes. The chapter connects the effects of neo-liberal migration policies to an analysis of the social economy of deportation. The analysis suggests that US border enforcement has targeted undocumented migrants and in the process instituted new forms of governing movement, people and borders.
