ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses colonias along the U.S.-Mexico border area from California to Texas and focuses specifically on Las Lomas, Starr County, Texas. Colonias, communities in Spanish, represent about 2,500 settlements that range from very small villages to cities, and they house more than a million citizens, all within the U.S. The common denominator of such settlements is persistent poverty, expressed in substandard housing, minimal infrastructure, and public (including health) services, with additional political and immigration concerns. Our research of more than 10 years in the area leads us to a discussion of to what extent they are or may become “livable” spaces; this requires an analysis of colonias beyond the simplistic view of poor/non-livable. Instead, we explore to what extent they are becoming communities, how citizens are creating common spaces with a long-term view on engagement, a social network with a human approach. Las Lomas is an interesting case because of its long history of engagement and civic participation as expressed in their fight for legal home ownership that ended in a march to the Texas Capitol, obtaining rights over a long complicated battle against corrupted developers, including a local judge. Their engagement through a grassroots organization named Colonias Unidas could be evoked by others in their development process. More specifically, this chapter focuses on these main areas: socioeconomic, human-community, and environmental indicators to assess the livability of Las Lomas aiming to make it a relevant case for other colonias and communities alike. We highlight the emergence of a social fabric that may be creating livable spaces for local residents.
