Victor M. Ortiz
Victor M. Ortiz is on the faculty of the Latin American Studies program at the University of Illinois at Chicago.
Abstract
This article highlights socio-political implications of local responses to globalization as reflected in their time and space orientations. It illustrates two local responses in El Paso, Texas, to the ongoing integration of the U.S. and Mexican economies. One response concerns an economic strategy promoted by a group of labor advocates in efforts to address social dislocation caused by plant relocations. The other response concerns an economic plan embraced by the local business community in relation to regional infra structural needs for international production. The article explores the developmental implications of these responses in relation to sharp discrepancies among local groups as well as between local and global entities. These discrepancies entail complex socio-political dynamics influencing the allocation of resources not only in terms of local groups but, increasingly, also in terms of international operations. In theoretical terms, the case study provides a vivid illustration of contrasts and changes that suggest tangible new insights about the temporal and spatial dimensions of globalization.
