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CHAPTER 2

ETHNOGRAPHIES

In Search of Respect: Selling Crack in El Barrio by Philippe Bourgois

In Search of Respect: Selling Crack in El Barrio is the first ethnography I teach for the course. Sometimes I teach the full ethnography; other times I only use Bourgois articles that I have found online or in different anthropology readers. I chose Bourgois for several reasons. First, he engages students by taking them to a place most of them have never been, and that is into the dangerous and illicit world of illegal drugs. In the culture we inhabit, students are curious about the drug underworld, so the material immediately grabs their attention. Also, Bourgois is the pre-eminent authority on the drug underground economy. In addition, there are plenty of supplementary web materials including Bourgois interviews, YouTube videos, Quizlet quizzes, and podcasts. Students and teachers alike tend to love this ethnography. I must add a word of caution here: If you are very conservative, or squeamish, or are teaching students who come from a very conservative background, you may be wise to get permission from your school’s administrators before reading In Search of Respect. However, there are several IBSCA courses that use Bourgois with great results on the IB examinations.

To accompany Bourgois, students view Stacey Peralta’s documentary film called Crips and Bloods: Made in America. This film thoroughly supports Bourgois’ thesis, although Peralta delves more into African-American resistance to American societal norms. The film can be found on Netflix or other online outlets. Both Bourgois and Peralta pay close attention to the historical globalization factors that forefront loss of US manufacturing jobs and is a precursor to the unrest in poor neighborhoods. Each looks at structural underpinnings of inequality such as poverty, racial discrimination, and urban apartheid that coalesce to create an often volatile situation in America’s cities. For Peralta, you can get a historical context synopsis on line by googling his work. After Bourgois and Peralta, I do a “180” and begin teaching about the Old Order Amish of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, explained in the next section.

The Riddle of Amish Culture by Donald Kraybill

The Amish may be said to be the complete opposite of gang society. Here the student is taken from a violent, cruel, and often dysfunctional world riddled with drug usage, conflict, abuse, and even murder into a seemingly ideal and almost utopian world where the Old Order Amish somehow seem to escape the many dysfunctions of modern American society. Students enjoy comparing these two societies and exploring how two American subcultures with very different values can both live within one American society. In my opinion, Donald Kraybill’s The Riddle of Amish Culture is one of the most interesting, comprehensive, and effective ethnographies to prepare for the IBSCA exam. Kraybill meticulously studies the Old Order Amish of Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

I teach Riddle for many reasons. First, Kraybill is a superb writer, laying out his argument in an easily understood format. Second, the ethnography covers many themes listed in the International Baccalaureate Social and Cultural Anthropology guide such as agency, community, society, social reproduction, modernity versus tradition, social change, et cetera. Third, if we could label anyone an expert on a people, it would be Donald Kraybill, who is not an anthropologist, but a sociologist, which is fine because social anthropology is very closely related to sociology. In fact, I received my master’s degree in sociology. So the two disciplines can be used interchangeably for your IBSCA examination. Fourth, there is a free online Riddle Instructor’s Guide that fully explains how to augment exciting and interesting lessons, in addition to helping students comprehend the subject matter. Fifth, a wonderful and comprehensive PBS film called The Amish from The American Experience series, nicely accompanies Riddle.1 This film has authentic Old Order Amish photographs and commentary from Amish scholars including Kraybill himself, so it is the perfect academic companion to The Riddle of Amish Culture. Sixth,Riddle is the best ethnography I have found for preparing students for the examination. In fact, I was first introduced to Kraybill by students whom referenced him on the IB exams. I noticed that students who had read Kraybill usually did quite well on Paper 2 of the exam. Therefore, I started using Riddle, and I have used it for several years with great success.

There are also a few themes that you need to pay careful attention when reading The Riddle of Amish Culture. First, anytime Kraybill compares the Amish to US culture, pay careful attention as this gives you a solid background for comparing two groups, an important scoring criterion that you will read about later. You may think that because you are from the US, and, of course, feel totally immersed in US culture, that there is not anything you could possibly learn about American culture. But remember, all of us are like fish in water, which does not see itself in water, until it gets outside of the water. The fact that we are deeply embedded within our own culture, keeps us from observing ourselves objectively. Our culture feels so “natural” to us that we no longer see it, like a fish in water. Kraybill’s Amish study forces us to come outside of our individual worlds and see ourselves from another perspective. And this is one of the beauties of Riddle. Second, pay particular attention to how Kraybill explains culture change. One of the “riddles” in the book is how the Amish have changed culturally despite being extremely resistant to change. Cultures are never static, not even the Amish, and Kraybill successfully illustrates how the Amish have dramatically changed through the years. The chapters on tourism need to be read very carefully, because they are excellent illustrations of how the Amish have effectively adapted to changing environments. You need to understand how cultural contact has changed the Amish both economically and socially.

I can only think of one challenge in reading The Riddle of Amish Culture. When I first distribute the book to my classes there are a few moans and groans, because the book is almost 400 pages, which is considered quite lengthy for an ethnography. But I tell them to fear not, because we will be skipping or skimming some chapters. In addition, Kraybill has added a huge appendix which covers around 70 pages, a testament to his exhaustive research, by the way. And, for those of you who become enamored with the Amish, by all means, read the entire book. The rest of you can skip Chapters 6-9 and still have a deep understanding of the Old Order Amish of Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

Shadowed Lives: Undocumented Immigrants in American Society by Leo Chavez

I cannot think of a more important ethnography than Shadowed Lives: Undocumented Immigrants in American Society because of the political climate that we see today in terms of the backlash against undocumented immigrants. Emotions are strong about US immigration policy, so as I introduce this ethnography, I remind my students that a basic underlying anthropological principle is to be open-minded and attempt to rid yourselves of assumptions, biases, judgments, and prejudices. I also ask them not to judge a book by its cover, because to look at Shadowed Lives, your first thought is apt to be that this book looks really boring. It is a rather small book (which students like), but the cover is very nondescript, the print is rather small, and the photographs are in black and white. However, the book is beautifully written after one gets through the historic details. In fact, Chapter 6, “Green Valley’s Final Days” is a model for excellent anthropological writing, especially the conclusion which he entitles “Final Thoughts.” I strongly suggest that you use this ethnography not only to educate yourselves on the plight of undocumented Mexican and Central American immigrants, but to understand how an author effectively presents a strong argument. Therefore, focus on how Chavez sets up his argument, which will be discussed more fully in the next section.

Shadowed Lives: Undocumented Immigrants in American Society concerns a controversial topic with strong emotions on both sides of the argument. Remember when reading this ethnography, we are not debating if undocumented immigrants (UIs) should have a right to be in the United States. Chavez is merely giving you a snapshot of undocumented immigrants’ struggles when migrating to the US and how they were treated when many migrated to the United States in the 1980s. He begins his argument by educating us on the historical relationship with Mexico. Great historians have said that if one does not understand the history of a topic, one does not understand the topic. Again, we see the importance of the historical context in understanding Mexican migration, so make sure you are very clear on the historical context. Chavez spends a lot of time on historical context at the beginning of his ethnography, so I encourage you to summarize the historical relationship between Mexico and the US as you will be expected to include historical context in both Papers 1 and 2. Unlike Kraybill’s Riddle, there is no Instructor’s Guide to go along with this ethnography, but there are some wonderful films about Mexican border crossings. I use Wetback: The Undocumented Documentary by Arturo Perez Torres, a graphic depiction of the risks some Mexican and Central Americans take when they cross the border.

Another reason I encourage students to read Shadowed Lives is because, like The Riddle of Amish Culture, it offers insightful avenues for comparisons. Chavez indirectly compares the destitute UIs with the affluent San Diegans. On a macro-sociological scale, Chavez is comparing what happens when developing world citizens come into cultural contact with the developed world. In this case we are referring to some the poorest of the developing world coming into close contact with some of the wealthiest of the industrialized world. Keep in mind that Mexico itself is considered by social scientists to be industrialized; still Chavez is targeting the poorest of Mexican and Central American citizens.

Shadowed Lives also provides a voice to a population that has had little voice, and therefore no power, in American society. One of the approaches that anthropologists take when studying a society is to always ask: Who has the power? The UIs have so little power, and have been portrayed by some media outlets and politicians as being less than desirable, that I wanted students to understand another perspective.

Another important reason for reading Shadowed Lives is that undocumented immigrants inhabit virtually every state in the US; therefore they affect all of our lives in some form or fashion. For example, here in South Florida I have had the privilege of knowing several undocumented immigrants. I feel extremely close to this topic as do many of my students. In fact, a few of my students are undocumented themselves or have undocumented relatives, so the interest level is exceedingly high. Most of my students have been totally engaged in the topic, many presenting personal stories of struggles or interviewing undocumented family members or friends. You may be thinking that I have a positive bias associated with undocumented immigrants. And I admit that I do have a positive bias towards UIs; however, it is only after I studied them that I acquired this bias, and hopefully you will too!

I have now introduced you to the ethnographies I think you will like, and I believe will thoroughly prepare you for the IBSCA examination. However, there are hundreds of ethnographies that cover a variety of cultures and topics, so I encourage you to explore and find one that you particularly like. Remember, whether you are a teacher or student, if you are interested in something, you will be a more enthusiastic learner. For teachers, if you have a passion for or interest in a particular group, by all means incorporate that into your curriculum. In fact, the first few years of teaching IBSCA, I encouraged students to choose one ethnography on their own, write about how it connects to IBSCA themes, and present it to the class. That is how I discovered Shadowed Lives. I also have included major cultural events into my lessons. If a major cultural event takes place, I will search for an ethnography or article that helps my students and me to understand the event. For example, when Michael Brown was killed in Ferguson, Missouri, I found the ethnographic works of sociologist Victor Rios appropriate to help explain these events. SCA is a very flexible academic discipline with multiple approaches and resources and is easily adapted to current events. There is something for everyone in this exciting subject whether you are a teacher, student, or just a curious person. The next chapter explains how to complete your internal assessment.

1 The Amish: The American Experience can be found online.