The Legacy of Mesoamerica History and Culture of a Native American Civilization, 2nd Edition

CHAPTER 9 TRANSNATIONALISM AND THE POLITICAL ECONOMY OF MESOAMERICA 369

Figure 9.5 Tourism

marketplace in Antigua,

Guatemala. A vendor from

Santa Catarina Palopó sells a

souvenir to tourists from El

Salvador. Photograph

provided by the authors.

tourism.) In particular, unfair prices paid for goods sold in the cities of the region

and in other countries may yield profits for the merchants that grossly exceed the pay-

ments to the producers. Artisans often feel exploited by local operators of petty cap-

italist workshops, or of putting-out merchants (Figure 9.5).

MESOAMERICA IN A TRANSNATIONAL WORLD

We turn now to a discussion of Mesoamerican economies in the broader context of

the increasingly integrated modern world. Our focus is on the transnational eco-

nomic conditions, which increasingly shape the lives of Mesoamericans.

Transnational Mesoamericans

Transnational processes include economic, political and cultural networks, the move-

ment of people, capital, and ideas throughout the world in weblike links that keep

regions of the world forever connected and transformed.

Transnational links impact class structures and ethnic identities, households and

communities, in complex ways. Peoples of Mesoamerica have become linked to the