Geography, Gender, and Informal Economic Activities - A case study of street vending in San Cristóbal de Las Casas, Mexico -

Abstract

This research locates informal economic activities in the study of economic globalization. Though there is a plethora of research about economic globalization, most of the literature is centered on formal processes and excludes many other grounded aspects of the economy such as informal economic activities and the relevant actors. The purpose of this thesis is to expand the narrow focus of the conceptualization of work and economic activities in the mainstream economic geography and economic globalization literature by focusing on informal economic activities of women in the Global South. More specifically, this research pays attention to street vending of indigenous women in San Cristóbal de Las Casas (SCLC), Mexico.

Upon reviewing literature related to feminist geography, the informal economy, and street vending, this research examines differing degrees of informality of spatially differentiated street vending types, gender and age influences on differing degrees of informality, and factors engaged in the feminization of certain economic activities with high informality.

The case study conducted in this research showed that there were four spatially differentiated street vending types in SCLC (street hawkers, craft fair vendors, outdoor market vendors, and indoor market vendors) with different degrees of informality. Gender impacts on the spatial differentiation were also identified, since more women were dedicating themselves to the business with higher degrees of informality. According to interviews with street vendors, four factors (scarcity of other job opportunities for women compared to men, mens migration to bigger cities or to other countries, the social construction of work and gender roles, and womens housekeeping and parenting obligations) were integral to the process of feminization of street vending. It is noted that street vending cannot be fully understood without connecting it to the home, or rather, without escaping from a dichotomous and masculine conceptualization of work and home.

SCLC has been chosen as the case study area since it displays a robust effect of globalization, as can be seen in the growth of tourism and the decline of agriculture after economic restructuring. Also, the regions unique landscape related to its colonial history and the dynamics resulting from recent alternative social movements by its indigenous people, including not only the very well-known activity of the Zapatista Army of National Liberation (Ejército Zapatista de Liberación Nacional, EZLN), but also emergent feminist movements, offer a geography where we can observe distinct contexts of street vending in the region.