The The Presentation of the Self in Everyday Border Crossing.
Commuters and Performative Border in the Californias

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Published: Jul 30, 2025
DOI: https://doi.org/10.33679/rfn.v1i1.2390
Keywords:
commuters, transborder workers, social performance, Tijuana and Mexicali, United States-Mexico border.

Main Article Content

Carlos Armenta Álvarez
University of Virginia
https://orcid.org/0009-0004-1976-3371
Luis Escala Rabadán
El Colegio de la Frontera Norte
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6512-7553

Abstract

This article aims to describe and explain, from the perspective of Cultural Sociology, how the commuter population in the urban border region of Baja California employs different strategies for presenting themselves at the ports of entry into the United States. This text is based on in-depth interviews conducted between 2020 and 2022 with different active cross-border people who use their temporary visitor visas to work in the United States and reside in Tijuana and Mexicali, Baja California. The research shows the importance of cultural elements such as social performance to explain this population’s dynamics of cross-bordering in this region.

Article Details

How to Cite
Armenta Álvarez, C., & Escala Rabadán, L. . (2025). The The Presentation of the Self in Everyday Border Crossing.
Commuters and Performative Border in the Californias: . Frontera Norte, 37. https://doi.org/10.33679/rfn.v1i1.2390
Issue
Vol. 37 (2025): January-December, 2025
Section
Papers
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