Disposable Domestics: Immigrant Women Workers in the Global Economy

by Grace Chang

Contents Introduction
Breeding Ignorance, Breeding Hatred
Chapter 1: Undocumented The New Employable Mother
Chapter 2: The Nanny The Bracero Program Revisited
Chapter 3: Immigrants and Workfare Emplyable but "Not Employed"
Chapter 4: The Global Trade in Filipina Workers
Gatekeeping and Housekeeping An Breeding Ignorance, Breeding Hatred In 1994, during one of the worst, but certainly not unprecedented, systematic attacks on immigrants to the United States, immigrants and their allies began sporting T-shirts bearing the face of an indigenous man and the slogan, "Who are you calling illegal, Pilgrim?" reflecting indignation at the ignorant and malicious anti-immigrant sentiments of the day. Specifically, this was in direct response to a campaign that had been brewing for years in policy circles and "citizen" groups, culminating in California state's Proposition 187. The initiative proposed to bar undocumented children from public schools and turn away undocumented students from state colleges and universities. It also proposed to deny the undocumented an array of public benefits and social services, including prenatal and preventive care such as immunizations. While the overt purpose of this voter initiative was to curtail immigration, ostensibly by restricting the use of public benefits and social services by undocumented immigrants, the real agenda behind it was to criminalize immigrants for presumably entering the country "illegally" and stealing resources from "true" United States citizens. More to the point, Proposition 187 came out of and was aimed at perpetuating the myth that all immigrants are "illegal" at worst and, at best, the cause of our society's and economy's ills. Throughout US history, immigration has been viewed and intentionally constructed as plague, infection or infestation and immigrants as disease (social and physical), varmints or invaders. If we look at contemporary popular films, few themes seem to tap the fears or thrill the American imagination more than that of the timeless space alien invading the United States, and statespeople have snatched up this popular image to rouse public support for

Genres: Nonfiction, Feminism, Labor, Politics, History, Economics, Gender

256 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2000

Reviews

[alyssa · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the most important book I’ve read in awhile. If you have any interest in immigration, feminism, sexism, classism, etc etc JUSTICE IN GENERAL you should pick this up. It manages to discuss intersections and intertwined but not identical struggles in a way many books do not (thinking about Sexuality and Socialism here specifically). Highly recommend this book.

[Crystal · Rating 5 out of 5]

Informative and frighteningly more relevant today than when it originally published. If you read on political theory book this year, I suggest Disposable Domestics, then later scream, "One book is never enough."

[Sookie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Disclaimer: the book deals primarily with immigrant domestic helps in the greater American context though this problem also exists and perhaps is far more deeply problematic in middle east.

In the very first edition of this book, the author, Grace Chang, brings in Clinton era changes to immigration policies. While it started from argument that the "illegal" men who immigrated were taking all the jobs, there was no argument made for the women in the same category who were sterilized by nurses and doctors in hospitals, the very places where these women worked. The women worked in child care, elder care and everyday hospice facilities that required little to no public interaction but lot of manual and physical labor. It required communication, kindness, patience for which they were promised nine to ten dollars an hour for eighteen hour shifts and by the end of the year when the women asked the families for their payment, they were given just a month's pay and some hand me down clothes. a few women took the families to court, but the cases were soon thrown out when the families "proved" that the women were sub-par workers. American middle class and upper-middle class had navigated around a system that gave cheap labor and didn't cost the government a thing to take care of the people who were providing the labor.

this is just scratching the surface and not even mentioning the larger problem of how immigration reforms have mutated and implemented over the years, first world nations pandering to third world countries with investments and returns, incentives to labors etc. And once people were in the country, there was no need for social investment since most women came alone and sent money back home, there was no social reproduction as this was pure labor transaction, also there was no need for social welfare to be handed out. Late 80s and 90s has seen some relief like Nursing Relief Act that gave stability to women who worked for more than five years in the country but for the domestic workers, there isn't a lot of legal safety net just yet.

[Alyssa Beer · Rating 5 out of 5]

This incredibly relevant book does an excellent job of explaining decades of immigration and labor policy in an accessible format. It aptly illustrates the juxtaposition between society’s desire for female immigrant labor, and the perceived threat of their fertility and “failure to assimilate,” and the exploitation that enables in labor markets. This book is particularly valuable in examining how increased labor opportunities for white middle class women (without the cultural change that would impact their domestic duties) have come at the expense of black and brown women.

[Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Definitely one of those books the US labor movement still needs to catch up with.

[KC Cui · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an interesting read with the perspective of 20 years hindsight — it’s cliche but so much of what’s discussed is exactly what happens still, to a T. i found the parts about nursing homes & in home care particularly compelling because of more experience w workers in those sectors - and because they’re not typically what you think of when you think of domestic work, and their labor conditions are so tied in w patients rights and the American for profit healthcare system

The essays were not the best written, but they were pretty lucidly written. I would have liked a more international perspective since this is about immigration, the global economy and the international flows of labor and capital that have a human face

[Sydney · Rating 5 out of 5]

this was an eye-opening read that touches on feminism, immigration, transnationalism, class, and labor policy. I'm trying to move away from the descriptor "accessible" but it was far from a dense read too. Chang includes lots of stories of immigrant women workers, and I think those narratives woven into the text made it easier to read and focus.

[Jo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good message, a bit repetitive

[Raevyn K · Rating 4 out of 5]

actual rating: 4.5

"...to pull together, to survive, and to fight back".

Grace Chang's book shows a world that is always out of the limelight-the domestic workers. These migrants, particularly women of color, are blamed for using up America's resources such as welfare and job opportunities while treated "as the most exploitable and expendable in our economy and society". These workers are the backbone to America (and other First World countries), performing crucial labor that no one really thinks about, such as nannies, home care workers, janitors, and nursing aids. These women take care of our children and our old, while sustaining the privileged life of the middle- and upper-class.

Good:
*provided a lot of detailed information about different immigrant and domestic workers' organizations
*told the stories of women who help keep our society running
*talks about the exploitative and imperialist reasons as to why so many migrate to First World countries
*shows a great parallel from when the book was written (2000) and today (2017)

Bad:
*the only issue I have with this book is that because it is dated, it heavily focused on Proposition 187 in California

[Tibby]

I know a lot of people seem to like this book, but I really struggled with it. I think I would have liked it better if it were paired with a robust curriculum or reading list about immigrant women and workers. There was certainly good information and criticism here, but often for me the chapters lost the thread of what they were talking about.

Something I hadn't realized when I bought and started the book was that it was written in the mid 1990s. While I know there are connections and through lines and rhetoric repeating itself, I would have liked more modern examples and connections. I know the immigration and exploitation landscape is in many ways still similar to what it was 30 years ago, but I also know that things are different. This was pre 9/11 for example and INS was still around. It was way before Trump and the Muslim Ban, the Build-the-Wall explicit xenophobia. So without more support from either an expert or an extended reading list the chapters fell flat and felt dated.

[Joe Xtarr · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is relevant in 2016, maybe more so than when it was written. It does an excellent job of humanizing the subjects of the book - domestic workers, both immigrant and US-born, but most typically women of color. This is a work you can reach for whenever your belligerent friends and relatives start discussing immigration reform (code speak for pro-white nationalism). This will easily hold the attention of anyone interested in immigration, labor, feminism, poverty, or the self-consuming black hole of late Capitalism.

[Heather Montes Ireland · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm a big fan of this work, particularly because a) Chang makes integral connections between populations & concepts that are not usually talked about together, such as immigration policy and welfare 'reform.' And b) she was already predicting/warning of issues in the late 90s that we are seeing in our economy today, 15 years later. The work is relevant and imminently teachable.

[Kyren · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well worth reading. This is one of the few works I know of which examine women's rights from the perspective of global economics. A convincing account of the ways that US and global economic policies--as well as the political rhetoric that supports them--have adversely impacted women, especially women of color and immigrant women in the US.

[S.J. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book. The first two or three chapters pair well with Entry Denied (which focuses on the racism in constructing U.S. national identity), the latter chapters (which focus on labour laws) with David Bacon's books.

[Aaron Chu · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book uncovers lots of truth that is rarely considered or discussed. It unveils many root causes of systemic racism as well as ways that the government and big cooperations are using to keep the poor poor so that people of higher classes can have replaceable, readily-exploitable cheap labor.

[Sean · Rating 4 out of 5]

fascinating and eye opening book by an amazing person who actually used to be my neighbor across the street, much respect for her and this book really blew me away!

[Hannah]

someday i will finish a book!

[Zack]

great book.

[Nina · Rating 5 out of 5]

i love a book with facts!!! i love a book with a clear-cut argument and it actually spends all 400+ pages trying to convince you of that argument. god what happened to basic persuasive modes of writing.

really good stuff. i believe this was written in or around the year 2000 and there's something about that that just gives me an extra buzz. like the author doesn't have to be concerned with writing "for our time" and the policies/historical events speak for themselves. in that the playbook hasn't changed even several presidential administrations later. it also allows her to dig deeper into policies from the 90s & beyond and i really cannot stress enough how much the clintons changed this country forever. i learned a lot about INS in a pre-ICE world, the different shades of undocumented workers, braceros, welfare recipients, etc etc etc and all the ways these groups continue to be pitted against each other in the race to the bottom.

probably the thing that made my brain ping the most was the framework of "productive" vs. "reproductive" labor, which type of woman is relegated to which category, and how that narrative is intertwined with different policies. if i remember correctly this is really picked apart in chapter 3. there's this concept of "Americanization" programs in the early 1900s, whereby "through working in the homes of their American employers, immigrant women were to shed their own 'backward' cultures," while becoming "reproducers of the immigrant labor force." but then the author points out the farce of this in multiple ways, most notably by how these women could simultaneously be deemed "unassimilable." and THEN there's this:

"The contemporary rhetoric, de-emphasizing or ignoring immigrant women’s potential roles as cultural transformers, may reflect only the “modern” preference of employers for exploiting immigrant women’s productive functions over their reproductive services."

i've recently been learning about fertility rates and particularly national narratives around fertility rates (and the ebbs and flows of contraceptive practices - see chapter 5 as well) and it's so interesting and i'm hungry to read more about it. but this is a perfect example of the phenomenon; having babies is good when it's profitable, and bad otherwise. but i am curious about this specific observation and when this "contemporary rhetoric" became the dominant messaging.

the structural adjustment policies section of chapter 4 was also a banger. also ch. 5 evoked a couple thoughts on gig workers today.

my version has an additional afterword that speaks a little bit more about antiblack policies specifically and the overlaps there. while an afterword obviously has to be brief, this is something that i would love to see the author write at least 3 more chapters on one day. alas. more than anything this book gave me the confidence to stand on business re: certain values that i have but struggle to articulate with actual facts instead of just feelings. and we love that!

anyway everyday that tweet saying americans need to suffer a bit was RIGHT!

[Femi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hands down to the best book I've read this year. This book offers an incisive and critical insight and analysis into the problem of immigrant women workers in the US. So many times I found myself shudders in anger seeing the racism and abuses faced by the domestic workers.

In times of COVID-19, where we have been suddenly acknowledging the importance and existence of low-wage service workers and janitors, reading this just shed me a light that government have not given them the rights and credits that they fully deserve (instead, government and lawmakers have been known to deliberately design a restrictionist policy that serves to disenfranchise these already vulnerable immigrants). I cannot imagine what kind of hardship they have to endure during this crisis. The experiences and adversaries shared in the book will truly haunt me in the days to come.

(Oh, and here's a shout out to Haymarket book for making this book free to access during the crisis.)

[Ryan Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

A really important book, thoroughly researched and well written. I fully expected to learn a lot about things I knew a little about (the exploitation of brown and black women via capitalism, mainly) and the ways in which political, social and cultural forces are weaponized to keep these women trapped. I certainly got that, beyond what I could have expected. There are essays that dive into everything from inflammatory imagery and messaging around these immigrant women, to the political and economic machinations within and between nations in order to not only maintain the status quo but to strengthen and expand it. I definitely had not given that aspect much thought previously. A bit of a bad brain month made this a slog for me, but the fact that it's broken into essays made it very approachable as a series of smaller reads. Well worth the very long wait as I pestered my library about it for years.

[Maliyah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lots of enlightening data, but the analysis felt lacking because there was some mild class reductionism. Marriage greencards and prostitution are some of the most dire parts of immigrant women's rights internationally but both were left underdiscussed through the lens of gender. Gender is framed as a tool of capitalist exploitation but simultaneously rendered less relevant than classism and racism. There were more explicit critiques of white women than white men and men of color. The underdiscussion of men as oppressors in general treats sexual assault, rape, and harassment as a horrid aside instead of a rampant women's health issue. This is in addition to the underdiscussion of intracommunity exploitation. Some of the quotes touched on it, but for the title to discuss the global economy and not frame this as an issue that undoubtedly employs trafficking to stay successful does the book an injustice.

[Ricky Metters · Rating 5 out of 5]

Twenty years since its original publication, Disposable Domestics is still as relevant and as important as ever. Chang illustrates clearly the ways in which "illegal" immigration is necessary for the maintenance of global capitalism while undocumented immigrants are simultaneously vilified and scapegoated. Focusing from macroeconomic causes like WTO- and IMF-initiated Structural Adjustment Programs inflicted on developing nations to the plights of countless immigrant women in the United States, Disposable Domestics effectively explains the big picture without losing sight of the humanity of marginalized women.
Overall, it is an essential read for intersectional feminists, labor organizers, anti-imperialists, anti-racists, and anyone else who has an interest in understanding "illegal" immigration of women well beyond the common, racist narratives in the United States.

[Nuha · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was incredible! As an Asian American Studies minor, I really love reading works that go beyond simple stereotypes and delve into policy and power structures that uphold the stereotypes. In "Disposable Domestics", Chang takes us on a journey through the exploitative world of domestic labor in the United States, discussing policies like SAPS which disadvantage Asian countries like the Philippines and Mexico to supply labor into the US, lack of labor unions among domestic workers leading to gross mistreatment by employers and lack of federal aid policy leaving workers at the mercy of their employers. Peeling back layers of lawsuits, interviews with community organizers, news articles, and more, Chang makes a convincing argument for change in the domestic services industry.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fantastic and important read. The chapter where she highlights welfare reform and how it’s intertwined with immigration reform to keep groups fighting each other as opposed to uniting together to fight the exploitative laws and employers is fantastic, a must read for anyone. The only thing holding me back from giving 5 stars is that I really wanted the end to go more into a “what next” space and have the author give some of her thoughts on what she sees as next steps for those fighting for justice for immigrant women, and really all domestic workers. Overall though, I would recommend this book!

[Isabella · Rating 5 out of 5]

A really important and relevant read even after 20 years since it was originally published.

It discusses a lot of how domestic labor, predominantly done by immigrants women workers, found themselves in these vulnerable situations that lead them to being underpaid and overworked at their places of employment. As well as the political moves that were done to ensure that countries such as the US and the UK got a steady stream of workers that to work the tough labor of child rearing.

Definitely worth a read if you’re interested learning more about the hidden labor of immigrant workers.

5/5 stars

[KT · Rating 5 out of 5]

Chang investigates the ironic contradiction between the construction of immigrants as resource depletors and their very exploitation as resources by analysing the laws and policies that enable the international division of reproductive labour, segregated by gender and race. Chang recognises that when investigating the lives of women, the necessity of looking at work and family life or, more broadly speaking, at the dynamics of economic production and social reproduction.

Highly recommended to anyone interested in migrant domestic workers.

[z · Rating 4 out of 5]

i just finished the newest edition of this book, you'll learn a lot about systemic issues and broader socioeconomic problems (emphasis on structural adjustment programs) that force women to migrate. great understanding of intersections such as race, class, and gender. overall great read!

[J.S. Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Heartbreaking and informative. A must read for anyone interested in racial matters in the US.

[Justin H · Rating 4 out of 5]

Somewhat outdated cases but the arguments are sadly similar 30 years later.