After about three weeks here in Buenos Aires I am starting to get into a routine with my work and daily life. Adjusting to the busy city life has been a lot easier than I thought it would be and even though I’m living in a city of over 13 million, the facility of public transportation has helped to make the city feel approachable and welcoming. The city is amazing and full of a vibrant energy, especially at night. Argentineans are accustomed to dining later in the evening, usually around 10 or 11 pm, and on weekends it is not uncommon for people to stay out until 4, 5 or even 6 am before catching a public bus home. At first it was difficult to adjust to later dinners—by 6 or 7 pm I was starving—but it has come to feel quite normal now. Sometimes I don’t get home from work until 8 or 9 pm, so eating dinner later has become a comfortable routine. It has been so hot and humid though that I haven’t felt like cooking much and I try to stick to foods that do not require the use of the stove.
Although I have experience living abroad in Spanish speaking countries from my study abroad in Mexico, the Argentinean way of speaking has taken some getting used to. In Argentina, instead of using “tu” to informally address someone as “you,” they use the verb form “vos.” Because of the influence of European culture and heritage, the influence of Castilian Spanish is more evident in the pronunciation and formality of the language. The accent is so fluid and beautiful that sometimes I have to be careful to pay attention clearly otherwise I get distracted by the accent and don’t catch what someone is saying. I’ve even found myself started to pick up the porteño—someone from Buenos Aires—accent in the pronunciation of “y” and “ll” with a stronger “schu” sound. The Argentine vocabulary is also a bit different than I’m used to and is mixed with a lot of regional slang, so I’ve been learning lots of new words.
For my internship I am working for Fundación Ciudadanos del Mundo, an NGO based here in Buenos Aires, which works with immigrants and refugees to offer them support in the application process for legal residency and assistance with integration into Argentinean society. Although Argentineans seem to take pride in their heritage as immigrants, the majority of the population is decedent of European ancestors, from places like Italy, France, Spain, Germany, England as well as others from Russia and Poland. Immigration law has historically been very open to the immigration of people from these regions but has rejected the integration of regional migrants from bordering Latin American countries and even less exceptive of Asian and African migrants. Between the years 1976 to 1983 Argentina was ruled by a repressive military dictatorship, which instituted very xenophobic and restrictive policies towards regional migration. Since then however, Argentinean immigration policy has improved. In 2010, Law 25,871 was passed that replaced previous immigration policy on deportations and immigration restrictions and allowed for 460 thousand immigrants already within the country to receive naturalization. Although the law upholds immigrants’ rights to hospital care and education, immigrants without proper residency papers are vulnerable and often find it extremely difficult to find work. The application process for residency papers is difficult and confusing, especially for a migrants who do not speak Spanish. At Fundación Ciudadanos del Mundo, they offer assistance to immigrants by accompanying them through the application process, by offering interpretation help at the Office of Immigration and assistance with the paperwork. Several times per week I have been going with my boss to the Office of Migration to meet with migrants who are pursuing their residency paperwork.
After becoming more familiar with the policy on immigration since 2010 I was heartened to see that the law offers better protection of migrants than the United States, especially in terms of deportations. However, the abuse of the law is just as prevalent and many migrants are taken advantage of. Though there are thousands of Bolivian, Paraguayan, Uruguayan and Dominican migrants in Argentina, this reality is not visible on the busy streets of most of the city. However if you walk deeper into the immigrant barrios of the city you begin to see the concentration of immigrant populations, especially in an area called Plaza Once. The founder of Ciudadanos del Mundo explained to me that he was inspired to start the Fundación because of the depressing reality of undocumented immigrants in Argentinean society. Walking though Plaza Once, you see the evidence of drugs, prostitution, homelessness, and vendors struggling to sell cheap trinkets. These people are trapped by the insecurity of their status as undocumented immigrants. The goal of Ciudadanos del Mundo is to offer relief from the oppressive cycle of exploitation that immigrants face.
Working at Ciudadanos del Mundo so far has been great and I feel so lucky to be surrounded by inspiring coworkers who are passionate about their work. Because it is summer right now most of the other volunteers are on vacation. In February more people will return and things will be a bit busier. I’m never quite sure what to expect when I go to work, as some days I accompany my boss Manuel on his visits to the Office of Immigration or visit Plaza Once to check up on the women who work the streets and other days I sit for hours in the sweltering office working on the translation of their newsletter or grant proposals for U.S. philanthropic agencies. I have really enjoyed how I have been included all aspects of the work at Ciudadanos del Mundo. Whenever Manuel has work to do outside of the office he lets me accompany him to truly understand the situation of the people the organization represents and assists. I am learning so much and I hope that I will be able to leave this experience having felt like I have left a positive impact, however slight, to the ongoing work of Ciudadanos del Mundo.
During my free time after work and on the weekends I have been exploring as much of the city as I can. Buenos Aires is truly amazing and I have enjoyed just walking around soaking it all in. So far I have been Tango dancing, learned the ritual of yerba mate (herbal tea) drinking and eaten the best steak of my life. The city offers no end of entertainment and activities and there is so much more I still want to see and do. I’m looking forward to more explorations and adventures over the course of my internship as I continue my stay here in Buenos Aires.
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