San Sebastián: the Social and Political Effects of Sugar Mill Closure in Mexico

Mexico's sugar mills face an uncertain future: the closure of San Sebastián may well presage others if the climate for sugar production on national and international levels does not improve. While the continued squeezing of small cane producers reflects processes affecting peasant agriculture generally in Mexico, and indeed beyond, the fate of the mill workers made redundant when the mill closed similarly mirrors broad tendencies in labor in both the developed and developing world under neoliberalism. Former workers fell back upon personal, family, and community resources by migrating to the U.S. or locally reconstructing livelihoods characterized by a reduction in income, security, and access to social benefits. This article reports on the impact of the mill closure on the livelihoods of former mill worker families in the community of San Sebastián and offers some observations on their responses to the situation.