The Nuyorican's Dilemma: Categorization of Returning Migrants in Puerto Rico

Abstract

This study investigated self and social categorization of Puerto Rican returning migrants. A sample of 121 returning migrants (“Nuyoricans”) and 121 non-migrant students evaluated adolescents described as raised in the mainland as more agitated, bolder and more independent than those raised in Puerto Rico. In-group favoritism was observed for intelligence and carefulness. The students also evaluated three target adolescents differing in saliency of Nuyorican attributes and presented through photos and audiotapes. It was found that language characteristics and physical appearance were sufficient for categorizing a target as a “Nuyorican”. The adolescent salient in Nuyorican attributes received a higher score on rejection than the adolescent low in Nuyorican attributes.

The Orlando Ricans: Overlapping Iden tity Discourses among Middle-Class Puerto Rican Immigrants

“…This label stigmatizes return migrants and their children as more Americanized and less "authentic" Puerto Ricans than those who were raised on the Island. The perceived divisions between Island-born Puerto Ricans and the so-called Nuyoricans have been well documented, both in Puerto Rico and the United States (Lorenzo-Hernández 1999;Pérez 2004;Ramos-Zayas 2003;Sánchez 2009;Zentella 2003). Moreover, middle-class Puerto Ricans often express negative attitudes toward Nuyoricans, usually perceived as less educated and skilled than those coming from the Island.…”

Portable Roots: Latin New Yorker Community Building and the Meanings of Women's Return Migration in San Juan, Puerto Rico, 1960-2000

“…Carrasquillo and Carrasquillo mention the predecessor to the Latin New Yorkers, New Yoricans in Puerto Rico, Inc., in which several of the interviewees also participated, as a hopeful sign in the late 1970s that "Neoricans" might not suffer permanent pariah status on the island. Carrasquillo and Carrasquillo (1979:16) See also Zentella 2003;Hernández-Cruz 1994;and Hernández 1999. 17 Glissant (1989), cited in Flores (2000:39-41). The "in-between" identity forged by the women featured in this essay resonates somewhat with the feelings expressed by many of the Latin America immigrants studied by Jones-Correa (1998).…”