Two Little Bolivias: The reality of Bolivian immigrants in the cities of Buenos Aires and São Paulo

Abstract

Over the last two decades, Bolivian migration inside South America has had two main destinations: Buenos Aires (Argentina) and São Paulo (Brazil). There is a long tradition of Bolivian migration to Buenos Aires, however, in the late twentieth century São Paulo has also became attractive because of Argentina's economic crisis and Brazil's impressive development. The central part of this thesis presents vast information about the formation and daily lives of these two Little Bolivias, including both socioeconomic and sociocultural aspects of the two immigrant groups, with the objective of giving the reader a comparative understanding of both scenarios. The issues of assimilation are a fundamental part of this thesis since the capacity of making its way to be assimilated together with the receptiveness of the host societies are the conditions that propitiate a debate about the future of these Bolivian collectivities in Buenos Aires and São Paulo. Hence, this thesis aims to make an innovative comparative analysis of the contemporary realities of Bolivian immigrants in both cities, looking for similarities and differences, trying to understand the unfolding of each process, and the experiences of adaptation and cultural assimilation in two of the most referential cities in South America