Living in Peru : your everyday companion

By Miguel Vivanco
For El Comercio

The Day of the Peruvian Immigrant was celebrated in October and, except for some standard meetings, the date went unnoticed among our compatriots living abroad. The economic crisis and unemployment that afflicts so-called industrialized countries, especially the U.S., leave no room for pompous celebrations of the workers.

Today, it is not surprising to hear – in any Peruvian city or village – comments related to family, friends and neighbors who emigrated abroad and send their remittances every month.

It is estimated that over three million Peruvians reside abroad; nearly a million in the land of Abraham Lincoln, so it is not surprising to find that our compatriots form communities with their own identity and dynamism that always look different to the eye of Americans.

The Peruvian community is known abroad for proudly showing off its rich cultural and culinary traditions. The U.S. capital could be the best example. Before the end of October, two processions of el Señor de los Milagros, an exhibition of caballos de paso and paintings from Cusco, a Peruvian pisco festival, a gala dinner to raise funds for a poor children's shelter in Lima and a conference on climate change and its impact in the Cordillera Blanca were carried out. Similar events are repeated around the country weekly.

But apart from the colorfulness and dynamism, it is important to note that the positive task of our compatriots in the U.S. has allowed for an evolution in what is called the Hispanic community. Peruvians are far from being a majority in the American Union, but we are gradually gaining a respectable distance from other communities.

Important Progress
The prestigious research center The Pew Hispanic Center in Washington revealed last week that the Peruvian community is in tenth position among the most representative Hispanic groups of the United States and makes up 1% of the Latino population in general.

The institution conducted a statistical and demographic profile of our countrymen based on inside information obtained in 2007 from the National Census Bureau. It also carried out similar work for Colombia, Guatemala, Honduras and Ecuador.

According to The Pew Hispanic Center, 19.7% of Peruvians prefer to live in Florida, followed by California (17.2%) and New Jersey (16%). The average age is 35 years and an estimated 51.3% speaks English in an acceptable or fluid manner.

It is estimated that 73.8% of Peruvians living in the U.S. today were born abroad and that 66.8% arrived in the nineties or later. Similarly, 38.1% opted for U.S. citizenship.

The report indicates that 31% of our compatriots have completed secondary or university education in their country of origin.

The data reported were made on the basis of census information from about 471,000 Peruvians in 2007.

Consular Survey
A few months ago, the Embassy of Peru in Washington released the results of a survey taken between 2007 and 2008, among 2,077 compatriots in 13 Peruvian consulates located in the U.S.

Among the results, they found that 48.37% are women, that 51.25% are men, and that 56% are between 18 and 45 years old. Moreover, 36.98% has lived in the U.S. for between five and ten years, and 26.30% admitted annual revenues of only US$20,000.

When asked about their economic links, 68.49% said they send money to Peru every month.

Despite the hype made by Peruvian banks, only 21.6% admitted using the services of commercial banks while 62,79% said they used private agencies or family.

Among other significant data, it is mentioned that 42.34% are concerned about employment in the U.S., 42.82% simply do not travel to Peru and 84.48% did not belong to any social club in that country. 58.60% did not vote in the 2006 elections.

More Facts
An estimated 3 million 85 thousand Peruvians live abroad.

28% of compatriots living abroad are in Europe.

Spain (13%) and Italy (10%) are the European countries that have the largest Peruvian presence.

About 30% of Peruvians living abroad reside in the United States.

Translated from Spanish by Diana Schwalb

tags : Lima, Peru, Immigration, Hispanic communities, USA, migration

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1 Comments

# Carlos Monteblanco says :
16 January, 2010 [ 10:01 ]

We, the Monteblanco family, are the most biggest Peruvian family in Portland, Oregon. In our family we have various occupations such as a doctor, CPA, economist, teachers and coaches, parole officer

case workers, painters and myself, am a chef. We are proud to be Peruvians and we always keep in touch with each other and with our extended family in Peru.

Sincerely,

Carlos V. Monteblanco

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