The swallow maquila, from the series Deserted factory (2004)

Photography.

In 2004, I visited Carmen’s home, a maquiladora worker featured in Maquilápolis, a documentary by Vicky Fanari and Sergio de la Torre. Carmen lives in La Gloria, a neighborhood located on the border between Tijuana and Rosarito, an area populated by numerous maquiladora industries that rely on the labor of local residents, primarily women. The maquiladora industry, which has been a driving force since the 1960s, is one of the primary reasons for the surge in migration to border cities. A significant portion of Tijuana’s population growth can be attributed to the labor opportunities this industry offers.

During our visit, Carmen shared a startling story: upon returning to work after the weekend, she arrived at the factory only to find it abandoned. The factory, which had been her workplace, was stripped of furniture, machinery, and staff. No notice had been given to the workers or local authorities about the sudden closure of the plant.

In the early 2000s, many of these factories left the country evading their financial obligations, payments for social security, worker benefits, wages, severance pay, and avoiding any legal consequences. This phenomenon came to be known as the maquiladoras golondrinas (swallow factories).

The images in this diptych reflect the state of the factory as Carmen found it, returning from her weekend break to begin another workweek. These images evoke the material conditions that underpin the generation of market surplus value and expose the exploitation of bodies—bodies that are discarded and replaced with others, as long as they can be paid less.