Planet of slums -- right here in "el Norte"

A friend of mine took these pictures of a trailer park/shantytown on an Indian reservation in Southern California, not far from the ocean-view mansions of San Diego. In the background of some of the photos, you can see the new four-star hotel and casino that has made the leadership of the once-destitute tribe very, very rich.

The residents of this shantytown are not members of the tribe--most are immigrants from Mexico who work either in the fields or in the casino. Some of the trailers shown in these pictures are casino workers' homes. My friend, an immigrant from Michoacán, grew up on this same reservation in a similar neighborhood that had no running water for years. Most of his family works at the casino. He used to work as a dishwasher and cook there, and now is a union organizer, helping to lead a statewide movement of casino workers.