CLEANING SERVICES

THE PROFESSION OF HOUSE CLEANING IN MONTANA IS PRIMARILY UNDERTAKEN AND DOMINATED BY WOMEN. ALTHOUGH IT IS WORTH NOTING THAT MEN ALSO TEND TO ENGAGE IN CLEANING SERVICES AS A PARTTIME JOB WHEN OTHER PROFESSIONS, SUCH AS CONSTRUCTION, ARE SCARCE.

KEYDY VASQUEZ FROM HONDURAS IS AMONG THE WOMEN WHO HAVE EMBRACED THIS PROFESSION, AND ATTRIBUTES HER SUCCESS TO "LEARNING FROM MORE EXPERIENCED LATINA WOMEN."

WHILE INITIALLY BELIEVING THAT SHE HAD "A FIRM GRASP OF CLEANING TECHNIQUES," VASQUEZ ACKNOWLEDGES THAT SHE ONLY KNEW HER PERSONAL APPROACH.

HOWEVER, THROUGH EXPOSURE TO DIVERSE CLEANING STYLES, SHE HAS GAINED NEW INSIGHTS, INCLUDING "HOW TO MAKE BEDS IN DIFFERENT WAYS , HOW TO ACHIEVE A SPARKLING KITCHEN, AND THE NUANCES OF DIFFERENT CLEANING AGENTS."

MOST IMPORTANTLY, VASQUEZ HAS LEARNED TO BE ATTUNED TO THE SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS OF HER CLIENTS. SHE REGARDS HER OVERALL EXPERIENCE AS REWARDING AND TAKES "PRIDE IN HER ACCOMPLISHMENTS."

"IN THEIR BOOK "LATINO LANDSCAPES: TRANSNATIONAL POLITICS, CULTURAL PRODUCTION, AND THE URBAN BUILT ENVIRONMENT" (2013), SANDOVAL-STRAUSZ EXPLORES THE WAYS IN WHICH LATINO COMMUNITIES USE THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT, SUCH AS BUILDINGS, STREETS, AND PUBLIC SPACES, TO EXPRESS THEIR CULTURAL IDENTITIES AND ASSERT THEIR PRESENCE IN THE URBAN LANDSCAPE. IN PARTICULAR, SANDOVALSTRAUSZ ARGUES THAT LATINO CULTURAL PRACTICES, SUCH AS MUSIC, DANCE, AND FOOD, ARE IMPORTANT FORMS OF CULTURAL EXPRESSION AND COMMUNITYBUILDING. SANDOVAL-STRAUSZ SUGGESTS THAT THESE PRACTICES NOT ONLY SERVE TO CELEBRATE LATINO HERITAGE AND TRADITIONS BUT ALSO PROVIDE A SENSE OF BELONGING AND SOLIDARITY WITHIN THE COMMUNITY

SANDOVAL-STRAUSZ'S IDEAS CAN BE OBSERVED IN MONTANA, WHERE CONSTRUCTION WORKERS ORGANIZE CARNE AZADAS, LATINA WOMEN HELP EACH OTHER LEARN THE ASPECTS OF CLEANING SERVICES, AND SANCHE'S AND BRAMBILLA'S SERVICES TO THE COMMUNITY ALLOW THEM TO MAKE MONTANA'S SPACE THEIRS BY PROVIDING A TASTE OF MEXICO TO MONTANAN SOCIETY "

HONDURAN COMMUNITY COMES TOGETHER FOR A FESTIVE DINNER ON CHRISTMAS EVE: A HEARTWARMING CAPTURE OF TOGETHERNESS