Transnational Ghosts: Regimes of Friendship, Neoliberal Abandonment, and Discourses of Mourning

Abstract

On November 20th 2008, as reported by George Washington University’s (GWU’s) student newspaper, the Hatchet, a Latino worker who was installing windows in a residence hall was killed after a fall from the seventh floor. The worker, Mr. Rosaulino Montano, worked for Engineered Construction Products, a window subcontractor for primary contractor Clark Construction (Hatchet). The accident was featured in one article in the Hatchet that also reported that the Occupational Safety and Health Association (OSHA) was investigating the incident. The coverage of Mr. Montano’s life and relationship to the university was brief. The Hatchet reported that Mr. Montano lived in Virginia and had several children. The working conditions, the events of the accident, and the relationship of the university to Clark Construction and to Engineered Construction Products were not examined, although the article did note that was subcontracted to work at GWU.