case study

• character -> early waves:

  The "Guest Worker Program" where young men, called Braceros, could temporarily work as agricultural labourers, but the program stopped when unions complained that wages were too low.
• character -> tidal waves:

  Millions of migrants started coming to the USA due to high population and unemployment in Mexico. In the USA, there was work available and the differences in standard of living were appealing.
• Tidal waves statistics:

  • over 1 mil per year in 90s
  • 400,000 illegal immigrants in 2018
  • 276,000 migrants with H-2 visas in 2022
  • 4.1 million illegal immigrants in the USA in 2021
• character -> counter stream:

  Migrants are now leaving the USA to go back to Mexico. There were 400,000 migrants who returned in 2012. In 2017, more people left the USA than went. This is due to less work available and harsher immigration laws. India and China now have more emigrants in the USA than Mexico.
• origin, destination, causes:

  • origin -> poorer rural areas of Mexico
  • destination -> agricultural regions of SW, major cities, small numbers in larger cities

  Waves occur due to:

  • more jobs due to better US economy
  • unemployment in Mexico
  • changes in immigration policy in the USA
• Immigration policy in the USA:

  • more H-2 visas
  • clamp down on illegal migration
  • trump government -> cross before "the wall" is finished, increased xenophobia
• obstacles, barriers, constraints:

  • 2000 km border
  • first section (Tortilla Curtain) is easy to crawl under
  • Rio Grande is dangerous to swim across (swimmers are called "wet-backs")
  • border is patrolled, even online by citizens
  • gangs ("Cayotes") help illegal migrants ("pollos") to cross the border, but sometimes abandon them
  • after the border, there is the desert region of Arizona
  • visas are needed to legally be in the US
  • language barrier but cities near the border have a high Hispanic population
• causes - push factors:

  • poor medical facilities ~ 1800 per doctor
  • low paid jobs ~ $3750 GNP
  • poor education ~ 55% adult literacy rates
  • low life expectancy ~ 72 years
  • unemployment ~ 40%
• causes - pull factors:

  • good medical facilities ~ 400 per doctor
  • well paid jobs ~ $24,750 GNP
  • good education ~ 99% adult literacy rates
  • higher life expectancy ~ 76 years
  • many jobs available (DDD)
  • H-2 visas ~ 129,000 in 2006
• positive effects - Mexico:

  • average wages are $60, but remittances are sent back
  • money from the US is increasing ~ $13 billion in 2003
  • remittances are important income, only after oil
• negative effects - Mexico:

  • Axochiapan has few men and is dependent on remittances
  • empty villages (Jomulquillo)
  • fewer incentives and initiatives
  • difficult to find marriage partners
  • ageing communities
  • hundred of illegal immigrants die while crossing the border
• positive effects - USA:

  • lots of cheap labour for manual jobs
• negative effects - USA:

  • building a security fence to stop 500,000 migrants each year
  • tensions between ethnic groups over job availability
  • extreme opposition e.g. Minutemen who are citizens who patrol the border
  • remittances are lost from the economy
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