So Why Do They Come Here?

Tue11Apr2006

So Why Do They Come Here?

So what if that wall along the Mexico/U.S. border got built, and undocumented migration amd residency wes criminalized and the U.S. government sent all the undocumented living here back where they came from? Everything would be great no? The immigration "problem" would be solved no? Well, um not really. At least not according to an article posted over at TomPaine.com.

Some 40 percent of the over 100 million people still living in Mexico say they would come to the United States if they had the opportunity.

While Mexico is obviously not the only place immigrants come from, it is the at the center of the debate. Whatever happened to that miracle plan that was going to improve the quality of life in Mexico, raise the standard of living and therefore decrease the numbers of immigrants coming from ther?

Oh yeah NAFTA. The North American Free Trade Agreement. That didn't work now did it? Instead it increased the gap between rich and poor in Mexico and in fact help the wealthy more than the poor because as the poor migrate out of Mexico, Mexico's elite doesn't have to deal with them. So logic and history would teach, well should teach the current administration that neoliberal globalization policies aren't helping and in fact point to the fact that in terms of the immigration "problem", the government hasn't got anyone to blame but itself.

Via / TomPaine.com

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Maegan la Mala

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1. Nathan ~ Wednesday, Apr 12 2006 | 09:31H:

So Mexico sucks, their people want to leave, and that is our problem how?

Instead of marching in the streets here, why don't people in Mexico march in the streets there?

2. Maegan la Mala ~ Wednesday, Apr 12 2006 | 09:39H:

Because we helped create those conditions. Did you not read?

3. Josue ~ Wednesday, Apr 12 2006 | 09:56H:

We did? Who did you blame before NAFTA? Or, was everything peachy back then? Blame game--easy way out.

4. Maegan la Mala ~ Wednesday, Apr 12 2006 | 17:08H:

No , not to say that everything was ever peachy ever anywhere, realistically speaking. But lets look at neoliberal structeral adjustment policies in all of Latin America, not just in Mexico. They have done nothing but widen the economic gap in Latin America which has certainly helped the migration patterns. Look even in Puerto Rico, once the U.S. came in and shifted the economy, that's when masses of Ricans came to the U.S. Plus there is a long history of interventionist policies in Latin America by the US, so there are plenty pre-NAFTA policies that I will happily point to if you'd like.

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