Mexican Migration

Push and Pull Factors of Mexican Migration

Social Push and Pull factors: In Mexico people might want to move because their are better education and health facilities in America or because their relatives already live in America 

Environmental Push and Pull factors: The climate and geography in Mexico produce natural disasters such as tsunamis, volcanoes and earthquakes which can be so frightening that Mexicans are desperate to move to a safer environment

Economic Push and Pull factors: Mexico is a relatively poor country with low paid jobs, there are much better employment prospects in the United States

Political Push and Pull factors: The political situation is stable in Mexico, but corruption is rife involving the bribery of officials to obtain construction permits, and the corruption of police and the judiciary

Mexican Migration - Sources of Facts and Information
Facts and information about Mexican Migration can be obtained from various sources such as government departments such as the U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. the Office of Immigration Statistics and the Department of Homeland Security. Independent sources of information about Mexican Migration also include the Pew Hispanic Center project and the Mexican Migration Project (MMP). 

Mexican Migration - The Mexican Migration Project (MMP)
The Mexican Migration Project (MMP) was created in 1982 by a team of researchers to track patterns and processes of recent Mexican immigration to the United States. The Mexican Migration Project contains data gathered since 1982 in surveys administered every year both in Mexico and in the United States. Results include Border Crossing Costs and border crossings together with information such as the ages, gender and occupations of Mexican migrants.

Mexican Migration - Patterns and Trends
Mexican Migration patterns and trends have varied enormously over the years. The changes have been dictated by US Immigration Laws and the labor requirements of the United States. The labor requirements of the United States have resulted in Mexicans either being encouraged to work in the United States in times of short labor supply or, when the employment situation changed, actively discouraged from working in America. An overview of some of the patterns and trends in Mexican Migration are as explained in the following history timeline:

Mexican Migration - Patterns and Trends

Mexican Migration Patterns and Trends - 1880's: Cheap Mexican Labor was required to build the railroads in the south

Mexican Migration Patterns and Trends - 1900: By this period the railroads had been built and the trend was reversed

Mexican Migration Patterns and Trends - 1914: The outbreak of WW1 (1914 - 1918) saw he pattern change again when Americans left the country to fight in the war

Mexican Migration Patterns and Trends - 1915: The war was over, Americans had returned to their homes and Mexican labor was no longer needed in such vast quantities. In the same year US Congress authorized "Mounted Inspectors" along the US-Mexico Border

Mexican Migration Patterns and Trends - 1929: The Great Depression resulted in mass unemployment of Americans and as a result many Mexicans were deported.

Mexican Migration Patterns and Trends - 1943: World War Two (1939-1945) broke out and created another labor shortage when American men were drafted into the military. The Bracero Program (1943 - 1965) encouraged Mexicans to work in the United States and Mexican migration begin to increase again

Mexican Migration Patterns and Trends - 1948: The trend moved down and the border patrol seized a record number of illegal immigrants from Mexico

Mexican Migration Patterns and Trends - 1950: Americans fought in the Korean War (1950-1953) and there was a resurgence of the Bracero Program and the trend went up again

Mexican Migration Patterns and Trends - 1954: Following the Korean War the trend changed again as Operation Wetback came into force. During Operation Wetback the U.S. Immigration Service deported more than 3.8 million people of Mexican heritage.

Mexican Migration Patterns and Trends - 1964: In 1964 the Border Industrialization Program was put into effect and the first maquiladoras were established. A maquiladora was a factory along the Mexican border run by a U.S. company in Mexico to take advantage of cheap labor.

Mexican Migration Patterns and Trends - 1990 - 2010: The Mexican foreign born population in the United States increased significantly from 4.2 million in 1990 to 11.7 million in 2010

Mexican Migration Patterns and Trends - 2012: The upward trend totally reversed as U.S. legislation on illegal immigration was reinforced and several American states have criminalized illegal immigration. The number of deportations under the Obama administration have reached record numbers.

Mexican Migration - Patterns and Trends

Mexican Migration Facts for kids: Fast, Fun Facts for kids
Interesting description and fun facts with interesting info about Mexican Migration are detailed in the following Facts Sheet. The Mexican Migration Facts consist of a series of short, fun facts for kids providing an overview of Mexican Migration to the United States of America.

Mexican Migration: Fun, Facts for Kids

Mexican Migration Fact 1: Geography: Mexico-United States border spans four US states & six Mexican states:

● The length of the border is 1,954 miles (3,145 km)
● The names of the U.S. states along the border are California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas
● The names of Mexican states along the border are Baja California, Sonora, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo Leon, and Tamaulipas
● There are 31 states in Mexico, plus the Federal District

Mexican Migration Fact 2: Mexico-United States border crossings: There are currently 45 U.S.-Mexico border crossings with 330 ports of entry.

Mexican Migration Fact 3: El Paso, Texas is often described as the "Mexican Ellis Island"  in terms of Mexican Migration.

Mexican Migration Fact 4: There are many reasons that people want to move from their homes and are often categorized as economic, social, political and environmental causes. Facts about this are described in Push and Pull factors of Mexican Migration

Mexican Migration Fact 5: The Mexican population in America has increased by 50% in each decade since 1970 , with unauthorized migrants accounting for a majority of the growth, followed by legal, family based immigration.

Mexican Migration Fact 6: American political policies and US Immigration Laws have had a huge influence on the number of migrants a country receives. Temporary Mexican migration was welcomed during WW1 and WW2 when many of Americans were drafted into the military

Mexican Migration Fact 7: The Bracero Program (1943 - 1965) encouraged Mexicans to work in America and brought 5,000,000 temporary laborers from Mexico to Work on US railroads and farms.

Mexican Migration Fact 8: The Emergency Quota Act (or percentage laws) were passed in 1921. Laws relating to ethnic quotas with per-country limits were replaced during the civil rights movement of the 1960s

Mexican Migration Fact 9: The Immigration Act of 1924 established the Border Patrol to combat smuggling and illegal immigration and Border stations to formally admit Mexican workers.

Mexican Migration Fact 10: The 1965 Immigration and Nationality Act, aka the Hart-Cellar Act, set a maximum annual level of immigration at 300,000 visas

Mexican Migration Fact 11: The 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Act granted Legal Status to qualifying Immigrants who had entered the United States illegally before January 1, 1982

Mexican Migration Fact 12: In 2006 the Clinton administration saw the passing of the Secure Fence Act authorizing fencing along the US-Mexican Border and sanctioned the use of surveillance technology.

Mexican Migration Fact 13: The leading countries of origin of immigrants to the United States are Mexico, India, China, and the Philippines

Mexican Migration Fact 14: Between 1991 to 2000 the United States admitted 10-11 million legal migrants. The largest number of Americans residing outside of the United States live in Mexico.

Mexican Migration Fact 15: According to the U.S. Census Bureau the total population of the United States is over 271 million people. Over 40 million people in America are foreign born.

Mexican Migration Fact 16: By far the largest number (over 11 million) were originally born in Mexico followed by India, China, the Philippines and Vietnam

Mexican Migration Fact 17: 30% of all current U.S. immigrants were born in Mexico

Mexican Migration Fact 18: The Mexican foreign-born population in the United States increased significantly over the following years

● 4,298,014 in 1990
● 9,177,487 in 2000
● 11,711,103 in 2010

This trend has now completely reversed and migratory patterns from Mexico to the United States have changed.

Mexican Migration Fact 19: Since 2010, U.S. legislation on illegal immigration has been reinforced. Several American states have criminalized illegal immigration. Deportations under the Obama administration have reached record numbers

Mexican Migration Fact 20: The Pew Hispanic Center project has produced a report providing a new analysis of government data and census results from Mexico and America

Mexican Migration Fact 21: The Pew Hispanic Center project report:

● Analyzes statistics on migration
● Examine characteristics, experiences and future intentions of Mexican migrants
● Documents trends in border enforcement statistics
● Reports on changing conditions in Mexico that might affect migration trends
● Details characteristics of Mexican-born immigrants in the U.S.

Mexican Migration Fact 22: Mexican Migration to the United States consists of three main groups of migrants:

● Lawful permanent residents (LPR's) - a Green Card Holder
● Temporary non-immigrants
● Unauthorized aliens

Mexican Migration: Fun, Facts for Kids

Mexican Migration: Fun, Facts for Kids
Our Mexican Migration facts continue with more interesting Mexican Migration fun, facts for Kids.

Mexican Migration: Fun, Facts for Kids

Mexican Migration Fact 23: Many Mexicans fall into the 'Unauthorized aliens' category. The sheer length and openness of the US-Mexican border has led to immigration taking place outside of legal channels. According to the Pew project report 51% (6.1 million) of all current Mexican immigrants are unauthorized.

Mexican Migration Fact 24: Undocumented, illegal immigrants from Mexico tend to live on the margins of society and are vulnerable to exploitation by the people who smuggle them across the US-Mexican border and from unscrupulous employers who employ illegal immigrants.

Mexican Migration Fact 25: The lack of legal documentation makes it virtually impossible to ascertain the exact number of illegal immigrants from Mexico

Mexican Migration Fact 27: The people who move from Mexico to the United States predominantly come from the following states: Chiapas, Zacatecas, Oaxaca, Guanajuato, Michoacan, Guerrero, San Luis Potosí and Hidalgo

Mexican Migration Fact 28: Most of the migrants to Mexico are male who send money (dollars) to their families in Mexico. The money sent by workers in the U.S. to their country, is called the Spanish "remesas"

Mexican Migration Fact 29: Temporary Legal Admissions: Foreign nationals who are admitted to the United States for a temporary period of time, and for an expressed reason, are known as non-immigrants

Mexican Migration Fact 30: Temporary Legal Admissions: A citizen of Mexico who wants to enter the United States must first obtain a U.S. visa, which is placed in the traveler’s passport.

Mexican Migration Fact 31: Temporary Legal Admissions: U.S. Visa

● Having a visa does not guarantee entry to the United States
● A U.S. visa allows travel to a land border crossing, and request permission of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Customs and Border Protection (CBP) inspector to enter the United States
● Citizens and permanent residents of Mexico generally must have a non-immigrant visa or Border Crossing Card (also known as a "Laser Visa").

Mexican Migration Fact 32: Lawful permanent residents (LPR's): An LPR is any person not a citizen of the United States but is legally recognized and lawfully recorded as a permanent residence as an immigrant and also known as a "Resident Alien Permit Holder" or "Green Card Holder."

Mexican Migration Fact 33: Green Card Holder: The process to become a Green Card holder (permanent resident) varies by category and depends on whether a person currently lives inside or outside of the United States. The main categories for obtaining a Green Card are:

● Green Card Through Family
● Green Card Through a Job
● Green Card Through Refugee or Asylum Status

Although a Green Card is usually obtained through a family member’s sponsorship or a job offer there are many other ways a Green Card may be obtained.

Mexican Migration Fact 34: Over 90% of Mexican immigrants receiving lawful permanent residence were admitted as family-based immigrants

Mexican Migration Fact 35: About 70% of the migrants born in Mexico reside in four states in America:

● California had the largest number of foreign-born residents from Mexico
● Texas
● Illinois
● Arizona

Cities with the greatest number of migrants from Mexico are greater Los Angeles, Chicago, and Dallas.

Mexican Migration Fact 36: According to the 2011 American Community Survey (ACS) census about 24% of Mexican immigrants were naturalized U.S. citizens

Mexican Migration Fact 37: The culture and traditions of Mexico that have have been introduced to America, including Mexican themed food, have helped to improve the acceptance of migrants.

Mexican Migration Fact 38: Sources for the above facts and information about Mexican Migration include the U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Office of Immigration Statistics and the Pew Hispanic Center project report

Mexican Migration: Fun, Facts for Kids

Mexican Migration Facts: American History for Kids - Video of US Presidents
The article on Mexican Migration facts provides useful information about this important subject. The following video will give you additional interesting facts, history and dates about the personal and political lives of all the US Presidents.

Mexican Migration Facts

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