U.S. Immigration Policy & Mexican Illegal Immigrants. A Case Study
Executive Summary
•
90% of Mexico’ foreign trade is carried out with the United States
•
100% of the remittances from Mexicans living abroad come from the United States
•
75% to 80% of foreign direct investment in Mexico is originated in the United States
•
1 out of 5 Mexicans have a job within the United States
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1 out of 4 Mexicans living in Mexico’s countryside have a relative in the United
From this data I identify the following set of assumptions:
1. Geopolitical interest, since the United States and Mexico share a common border,
therefore, political instability within Mexico can easily permeate into United States
territory;
2. Economic interest, since both markets complement each other from agricultural
products to maquiladora businesses;
Therefore the United States has a stake in its next door neighbor’s current developments.
Although it would seem that there is a common understanding of the issue, in reality we
face a perception gap between the two countries since illegal immigration represents
different preferred positions for the actors involved.
This framework provides the underlying foundation for the research question to be
studied, namely U.S. immigration policy regarding illegal Mexicans living in the United
Introduction
The research task is structured as follows: first I provide a review of U.S.
immigration policy in order to present the facts that frame the policy under consideration;
the second section deals with the theoretical frameworks that I assume will lead the
1
“Economic and social behavior…are complex, and to comprehend their character is mentally tiring.
Therefore we adhere…to those ideas which represent our understanding.” Levitt, S. and Dubner, S.
Freakonomics. A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything. (2005) New York, NY:
HarperCollins. p.90
2
Data from a conference presented by Jorge Castañeda, Former Mexican Minister of Foreign Affairs on
March 3
rd
, 2003.
3
This research paper is constructed under the premises that U.S. foreign policy making towards Mexico
regarding immigration is influenced by political, economic and social dimensions experienced in the
United States, which are correlated – either positive or negative – with current developments taking place
in Mexico.
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