Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: Although Mexico has by international agreement been welcomed into the North American club, its inevitable and unique ties with the United States are perhaps better understood as a bilateral, asymmmetric and interdependent example of transnationalism in the North-South divide. Closer ties since NAFTA have led to increased economic integration but also to greater tensions about Mexicans living in the United States. Since 2000, a more democratic Mexico has sought to reach out to its nationals living and working in the United States. This paper examines shifting Mexican state policy to grant voting rights to Mexicans living abroad, to advance legalization of Mexican workers, and to defend the rights of Mexicans accused and convicted of breaking U.S. domestic laws. The thesis is that these developments are a logical outcome of political and other developments in Mexico, especially since 2000, and the increasing integration of the two societies and economies.