SavedByHim:
My mom volunteers with the English as a Second Language for Mexicans in the area. One thing that she has noticed over the years is that many of them come, get pregnant, have their babies, and go back to Mexico. In her experience, the above poster was right on the money. They don’t come here for a “better life” as previous generations of immigrants have done. They come here to reap certain benefits of American society, ensure that their children are considered American citizens, and then leave.
I understand this is an EXTREME generality and taken from only a minute part of the Mexican population, so please don’t flame me for this post. I’m just relaying what I’ve seen in my own local community and I find this a bit troubling.
I won’t flame you, SavedByHIm, but having worked in Houston’s Mexican community and shelter circuit for almost ten years now, and being married to a Mexican, I’ll try and point out a few of the implications of your observations. Your observations are mostly true, but their simplicity belies a more complex situation.
First, yes they are coming here for a better life.That’s what “reaping the benefits of American society” means, and those benefits aren’t just welfare, which they are not eligible for anyway.
Immigrants from Mexico come here illegally when they cannot make ends meet in a country whose politics are fraught with corruption and whose economy is very much subject to the conditions imposed with World Bank/IMF loans. Many are farmers or uneducated laborers who cannot survive or feed their children with the average $2 wages (and no, the price of living isn’t cheaper where groceries, toiletries etc is concerned).
With this sort of financial situation THEY ARE NOT ELIGIBLE TO LEGALLY IMMIGRATE; the U.S. will not accept them. So they come here illegally. I’m not defending that; I’m just explaining why illegal immigrants generally aren’t just refusing to jump through the necessary legal hoops. Obviously, if they can’t feed their kids they can’t afford immigration lawyers either (thousands of dollars).
None of the thousands of immigrant women I have worked with over the years came to the U.S. only to bear children who could be U.S. citizens. To leave your hometown and the support of one’s extended family throughout the pregnancy is nearly unthinkable in Mexican culture. It is also next to impossible to make the trip up with a
coyote if you’re pregnant.
Yes, many get pregnant here. This is due to a combination of 1)Catholic values (no contraception) and lack of education about alternatives. Obviously, seeing their kids become U.S. citizens, eligible for welfare benefits where the parents are not, is seen as a bonus, and most welcome the chance to give their children a better life than theirs.
They come to the States for sheer survival’s sake. You are right, most don’t want to blend in, because they want to go back to their country as soon as they can financially. They also don’t have to acculturate; Spanish=only enclaves abound in various cities. Again, no value judgement here; just facts.
I’m not sure I have a point to all this information; just that the situation is more complex than some of the silly diatribes offered in other posts recognize. U.S.-Mexico immigration is altering both countries significantly. (Read “Crossing Borders” by Ruben Martinez to see the extent…) That alteration is going to continue and we can’t stick our heads in the sand of xenophobic outcries to avoid it.
I’m not sure if President Bush’s worker policy will work, but it seems to have promise to me. At any rate, something has to be done beyond just building higher fences on the border or knocking them down. As Catholics, we are called to explore alternatives and attitudes motivated by yes, by wisdom, but also charity and compassion; not utilitarianism, fear, hate or callousness.
Go to the topof the class!
