Many Mexicans are going home

[Judi Lynn]

Many Mexicans are going home

By Karthick Ramakrishnan

Wednesday, December 9, 2015 4:04pm

The Pew Research Center released a report in November on Mexican migration to the United States that should give us pause. It did not address Donald Trump's claims that Mexico is mostly sending violent criminals to the United States; other studies, including a comprehensive report by the National Academy of Sciences, have systematically shown lower crime rates among immigrants than the general population. Instead, the Pew report focused on a phenomenon that most of us have not seen in our lifetimes: net outflow. In lay terms: More Mexican immigrants are leaving the United States than coming to work here.

The net outflow of Mexican immigrants follows a decade of "net zero" migration from Mexico, and also includes a significant reduction in unauthorized migration from Mexico. These trends show how dangerously outdated our political conversations about immigration have become. Just three years ago, several Republican governors and at least one presidential candidate were calling for the "self-deportation" of undocumented immigrants. This year, some are calling for mass roundups, forced deportations and a gigantic, no-doubt-costly wall along the southern border. Setting aside humanitarian concerns, such measures amount to fighting old battles.

In Mexico, pressures to migrate have declined over the last decade as fertility rates have dropped and young adults have found more job opportunities at home than were available before. U.S. policies have also played a significant role in contributing to the net outflow of Mexican immigrants. Immigration enforcement and country caps on visas have made it more difficult for Mexican immigrants to bring family members to the United States or to keep them together.

Indeed, according to recent surveys in Mexico, the desire for family reunification and immigration enforcement are by far the biggest drivers of Mexican return migration, with lack of job opportunities in the United States playing a considerably smaller role.

More:
http://www.tampabay.com/opinion/many-mexicans-are-going-home/2257131

Good Reads:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/1016139326

[Xipe Totec]

1. My daughter is waiting for a resident visa. They're currently processing petitions filed in 1995

So, a 20 year wait for legal immigration.

I guess they want her to wait until she's old enough to get Social Security before they let her in.

Legal immigration to the US is a joke.

[newfie11]

2. I want to go with them

I want out of America.