United States citizens had been available for these jobs during the immense unemployment that existed during the 1930s, forcing the Mexicans out. World War II saw these workers enlisting in the military, working in factories, or moving into other jobs as the economy generally expanded.
The Mexican immigrants not only provided the plentiful labor that was needed, but they provided it cheaply -- typical wages were between fifty or sixty cents an hour, or around ten dollars per acre (Renteria 2003). Demand for agricultural products specifically and throughout the economy in general continued to expand during World War II and in the decades following, but prices were kept fairly stable during the war and even when they began to increase evenly due to economic expansion, worker's wages did not really rise (Renteria 2003). This meant that farmers were making an increased profit utilizing the under-paid and under-appreciated Mexican immigrant workers, but the economic benefit of this situation was not especially profound or long-lasting, as evidenced by many of the same current labor and wage issues that exist in the agricultural industry today.
Racial Tensions
One of the reasons that the Bracero Program was implemented was due to the already widespread hiring of illegal immigrants in the agricultural industry. This legalization of an already-existing practice was meant to help regulate the number and location of immigrants in the country, and in many ways contributed to the racial discrimination that already played a major part in the relationship between many farmers and the immigrant workers they hired (Zatz 1993). Not only were their linguistic, cultural, and physical differences between the white farmers and the Mexican immigrants they hired, but their legally separate status further reinforced and institutionalized the racism in the situation.
The civil rights movement gained full steam during the last years of the Bracero Program, and the focus in the nation -- especially in many Southern states...
Bracero What is the Bracero Program? What happened to the Braceros both in the U.S. And Mexico? What are your impressions of the people's experiences in the program? Should the U.S. create another "guest-worker" program? The Bracero Program allowed migrant unskilled laborers from Mexico, primarily in the agricultural sector, to work temporarily in the United States. The program was a mutual agreement between the American and Mexican governments after the Second World
Bracero Program and Social Inequality The Bracero Program was a WW2 initiative decreed by Executive Order that allowed Mexican labor on U.S. farms. It was known as the Mexican Farm Labor Program and the purpose of this program was to ensure that labor shortages did not result in the agricultural sector in the wake of so many American men being drafted or volunteering for the war. The temporary usage of
In fact, one study suggested that if a fruit or vegetable could not be harvested mechanically, it would not be grown in the United States after 1975 (Braceros: History, Compensation). Workers in the Bracero Program faced a great amount of worker exploitation in the form of low pay and lost wages, both from the United States government as well as their own home government in Mexico. Currently, the governments of
8% of U.S. households were headed by an immigrant and received 6.7% of all cash benefits; by 1990, 8.4% of households were headed by an immigrant and received 13.1% of all cash benefits (Borjas, 1995, pp. 44-46). Immigrants in different categories (both legal and illegal) have been eligible to receive certain welfare benefits. Legal immigrants are eligible after three to five years of residence, though asylum applicants and refugees are eligible
Allowing more legal migrants from Mexico will not only save lives, it will decrease the terrible practice of smuggling, and it will free up the Border Patrol to concentrate on more important issues, such as drug smuggling and national security. Legal migration is an important issue that needs to be addressed by Congress, so that more people can enjoy the freedom and prosperity of living in America - legally
..Because of tightening restrictions at the border, the role of the coyote has gotten much more complicated, and for immigrants, the process has become fraught with danger. Numerous immigrants die trying to cross the desert each year, and while some are found, providing closure for their families, others are simply never heard from again. Immigrants have also died while trapped in trucks and shipping containers, and some have drowned while
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