immigration: root causes. migrations 214 million estimated number of international migrants...
TRANSCRIPT
Immigration: Root Causes
Migrations
214 million
•Estimated number of international migrants worldwide1The total number of international migrants has increased over the last 10 years from an estimated 150 million in 20002 to 214 million3 persons today.
Root Causes
• List from map exercise
Why do people move?• Basic needs
faminepoverty
• Safetywar/violencepolitical persecution
• Opportunitieslack of economic and
educational opportunities
Freedom of expressionreligious persecution
Exploitation/environmentminingdeforestation
U.S. policiesNAFTA/subsidies --
cheap U.S. food drives Mexican farmers out of business
U.S. and Guatemala Political History
• Genocide • 200,000 people died. More than one million people were forced to flee
their homes and hundreds of villages were destroyed. The officially chartered Historical Clarification Commission attributed more than 93% of all documented violations of human rights to Guatemala's military government; and estimated that Maya Indians accounted for 83% of the victims.
- 1976 Earthquake – 25,000 dead
Cash Flow - Remittances
• Migrations and Cash Flow
FTA’s – NAFTA - CAFTA
Corn
• 1994 - NAFTA exposed corn grown by Mexican farmers to direct competition with American-grown corn
• NAFTA - Small-scale corn farmers, 72% of Mexico’s corn producers, experienced a staggering reduction in their profits
• 1994 corn prices dropped 25%.
• “migration grew…352 percent between 1980 and 2002”.
• CAFTA – Central American Free Trade Agreement – Aug 2005
CAFTA
• Walmart, DD, McDonalds, BK, Etc etc etc…
• Displacement of formal and informal economy
• Manufacturing jobs gone South
Mining
Displacement of people in the
communities and contamination of the environment
Mina San Miguel – Canadian Mining-
Gold Corp
?
Next Learning Tour to Guatemala October 7-17, 2013
MCC’s response – Root Causes
Relief
Development
Peace
Current Comprehensive Immigration Reform proposals do not have any responses to the Root Causes of Migration
Only domestic policy changes, increased law enforcement, and border security measures.
MCC U.S. Immigration Policy Principle # 6: Address political instability and economic disparity in migrants’ home countries caused, in part, by U.S. foreign policies and trade
agreements. Create incentives for sustainable development.
http://immigration.mcc.org
http://washington.mcc.org/immigration
@mccwashington - @mccimmigration
© 2012 Mennonite Central Committee