Honors Theses
Date of Award
2007
Document Type
Undergraduate Thesis
Department
Croft Institute for International Studies
First Advisor
Holly Reynolds
Relational Format
Dissertation/Thesis
Abstract
For my thesis, I wanted to look at the movement of human rights of legal and illegal immigrants across the U.S.- Mexico border. I researched the theory of human rights in general, the history of the U.S.- Mexico border and how it became violent and dangerous for potential immigrants, the previous efforts of both the United States and Mexico to improve the situation along the border as well as future plans of both countries’ administrations to solve the problem. I found that both countries have put forth efforts in regards to binational coordination along the border in order to deter the violence that comes with the high level of drug trafficking that occurs along the border in addition to human trafficking of migrants. Now, both countries are still in the process of contributing to a future solution by each countries’ own means. The United States continues to work on legislation that will create a means for immigrants to come to the U.S. in order to fulfill a labor market that needs workers. On the other side, Mexican officials have strived to continue cooperative programs with the U.S. Border Patrol in order to ensure effective rescue missions as well as independently strived to promote human rights of migrants passing through Mexico to the U.S.- Mexico border. In conclusion, I found that the politics surrounding this issue have hindered progress. Due to the political aspect of U.S. legislation and the idea of granting some sort of amnesty to illegal immigrants, the U.S. continues to debate legislation that will effectively fill America’s gap in the labor market. Within Mexico, economic infrastructure continues to be a problem in attempts to create jobs and stipulations for Mexican workers to stay in Mexico. A solution might be achieved when both the U.S. and Mexico become politically invested in each others’ economies, but under the current political atmosphere, the U.S. seems to be more focused on walls while Mexico struggles with its own issues of political corruption and informal economy.
Recommended Citation
Jimenez, James Scott, "Bipartisan Efforts to Deter Human Rights Violations on the U.S.-Mexico Border" (2007). Honors Theses. 2353.
https://egrove.olemiss.edu/hon_thesis/2353
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