Duke Engage Tucson 2010: US Immigration History: 1970-1989

About DukeEngage Tucson 2010

Immigration is perhaps the single largest domestic challenge facing both the United States and Mexico today. People die nearly every week attempting to cross the border. Hostilities against immigrants in the U.S. rise daily. Local, state, and international relations are increasingly strained.

For eight weeks this summer, seven students have been given the opportunity to travel to Tucson, Arizona and Nogales, Mexico to study the many faces of immigration. Following two weeks of meetings with local activists, a Border Patrol agent, a federal public defender, lawyers, members of the Tohono O’odham Nation, maquiladora owners, Grupos Beta employees, migrants, and local farmers, we will spend six weeks partnered with Southside Day Labor Camp, BorderLinks, or Humane Borders in order to further immerse ourselves in the issues of immigration.

This blog chronicles our experiences and our perspectives on what we learn while here in Arizona. We hope our stories are interesting and informative.

Monday, June 14, 2010

US Immigration History: 1970-1989

- 1970-2000s: The fourth major wave of immigrants.

- 1970-1979: 4.4 million immigrants were admitted into the US

- 1972: 1 million illegal immigrants living in the US, three times that of 1965; 4 out of 5 illegal immigrants in the US were Mexican.

- ___: Domestic Council Committee on Illegal Aliens was formed

o Reported that illegal immigrants were lowering wages of low-skilled workers

o Urged harsher penalties for smuggles, employer sanctions and an amnesty program

o Congress was dissatisfied with the proposals

- 1975: House of Representatives introduced a bill providing employer sanctions for hiring illegal immigrants as well as amnesty

- 1978: Congress passed law to create the Select Commission on Immigration & Refugee Policy

o Determined the nation’s immigration policy was a mess

o Recommended improved border security and focus on law enforcement

o Rejected a foreign guest worker program

o Supported amnesty for illegal immigrants

- 1980-1989: 7.3 million immigrants were admitted into the US

- 1980: Between April-September, 150,000 Cubans (los marielitos) migrated in ships from Port Mariel

- 1982: Mexican peso was devalued due to the country’s economic crisis.

o High unemployment led to an increase in migration to US in search for work

- 1982: In Plyler v. Doe, US. Supreme Court ruled children who were illegal residents had the right to an education

- 1986:

o Border Patrol reported a record of 1.7 million apprehension of illegal Mexican immigrants

o Congress passed the Immigration Reform & Control Act

§ Aimed at decreasing illegal immigration by cracking down on US employers who hire illegal immigrants

§ Granted amnesty to illegal workers who were already in the US, which was over 2.7 million people

§ Caused a decrease in immigration for the next 2 years.

- 1988: Mexican President Carlos Salinas de Gortari pushed to deregulate Mexico’s economy and privatize its nationalized industry. This paved the way for NAFTA

http://www.pbs.org/frontlineworld/stories/mexico704/history/timeline.html

http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0706/p09s01-coop.html

http://www.post-gazette.com/nation/20021127amendment_21p9.asp

http://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/historics/USSC_CR_0457_0202_ZO.html

“Grounding Immigrant Generations in History: Cuban Americans and Their Transnational Ties” by Susan Eckstein and Lorena Barberia.

Immigration in U.S. History Edited by Carl Bankston & Danielle Hidalgo