Atlas of Hispanic-American History

its agricultural programs 90 percent.
Prior to NAFTA, many Mexican farmers
received as much as a third of their
incomes from farm-support payments.
In the immediate post-NAFTA years
between 1995 and 2000, that percentage
fell to about 13 percent. (In the United
States, corn growers still receive 40 per-
cent of their income from U.S. govern-
ment subsidies.) What’s more, 25 percent
of all corn in the United States is now
shipped to Mexico, which critics argue,
keeps Mexican corn prices at artificially
low levels. By 2004, 80 percent of rural
Mexicans live in poverty, and 60 percent
in what is considered extreme poverty.
Meanwhile, hunger has increased as pur-
chasing power has plummeted. The price
of tortillas (which studies have shown
account for 59 percent of the Mexican
population’s caloric intake) increased
roughly 40 percent between 1994 and
2003.
Conditions in Mexico are contribut-
ing to push both legal and illegal Mexican
labor across the U.S. border, where labor
contractors and large agribusinesses wel-
come the opportunity to pay them at

rates that are barely better than subsis-

tence level. Because even the lowest pay

and poor conditions in the United States

are still often better than what is possible

at home, these workers are willing to risk

arrest and their personal safety for the

chance to earn money in the United

States to send home to their families.

The Federal Response

Not all illegal immigrants travel to the

United States alone and send money

home. Numerous illegal immigrants have

their families with them in the United

States. An examination of some demo-

graphics relating to migrant farm workers

highlights the complexity of the issue.

About 56 percent of all illegal farm work-

ers are male and about 39 percent are

female. In total, 45 percent of all farm

workers are married and have children.

Some of those children are the children of

illegal immigrants, but having been born

in the United States, are U.S. citizens

themselves. As such are entitled to the full

rights of equal protection under the law, as

HISPANIC AMERICA TODAY 221

English only English very well English less than very well

UNDER 18 HISPANICS

Native born Foreign born Total U.S. Population

Native born Foreign born Total U.S. Population

18 AND OVER HISPANICS

35.9

49.3

14.8

50.6

46.1

80

14.6

5.4

35.9

49.8

14.3

4

23.2

72.9

9.8

9.5

80.7

3.3

English Speaking and Reading Ability, by Place of Birth and Ethnicity