Why mexicans come to america

Were Mexican immigrants viewed similarly or differently? There was concern among the U. The so-called science of eugenics helped drive this concern—the notion that ethnic groups had inherent qualities of intelligence, physical fitness, or a propensity towards criminality and that some ethnic groups had better qualities than others. These beliefs tied in directly to concerns about immigration and immigration policy.

They were thought to be docile, taciturn, physically strong, and able to put up with unhealthy and demanding working conditions. Perhaps more importantly, they were perceived as temporary migrants, who were far more likely to return to Mexico than to settle permanently in the United States.

Does this explain why Mexico was exempted from the quotas in the Immigration Act of ? Mexico and in fact, the entire Western hemisphere was exempt from the quotas in part because of the agricultural lobby: farmers in the U. Southwest argued that without Mexican migrants, they would be unable to find the laborers needed to sow and harvest their crops.

In addition, migration from the Western Hemisphere made up less than one-third of the overall flow of migrants to the United States at the time. Finally, the perceptions of Mexicans as temporary migrants and docile laborers contributed to the fact that they were never included in the quotas.

Soon after the quotas, the Cristero War erupted in Mexico. What impact did this have on immigration? Between and , Catholic partisans took up arms against the Mexican federal government in protest against a series of laws that placed strong restrictions on the public role of the Catholic Church. In a country that was 98 percent Catholic, this provoked a furious response. Many Mexican Catholics were determined to go to war against their government until the laws were overturned.

The Cristero War had a twofold effect: first, it led to new waves of emigrants, exiles and refugees who fled the violence and economic disruption. Second, it politicized Mexican migrants in the United States around the Cristero cause. While not all Mexican migrants supported the Catholic side of the conflict, thousands did.

Close to 31 percent of Mexican immigrants in the United States lived in these four metro areas. Figure 3. Note: Pooled ACS data were used to get statistically valid estimates at the metropolitan statistical-area level for smaller-population geographies.

Source: MPI tabulation of data from U. Click here for an interactive map that highlights the metropolitan areas with the highest concentrations of immigrants from Mexico and other countries. Table 1. Source: MPI tabulation of data from the U. English Proficiency Mexican immigrants are less likely to be proficient in English than the overall foreign-born population.

In , about 66 percent of Mexicans ages 5 and over reported limited English proficiency, compared to about 46 percent of all immigrants. Approximately 4 percent of Mexican immigrants spoke only English at home, versus 16 percent of all immigrants.

Age, Education, and Employment. In , Mexican immigrants were about the same average age as the overall foreign-born population but older than the U. Their median age was about 45 years old, compared to 46 for all immigrants and 37 for the native-born population. Mexican immigrants were more likely than the native- and overall foreign-born populations to be of working age 18 to 64 years old; see Figure 4.

Figure 4. Age Distribution of the U. Population by Origin, Note: Percentages may not add up to as they are rounded to the nearest whole number. Census Bureau ACS. Mexicans adults have much lower rates of educational attainment than both the native- and overall foreign-born populations.

In , approximately 53 percent of Mexican immigrants ages 25 and older lacked a high school diploma or equivalent, compared to 26 percent of foreign-born adults and 8 percent of U. However, the college-educated share among Mexicans who arrived within the past five years was much higher: 17 percent. Mexicans participate in the labor force at slightly higher rates than the native-born and overall foreign-born populations.

About 69 percent of Mexican immigrants ages 16 and older were in the civilian labor force in , compared to 67 percent of the foreign-born population and 62 percent of the U. Compared to those two groups, Mexicans were more likely to be employed in the following occupations: service; natural resources, construction, and maintenance; and production, transportation, and material moving see Figure 5.

Figure 5. Employed Workers in the U. Civilian Labor Force ages 16 and older by Occupation and Origin, On average, Mexicans have lower incomes than the overall foreign- and native-born populations. In , Mexican immigrants were more likely to be in poverty 17 percent than immigrants overall 14 percent or the U. Immigration Pathways and Naturalization. Mexicans are much less likely to be naturalized U. In , 34 percent of Mexican immigrants had become U.

Compared to all immigrants, Mexicans are more likely to have arrived in the United States at least a decade ago. The largest share of Mexican immigrants, approximately 59 percent, arrived prior to , followed by 28 percent who arrived between and About 13 percent have arrived since see Figure 6. Figure 6. Source : MPI tabulation of data from the U. In fiscal year FY , Mexico was the top country of origin for new permanent residents; approximately ,, or 15 percent, of the 1 million new LPRs were from Mexico.

Most Mexicans who obtain green cards do so through family reunification channels. In FY , 85 percent of Mexicans who received a green card that year did so either as an immediate relative of a U. Figure 7. The Mexican countryside has a shortage of economically active people. Many men emigrate leaving a majority of women who have trouble finding life partners.

Young people tend to migrate, leaving the old and the very young. Certain villages such as Santa Ines have lost two thirds of their inhabitants. There is a large wage gap between the USA and Mexico. Wages remain significantly higher in the USA for a large portion of the population. This attracts many Mexicans to the USA.