Assignment #1

This week, we will be focusing on the history of the U.S.-Mexico border and how various immigration laws have resulted in an increasing militarization of this area. To prepare for class, please refer to this interactive timeline.

Read through the timeline and then in the comments section of this post, pick one of these 8 events to research and present on (briefly) in class:
1848 Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo
1882 Chinese Exclusion Act
1921 & 1924 Immigration Act
1942 Bracero Program
1953 Operation Wetback
1964 Border Industrialization Program
1965 Immigration Act
1996 Immigration Reform & Control Act [not listed in timeline]

In addition, print a picture that you think is representative of your chosen event. For example, if I chose to research the North American Free Trade Agreement, I might choose this picture to demonstrate how the U.S., Mexico, and Canada are fighting over production and trading rights:

Two other (short) articles I would like you to read for class are:
Mexican Violence Deters U.S. Colleges
Mexican immigrant beaten to death by U.S. Border Patrol

We will discuss these articles further in class, but for now, think about these questions:

Based on your various readings, what are some reasons why U.S. policy favored more liberal immigration laws at some points and more stringent laws at other points in history?

How has the militarization of the border created an “other,” privileging not only racial status but citizenship status as well?