Effects Of The Bracero Program

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During World War II, the United States was in dire need of Mexico and its laborers. The Americans were at war and the labor was needed to supply the soldiers with food as well as to help keep the countries’ agriculture business going. As well, the Mexican government failed to provide many Mexican peasants who were skilled workers with the resources they needed to improve their lives following the Mexican Revolution of 1910. With this being said, by the late 1930’s, many crops in Mexico were insufficient, making those skilled workers look elsewhere for jobs. On August 4th, 1942, the United States and Mexico negotiated a temporary contract to allow Mexican guest workers into the United States. These agricultural and railroad labor contracts were intended to be short-term and terminated once World War II was over. However, after involving over 4.5 million people, it can be said that the longstanding effects of this program contributed to today’s illegal immigration from Mexico. By analyzing the different components involved with The Bracero Program, there will be a deeper understanding to how this intended short-term legal contract …show more content…

If the Bracero Program was followed more carefully and even had a replacement program, there is a slight chance that the immigration problems we are presented with today would not be a problem. The Bracero Program caused more harm than good; it helped create a common migration pattern of Mexican citizens coming to the United States for work, then returning home to Mexico to give their family money and live there for a while, but then ultimately returning to work some more and make more money, in many cases illegally. This is seen even today, and makes many professionals wonder if the Bracero Program was even worth it despite the agricultural success it

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