Kevin Mackiw

Thought Provoking Questions Are the issues at the US-Mexico border really as bad as the media has made it out to be? How do issues involving the border effect globalization? Should more serious measures be taken to solve the issues at the border? Would the American drug trade suffer if the US- Mexico border was closed off? Is America’s national security at risk?

Geography The US-Mexico Border is 1,969 miles long and stretches from San Diego, California/Tijuana, Baja California (Mexico) to Brownsville, Texas/Matamoros, Tamaulipas (Mexico). It follows the middle of the Rio Grande according to the 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo between the US and Mexico. Texas has the longest stretch of the border while California has the smallest. The land along the border varies from large urban areas, such as San Diego, to inhospitable desert regions.

Security: A Major Problem The US-Mexico border has the second highest volume of legal AND illegal crossings each year (second to the US- Canada border) There are approximately half a million illegal entries per year Mexican cartels have taken control of the majority of the drug and weapon trade going into the United States Only about 700 miles of the 2,000 mile border is currently patrolled by border patrol agents. Border patrol is focused on urban areas like San Diego and El Paso, so the rural areas of the border are wide open for smuggling illegal people and materials.

Illegal Immigration

Drug Trafficking over the US-Mexico Border Mexican drug cartels now control approximately 70% of the foreign narcotics that enter the United States. These cartels are major suppliers of the American marijuana and methamphetamine markets. There has been a recent outbreak of violence between the drug cartels due to fighting over control of the US-Mexican drug trade. Most of the fighting occurs in Mexico, however illegal immigrants are often kidnapped and brought back to Mexico for ransom or to be used as mules. Some of the biggest drug cartels: The Sinaloa Cartel, The Juarez Cartel, Los Negros, The Tijuana Cartel, The Gulf Cartel, Los Zetas The first three cartels listed are allied against the last three cartels

Drug Cartels Gaining Strength

Economic Effects Illegal immigrants, since they are not registered with the government, do not pay taxes and other expenses that benefit the local, state, and federal governments. Arizona loses about $1.3 billion each year to education, medical care, and incarceration for illegal immigrants. This adds up to about $700 per household that currently pays taxes in Arizona. Illegal immigrants also take jobs that could go to unemployed American citizens. So illegal immigration is effectively a major cause of the rise of unemployment in America

The Conflicts Effect on Globalization Major health problems effecting the residents on the US-Mexico border Globalization includes the connection between the economies of separate nations. Many illegal immigrants send large sums of money back to Mexico, which in turn helps fuel the struggling Mexican economy.

Sources immigrationissuecenters5e3f immigrationissuecenters5e3f immigrationissuecenters5e3f immigrationissuecenters5e3f

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