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More than a river divides U.S. and Mexico
(CNN) -- For more than 1,000 miles the Rio Grande River forms a watery boundary between the United States and Mexico. The river, known as the Rio Bravo Del Norte on the Mexican side, is a stark dividing line between a highly industrialized land of ample opportunity and a developing nation struggling to provide a better standard of living for its people. In rural areas, especially, the stark contrast from one side of the river to the other comes into sharp focus. Highly mechanized agriculture on the U.S. side changes abruptly to labor-intensive methods in Mexico. And the border cities, too, strung like Christmas lights along the Rio Grande/Rio Bravo River, spotlight the changing relationship between the two nations and the people who inhabit each side.
Effects of free tradeSince the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) was implemented in 1994, new jobs and construction are booming in Mexican cities. U.S. cities such as El Paso and Laredo also are re-inventing themselves. Lower wages and the ease of movement between Mexico and the United States made hundreds of companies move their operations south. While U.S. border cities, like Eagle Pass, lost out on jobs, Mexico's opening up to free trade beyond North America ended up providing an economic bonanza for the Mexican border towns. The interdependence that has dominated life on the border continues today, perhaps at a more urgent pace. And that can only be good news for border residents who have the options to live and work in two countries and two cultures, and to benefit from the economic change that is as dynamic as the border itself. Seeking a better futureAn unknown number of Mexican teens cross the border every day seeking a better education from U.S. high schools. Sometimes they spend hours just making it across. Eighteen-year-old Consuelo Monarrez used to wake up at 5 a.m. on Monday mornings to make sure she had enough time to make it from Juarez, Mexico, where she lived on the weekends, to El Paso, Texas, where she went to school during the week. Her border community is the largest in the world, with a population of 2 million, and it's growing more than 5 percent a year, according to Time.com. "It's hard to cross so often," Monarrez said. "Sometimes I can wait in my car for over an hour just to get to the other side. But I did this because I have dreams. I want to work for NASA. If I stayed in Mexico, I might be just like my mom, who owns a grocery store. That's fine, but I want more for myself." Monarrez, who graduated seventh in her high school class, is one of the lucky ones. She wasn't breaking any laws. She is an American citizen, and she lived with her uncle during the week. He has a house within the school district. But other young people committed to getting a U.S. education are breaking immigration laws just to go to school. Not everyone in El Paso is happy about these student border crossings. Some El Paso residents complain about the high taxes they must pay. But no one really knows the numbers of students crossing illegally. Last year the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service caught only 12 undocumented students.
"With limited resources and manpower, we make decisions about our priorities," said Mexican-born Luis Garcia, who heads up the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) sector covering the students. "These kids are going to school and will end up getting jobs and benefiting the El Paso-Juarez region. If it's between catching these kids or drug dealers or smugglers, I know who I want my men to catch." Monarrez is on her way to a Texas state college with an ROTC scholarship. Other students, however, have had to turn down top colleges and scholarships because they did not have the necessary immigration papers to transport them across the Rio Grande/Rio Bravo permanently. A dangerous passageIt is estimated that between 6 million and 12 million illegal aliens live in the United States, according to Time.com, and most of those are Mexicans who entered the country through Arizona. Every night, border-patrol agents round up about 500 Mexicans trying to illegally cross in to the United States. They are returned to Mexico the next morning, but inevitably try again the next night. Often the attempts can be deadly. Last year, 369 people died struggling across the swirling rivers and scorching deserts that constitute the U.S.-Mexico border. In May, 14 Mexicans died of heat exposure and a lack of water after smugglers helped a group cross the border then disappeared. A border patrol spokeswoman said this type of smuggling is happening with increasing frequency. Smugglers gain people's trust and then promise to take them across the border for a fee. The smugglers promise that safety will be just a short walk from the drop-off point, when in fact the immigrants are dropped off in the wilderness to face treacherous conditions, she said. Juan Hernandez, of the Mexican Presidential Office for Mexicans Abroad, said Mexico needs to do more for the tens of thousands who attempt the dangerous crossing each year because they contribute to the economies on both sides of the border. "They are the new pioneers of America," Hernandez said. "These are individuals who are not second-class citizens, and they are working very hard." But U.S. diplomats say they would prefer to see Mexico do more to warn would-be illegal migrantsof the dangers involved, and to increase crackdowns on migrant smugglers.
RELATED STORIES: Community turns to Mexico to fill bilingual needs RELATED SITE: Immigration and Naturalization Service | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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