Calderón's Immigration Advocacy

Traditionally, Mexican presidents visit the United States within their first year of office. President Felipe Calderón waited until his second, and won’t make a stop in the capital or meet with President George W.  Bush. Instead, Calderón views his visit as a chance to advocate for Mexicans migrants living in the United States. “The fundamental message is that we are with them, that the Mexican government is paying attention to Mexicans here in Mexico and in whatever other part of the world,” said Calderón during a recent interview with the New York Times. Calderón’s tour makes stops in Massachusetts and states with large Mexican populations—New York, Illinois, and California.

During his visit, Calderón spoke at his alma Mater Harvard University, proposing job creation in Mexico as a means to stem Mexican migration to the United States. He said an increase in investment would boost the economy, “offering greater opportunities to our people.” An editorial in the Christian Science Monitor calls for U.S. support “in assisting Mexico in its own upward trajectory to prosperity.” The article also points out that Calderón’s rising approval ratings demonstrate he is a “deal-making president.” Public support for the president reached 66 percent in January, up nine points since October. 

Yet Calderón’s approach to immigration has not escaped criticism. In an AS/COA interview, former Foreign Minister of Mexico Jorge Castañeda questioned the president’s decision to delay a U.S. visit, saying that “perhaps he’s underestimating the straits which the [Mexican] communities find themselves in today…they need the only president they have, which is the president of Mexico, to defend them.” During the Calderón stop in New York, some immigration activists complained about not getting sufficient time with the president.

Others see the visit as timed to coincide with the busy U.S. primary season to put immigration on a future president’s agenda, even though Calderón will not meet with any of the current presidential candidates. The Mexican leader has publicly rebuked U.S. presidential candidates for running an “anti-Mexican” campaign. 

However, Deputy Director of the Pew Hispanic Center Susan Minushkin told AS/COA that Calderón’s visit has less to do with the U.S. election and more to do with the war against drug cartels and recent anti-immigrant laws passed by U.S. states and municipalities. “The Mexican government is very concerned about state and local initiatives that target undocumented immigrants in the United States,” said Minushkin. A recent AS/COA hemispheric update examines the patchwork of new state laws affecting immigrants. A New York Times analysis takes a look at the impact of an economic downturn coupled with efforts to curb illegal immigration in Arizona, a state experiencing a widespread flight of Latino immigrants. A new Viewponts Americas article by Elaine C. Lacy of the University of South Carolina at Aiken covers rising anti-immigrant sentiment in the U.S. southeast and the resulting challenges posed for Hispanic integration there.