Event Title
Borderline Depravity: The Impact of U.S. Immigration Policy on Human Smuggling at the Mexican Border
Location
Parker-Reed, SSWAC
Start Date
1-5-2014 2:00 PM
End Date
1-5-2014 4:00 PM
Project Type
Presentation
Description
Human smuggling at the southwest border has undergone a series of dramatic changes following the advent of militarized enforcement in the wake of 9/11. These changes have culminated in the evolving role of drug cartels as service providers within the market for human smuggling. This newfound role presents a massive departure from the traditional working dynamics of the market, and has created a human rights crisis with far-reaching moral implications. Accordingly, this thesis attempts to answer the following questions: why are Mexican drug cartels entering into human smuggling? What part has U.S immigration policy had in incentivizing their involvement? How have they been able to enter into this market? When did their involvement begin? To answer these questions, I will provide an in-depth analysis of human smuggling based on research that I compiled in the city of El Paso, TX during the month of January. I will then use that analysis to construct a causal model that links militarization to cartel involvement in human smuggling. I argue that by increasing both the cost as well as the demand for coyotes at the Mexican border, the United States has inadvertently created a lucrative niche for cartels within the market for human smuggling.
Faculty Sponsor
Sahan Dissanayake
Sponsoring Department
Colby College. Economics Dept.
CLAS Field of Study
Social Sciences
Event Website
http://www.colby.edu/clas
ID
122
Borderline Depravity: The Impact of U.S. Immigration Policy on Human Smuggling at the Mexican Border
Parker-Reed, SSWAC
Human smuggling at the southwest border has undergone a series of dramatic changes following the advent of militarized enforcement in the wake of 9/11. These changes have culminated in the evolving role of drug cartels as service providers within the market for human smuggling. This newfound role presents a massive departure from the traditional working dynamics of the market, and has created a human rights crisis with far-reaching moral implications. Accordingly, this thesis attempts to answer the following questions: why are Mexican drug cartels entering into human smuggling? What part has U.S immigration policy had in incentivizing their involvement? How have they been able to enter into this market? When did their involvement begin? To answer these questions, I will provide an in-depth analysis of human smuggling based on research that I compiled in the city of El Paso, TX during the month of January. I will then use that analysis to construct a causal model that links militarization to cartel involvement in human smuggling. I argue that by increasing both the cost as well as the demand for coyotes at the Mexican border, the United States has inadvertently created a lucrative niche for cartels within the market for human smuggling.
https://digitalcommons.colby.edu/clas/2014/program/87