On June 17, 1954, began what was then called "Operation Wetback" . Because political resistance was lower in California and Arizona, the roundup of aliens began there. Some 750 agents swept northward through agricultural areas with a goal of 1,000 apprehensions a day. By the end of July, over 50,000 aliens were caught in the two states. Another 488,000, fearing arrest, had fled the country.
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OPERATION "WETBACK" WAS AN UNCONSTITUTIONAL OPERATION CONDUCTED AT THE BEHEST OF THE MEXICAN GOVERNMENT. BEFORE 1965 WE HAD OPEN BORDERS WITH CANADA AND MEXICO
Operation Wetback was an immigration law enforcement initiative created by Director of the U.S.
Immigration and Naturalization Service Joseph Swing in cooperation with the Mexican government. The program was implemented in May 1954 by the U.S. Attorney General
Herbert Brownell, and utilized special tactics to deal with unsanctioned border crossing and residence in the United States by Mexican nationals.
[1] It became an issue in
Mexico-United States relations. Ultimately, the program came as a result of pressure from the Mexican government to stop illegal entry of Mexican laborers in the United States-based largely on
the Bracero Program.[
citation needed] After implementation, Operation Wetback was met with allegations of abuse and suspension of certain civil rights of Mexicans who were arrested and deported by
U.S. Border Patrol.
[2].
Migration and labor demands before World War II
Mexico began discouraging emigration to the U.S. in early 1900s, beginning with President Porfirio DÃaz.[3] Diaz, like many others within the Mexican government, realized the laborers leaving for the United States would be needed to industrialize Mexico and expand the economy.[4] While Mexico did not have extensive capital, its biggest asset was abundant, cheap labor, the primary source needed to modernize the country and utilize industrialized agribusiness.
[5] The large and continuously growing agricultural industry in the United States created a demand for Mexican labor. From the 1920s onward, with the exception of the depression era, Mexicans served as the primary labor source for much of the agricultural industry in the United States, especially in the Southwest.
[6] 62,000 workers entered the United States legally, while over 100,000 entered illegally per year during the 1920s.
[7] Pressure from Mexican agribusiness owners to return laborers from the United States to Mexico prompted increased action by the Mexican government. The labor problems grew so bad that crops would rot in Mexican fields because so many laborers had crossed the border into the U.S.
[8] Meanwhile, American farms were also transitioning to large scale farms and agribusinesses and continued to recruit illegal Mexican laborers to fulfill the increasing labor demands.
[9]
