America’s increasing involvement with internationalism NAFTA and the WTO America’s increasing involvement with internationalism

Do you agree or disagree? Immigrants from countries such as Mexico take jobs away from Americans that need them because they will agree to work for less pay and benefits. Any good business owner would hire the worker that agreed to work for less pay and benefits, rather than the worker that demands more.

We’ve seen that the United States was once pretty isolationist… Refusal to join League of Nations after World War I Initial refusal to enter World War II

But…the US moves away from isolationism to become internationalist. Several key events show the US’s shift to supporting a policy of getting involved with international affairs US joins the World Trade Organization US joins United Nations after WWII

What is the WTO (World Trade Organization)??? The WTO is a group of nations that meets to encourage more global free trade. It is meant to allow businesses to do business in just about any part of the world without hardly any restrictions against them.

Why might it be a good thing? This allows businesses to make the greatest amount of profit possible by searching the entire GLOBE for the best markets. If businesses are making money, they should also be hiring workers, and more jobs should become available worldwide.

Why might it be a bad thing? Businesses can more easily take advantage of countries that do not protect workers’ rights, paying people almost nothing to work in their factories and fields. In the US, workers can easily lose jobs if businesses decide to send their factories to other countries where labor is much cheaper.

Summary… WTO Pros and Cons Businesses can cut costs and become more profitable Business profits can increase the number of jobs available worldwide Businesses take advantage of countries where the government does not protect its citizens US workers can lose jobs if companies send their factories to foreign countries (a practice known as “offshoring”)

An example of offshoring… Let’s say you have a problem with your computer. You call the company’s “help desk” to get them to tell you how to fix it.

Offshoring The employee you speak to is very helpful, and you fix your computer. You ask her where she is working out of, and she says she is working from India, on the other side of the world!

Offshoring This person works in India because the computer company has to pay him or her MUCH less money than if they were to pay an American to do the same job. The company ends up making more money, and they charge you less to buy your computer. However, all of those jobs with this AMERICAN company go to other countries, not to Americans. JOBS

In 1999 in Seattle, the countries in the WTO met to work on its free trade agreements. Protestors gathered to violently oppose the mission of the WTO, which they saw as an organization determined to harm workers worldwide and make the rich even richer.

NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement) NAFTA is an agreement between the countries of the United States, Mexico and Canada that opens up free trade between all three nations. It is designed to do basically the same things as the WTO… Create free trade so businesses can do business where they want to and make the most profit possible It has many of the same criticisms… American companies will send their jobs to foreign countries!!! Those foreign workers will be getting paid slave wages!!!

Summary… Major criticisms of the WTO and of NAFTA Only the rich countries will benefit, and only the extremely wealthy within those rich countries will benefit… Corporations will hugely expand their global control… Workers around the world will have an increasingly worse standard of living…

Answer the questions on your guided notes.

Since the late 1800s, many industries and factory jobs had thrived in northeastern cities. Manufacturing/factory jobs A lot of this development occurred during the Industrial Revolution!

Not only did factory jobs get offshored, but they moved into the southern United States, where there were fewer labor unions and wide availability of Mexican immigrant labor. Jobs move south

These two regions, the declining north, and the rising south, came to be known as the Rust Belt and Sun Belt Rust Belt Sun Belt Northern US PUSH factors for migration (pushing people away) Southern US PULL factors for migration

Sun Belt

Rust Belt

These two regions, the declining north, and the rising south, came to be known as the Rust Belt and Sun Belt Rust Belt Sun Belt Northern US PUSH factors for migration (pushing people away) Industrial jobs quickly being offshored or sent south, starting in the 1960s and 70s People do not like the cold winters, harsh weather Southern US PULL factors for immigration Increasing number of jobs become available (oil, agriculture, military) Workers from the north move into the south to get jobs Mexican immigrants increase population of cheap labor People attracted to the beautiful weather and mild winters

NAFTA political cartoons