Bracero Program 1942 Mexicans can work in the U.S. with short term contracts 17,000 in L.A. 1942

Bracero Program 1942 A prime requirement for the bracero to be considered for employment in the United States is that he must have farming background. An immigration inspector examines this applicant's hands for callouses as proof of his experience as a farmer.

Workers in Mexico City hoping to be contracted to work in the US, 1942

RECRUITMENT CENTERS

RECRUITMENT CENTERS

RECRUITMENT CENTERS DDT not just used on crops…

Braceros received an Alien Laborer's Permit and signed a contract, usually for 9-12 months, at the end of which they had to turn in their permits and return to Mexico.

Bracero Program: Documentation Although the bracero treaty called for contracts to be written in Spanish, often they were in English, and the braceros did not understand what they were agreeing to.

Employers Underpayment was the most common complaint…often employers made braceros sign blank receipts and paid them far less than the agreed-upon wage.

But what were the conditions like for the workers?

Idaho potato picker, 1950s

California, 1947

New Mexico chile harvest, 1950s

Was it all bad? 2 Testimonials

Response to Bracero Program Many Americans became angered by the influx of Mexican migration (whether it was legal or illegal) There was a backlash and the government was pressured to respond to the public’s anger. The government launched operation wetback in 1954. Operation wetback was meant to cut down on illegal immigration. More than 1 million Mexicans (legal and ”illegal”) were deported within the first year.

1954: “OPERATION WETBACK” According to [INS Commissioner] Swing, the “alarming, ever-increasing, flood tide” of undocumented migrants from Mexico constituted “an actual invasion of the United States.” Operation Wetback commenced in June 1954 with a “direct attack…upon the hordes of aliens facing us across the border…Planes were used to locate wetbacks and to direct ground teams working in jeeps…to discourage re-entry, many of those apprehended were moved far into the interior of Mexico by train and ship.” Mae Ngai, Impossible Subjects (2004):155-156

Homework Background information on the Bracero Program. Write an opinion article about the Bracero Program. Be sure to include: Background information on the Bracero Program. What were the positives and negatives of the program? What is your opinion about the program? Why do you support or stand against the program? Must be two paragraphs and turned in as a JUNO DOC under the assignment “Bracero Opinion Article”