Grantmakers Concerned with Immigrants and Refugees - GCIR

Each year thousands of immigrants cross the U.S.-Mexico border, guided by a smuggler, through harsh and deadly terrain.  With the death toll mounting and the criminalization of the undocumented increasing, a group of Catholic funders come together to address these border issues.

In this New York Times opinion piece, Douglas S. Massey describes the effects of U.S. border policies and negates the claim that undocumented migration through the Mexican-American border is increasingly out of control.

Shows how punitive immigration and border enforcement policies have backfired, resulting in higher numbers of undocumented spread across larger areas of United States. Recommends 1) regulating border on binational basis by increasing annual quotas, establishing a flexible temporary labor program, and regularizing status of migrants in U.S.; 2) reducing incentives to hire undocumented workers through enforcing tax, labor, and worker-safety laws; and 3) developing strategies to help migrants better use earnings for savings and investment in Mexican communities.

Contends that the roots of the undocumented immigrant crisis lie in policymakers' fundamental misunderstanding of the causes of migration and migrants' motivations. Uses data to rebut basic misconceptions: that migration is caused by the lack of economic development and rapid population growth in home countries; that migrants are attracted mainly by wage differentials or public benefits; and that most intend to settle permanently in the United States.

This fast-fact page presents statistics on the border population, border crossings, border enforcement, and United States-Mexico economic contributors.

This report examines the growing anti-immigrant movement with a glance back to the history of similar border-watch groups and analysis of the current situation.

Since 9/11, concern has mounted among policymakers and law-enforcement authorities that foreign terrorists affiliated with Al-Qaeda might use Mexico as a transit point to enter the United States, relying on the same people-smuggling networks as undocumented immigrants and becoming lost in the flow of undocumented immigrants. This report examines the nationalities of undocumented border-crossers and the increasing profitability of people-smuggling, and proposes policy changes to make U.S. policies better aligned with the needs of the U.S. labor market.

This paper outlines the history of civilian border patrol groups, with a focus on those groups operating along the southwest border, including most particularly, the "Minuteman Project." The report also addresses some of the legal and policy issues that have surfaced from civilian activities at the border. The report concludes with summaries of legislative proposals that have been introduced in the 109th Congress that address the issue of civilian border patrol groups.