Abstract

The “War on Terror” has had a profound impact on the lives of hundreds of thousands of immigrants in the United States. Arab and Muslim immigrants have suffered mercilessly at the hands of a law enforcement that is intent on national security. They have been investigated, arrested, indefinitely detained, and deported at alarming rates. However there are hundreds of other ethnic and immigrant communities in the U.S., and there has yet to be a study to determine the impacts of the “War on Terror” on these other groups. This study seeks to answer the question: What is the impact of the “War on Terror” on undocumented Mexican workers in southeast Michigan? Undocumented Mexican workers have an historical importance in the U.S. because of their relationship to the U.S. economy. They provide labor during periods of economic growth, and they are deported during periods of economic stagnation or depression. This study, using evidence collected through personal interviews and contexualized in the historical experiences of Mexican immigrants in the U.S. during periods of economic depression, will demonstrate that the “War on Terror” had a negligible impact on the community. The increase in the deportations of Mexican workers during this time period was due, in fact, to the economy, yet these deportations were carried out under the guise of national security, unbeknownst to the general public.

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