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Lgutierrez UC San Diego UC San Diego Electronic Theses and Dissertations Title A Constant Threat: Deportation and Return Migration to Northern Mexico, 1918-1965 Permalink https://escholarship.org/uc/item/8ft6j5xj Author Gutierrez, Laura Denise Publication Date 2016 Peer reviewed|Thesis/dissertation eScholarship.org Powered by the California Digital Library University of California UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO A Constant Threat: Deportation and Return Migration to Northern Mexico, 1918-1965 A dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Philosophy in History by Laura D. Gutiérrez Committee in charge: Professor David G. Gutiérrez, Chair Professor Ross Frank Professor Natalia Molina Professor Michael M. Monteón Professor Eric Van Young 2016 © Laura D. Gutiérrez, 2016 All rights reserved The Dissertation of Laura D. Gutiérrez is approved, and it is acceptable in quality and form for publication on microfilm and electronically: ________________________________________________________________________ Chair University of California, San Diego 2016 iii DEDICATION For my family. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Signature Page ……………………………………………………………………..........iii Dedication………………………………………………………………………………..iv Table of Contents ………………………………………………………………………...v List of Abbreviations …………………………………………………………............... vi List of Figures …………………………………………………………………………. vii Acknowledgements …………………………………………………………………… viii Vita ………………………………………………………………………………………xi Abstract of the Dissertation ……………………………………………………………. xii Introduction………………………………………………………………………............. 1 Chapter 1: Exodus and Return: Pre-Depression Mexican Emigration and Deportation………………………………………………………………........... 22 Chapter 2: “Out of the Frying Pan and into the Fire”: Deportation Policy, Return Migration, and the Mexican Border, 1930-1942……………………………...... 76 Chapter 3: The Wetback Problem: Deportation During the Bracero Program, 1942-1954……………………………………………………………………... 131 Chapter 4: The “Bracero Plague”: Deportation and Public Health Along the U.S.-Mexico Border …………………………………………………………... 188 Chapter 5: “Chastisement for Dreamers”: Deportation Procedures after 1954……….. 228 Conclusion…………………………………………………………………………….. 266 References………………………………………………………………………………273 v LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AGN Archivo General de la Nación ATEP Alien Transfer and Exit Program CTM Comité de Trabajadores Mexicanos ICE Immigration and Customs Enforcement INS Immigration and Naturalization Service IPS Investigaciones Políticas y Sociales PL Public Law PRI Partido Revolucionario Institucional SRE Secretaría de Relaciones Exteriores vi LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1.1: Unemployment Rate in the United States, 1900-1954……………………. 33 Figure 1.2: “Food Will Win the War” Image from the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History ……………………………………………………………… 41 Figure 1.3: 1922 Map of the Railway Lines in Northern Mexico and the U.S. Southwest…………………………………………………………………. 57 Figure 4.1: Compensation for Injuries, Migrant Labor Agreement of 1951…………. 212 Figure 5.1: Cartoon, La Prensa, 1956 ……………………………………………........ 255 vii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS After years of research and writing, the acknowledgments seem the most daunting in many ways as I can never thank everyone enough for all of their advice, help, and support. I have been fortunate to receive funding throughout my years at UCSD, which allowed me to have time to research and write. In particular, the Center for Iberian and Latin American Studies, the Institute for International, Comparative and Area Studies, and the UCSD Department of History provided funding for the initial stages of this research. A dissertation grant from the UC Institute for U.S.-Mexican Studies allowed me to spend an extensive period abroad in Mexico as well in archives in the United States. Funding from the Immigration and Ethnic History Society as well as the Social Science Research Council-Mellon Mays Graduate Initiative Program facilitated the last stages of this project. In my last year, I received a dissertation writing fellowship from the Center for U.S.-Mexican Studies, which was enormously helpful as it also provided me with an office and a great community of scholars working on Mexico. My professors and committee members have helped tremendously to shape and sharpen my approaches to the field as I attempted this transnational project. David G. Gutiérrez never stopped asking me the challenging questions and his guidance and mentorship turned my disconnected ideas into a project. Since my first year, Michael Monteón encouraged my interest in migration history, and his advice, support, and careful editing of endless grant applications have been invaluable. Eric Van Young’s insightful comments and suggestions pushed me to consider different aspects of the viii project while also inspiring me to always try to be a better writer. Beyond Natalia Molina’s brilliant comments on this work, her teaching and mentorship serve as models that I hope to someday follow. Ross Frank’s methodological questions have helped me to think beyond the boundaries of my field and have improved my work. Christine Hunefeldt not only taught me colonial history, but also helped to make UCSD a better space for students by opening her home and warmly reaching out to our field group. I am so grateful to have had a wonderful group of friends in the Department of History. The Latin American history field group has been supportive and collaborative since my first year, including Bárbara Zepeda, Michael Lettieri, Megan Strom, Nancy Egan, Gerardo Ríos, Luis Sánchez-López, and Ulices Pina. Throughout this process, Mayra Avitia and Alina Méndez have provided endless support and camaraderie and I am grateful to have had such good friends. Outside of the Latin America group, I had the opportunity to take classes and teach with other graduate students such as Elizabeth Sine, Israel Pastrana, Maki Smith, Mary Klann, Jorge Nicolás Leal, and Amanda Bevers. In particular, Alina, Mayra, Ulices, Luis, Israel and María Balandrán-Castillo all read and generously commented on portions of my dissertation. Beyond the department, I am thankful to have friends in academia in other departments and at other institutions, including Abigail Rosas, Ana Elizabeth Rosas, Lori Flores, María Balandrán-Castillo, Stephanie Gómez Menzies, Stevie Ruiz and Yuridia Ramírez Rentería. Additionally, Celeste Menchaca and Citlali Sosa served as wonderful writing partners and friends. In Mexico, I found a community of historians and researchers who provided support and camaraderie inside and outside the archives. In particular, Tracy Goode always welcomed me into her apartment and was a great writing ix partner on so many evenings and weekends. Also, these last few years would have been so much more difficult without Alejandro Villagordoa, whose support and unfailing confidence in me helped to keep me motivated. And lastly, I can never thank my family enough for everything. I am so grateful to have such amazing parents and brothers. Attending graduate school a few hours away from them allowed me to drive home whenever I needed to disconnect from work and made the experience much less isolating. My parents’ endless hard work and drive serve as inspiration whenever I feel overwhelmed and their love, support, and encouragement throughout this process made this all possible. x VITA 2007 Bachelor of Arts, University of Southern California 2010 Master of Arts, Stanford University 2010-2012 Teaching Assistant, Department of History, University of California, San Diego 2012-2013 Teaching Assistant, Making of the Modern World Program, University of California, San Diego 2013-2015 University of California Institute for Mexico and the United States Dissertation Research Grant 2015 Teaching Assistant, Making of the Modern World Program, University of California, San Diego 2015-2016 Visiting Fellow, Center for U.S.-Mexican Studies, University of California, San Diego 2016 Doctor of Philosophy, University of California, San Diego FIELDS OF STUDY Major Field: Latin American History Minor Field in Colonial Latin American History Professor Christine Hunefeldt Minor Field in Borderlands History Professor David G. Gutiérrez xi ABSTRACT OF THE DISSERTATION A Constant Threat: Deportation and Return Migration to Mexico, 1918-1965 by Laura D. Gutiérrez Doctor of Philosophy, History University of California, San Diego Professor David G. Gutiérrez, Chair This dissertation examines nearly five decades of voluntary and involuntary return migration to Mexico to explore how this affected migrants, communities in northern Mexico, and Mexico as a sending country. I approach the study of return migration by focusing on processes of forced removal and repatriation as well as the arrival of migrants in their home country to look at what happened to repatriates, deportees, and xii returning guest workers after arriving in Mexico. This dissertation begins with the World War I emergency labor program and ends with the return of bracero guest workers to Mexico in the mid-1960s. During this period, returning migrants became associated with disease, crime, violence, and instability, while cities in northern Mexico struggled with the significant demographic and economic changes caused by this migratory movement. Thus, as the threat of deportation functioned to discipline and control Mexican migrants in the United States, returning migrants in Mexico were also perceived as a threat by their compatriots. A study of return migration provides one way to explore the hidden
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