What was the Bracero Program?
The Bracero program was an agreement between the U.S. and Mexican governments that permitted Mexican nationals to take temporary agricultural work in the United States. Throughout the program's 22-year duration, over 4.5 million Mexican nationals were legally contracted for work in the United States. This program was in place from 1942 until 1964.
How did this program begin?
This program came about due to the enormous manpower shortage the U.S. experienced during World War II. During this war, all available resources in the U.S. were put to use. Many men and women worked in factories, and all who were strong & able fought on the front lines. As a result, many believed that World War II would bring labor shortages to low-paying agricultural jobs. Therefore, the United States turned to Mexico in search of willing laborers. On August 4, 1942, the United States concluded a temporary intergovernmental agreement for the use of Mexican agricultural labor on United States farms, and the influx of legal temporary Mexican workers ensued. Congress formalized the Bracero Program in 1951 with Public Law 78.
What attracted braceros?
In the late 1930's, Mexican crops started yielding insufficient harvest and employment became scarce. As a result, Mexican laborers were forced to look for other means of survival. This coincided with increasing demands for manual labor in the U.S. resulting from World War II. Mexican citizens wanted to participate in the bracero program in order to earn better wages and provide for their families. They saw hope on the other side of the border.
What was life like for a bracero?
Braceros worked on farms and railroads, making it possible for the U.S. economy to meet the challenges imposed by the war effort. Although the Bracero agreement contained specifications regarding health, housing, food, wages, and working hours, most of these requirements were ignored by the U.S. government and the growers. The agreement that Mexican nationals not be discriminated against was also disregarded. The braceros suffered an abundance of abuse not only from racist extremists but also from average Americans. Some restaurants had signs prohibiting the entrance of Mexicans. If restaurants did allow Mexicans inside, they were often forced to eat in the back of the kitchen. Segregation was also evident in theaters, where Mexicans were only permitted to sit in the upper sections designated for African Americans.
“Generally speaking, the Latin-American migratory worker going into west Texas is regarded as a necessary evil, nothing more nor less than an unavoidable adjunct to the harvest season. Judging by the treatment that has been accorded him in that section of the state, one might assume that he is not a human being at all, but a species of farm implement that comes mysteriously and spontaneously into being coincident with the maturing of cotton, that requires no upkeep or special consideration during the period of its usefulness, needs no protection from the elements, and when the crop has been harvested, vanishes into the limbo of forgotten things-until the next harvest season rolls around. He has no past, no future, only a brief and anonymous present.”
From Latin Americans in Texas, by Pauline R. Kibbe, The University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque, 1948
A brief overview of the Bracero Program
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At 80 years old, two former braceros describe their experience with the Bracero Program.
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When and why did the Bracero Program end?
By the 1960’s, an abundance of “illegal” agricultural workers, along with the development of the mechanical cotton harvester, had caused the downfall of the Bracero Program, destroying its attractiveness and practicality. The Bracero Program was terminated on December 1, 1964. The braceros returned to their homes, but unfortunately, many of them were unable to survive in their Mexican communities. Therefore, countless people crossed the border hoping to find work on ranches and farms in the United States.
Why does the Bracero Program still matter today?
The long term effects of the Bracero Program can still be seen today in both Mexico and the United States. Today, these two countries experience common migration pattern, in which Mexican citizens enter the U.S. for work, go back to Mexico for a period, and later return to the U.S. to earn more money. Today, the United States has an abundance of Mexican immigrants, both legal and illegal, that probably followed the example set in the days of the Bracero Program. Anyone can see this program's impact on the people of the United States and Mexico.