1846 – The Treaty of Guadalupe takes away 45 percent of Mexico’s territory. This area eventually becomes what is now Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California.
1850-1880 – Business in the west began to grow and these businessmen needed workers for their products. They went to Asia and Latin America looking for raw materials and people to work on their land. They brought 55 thousand Mexican peasant workers back to the United States.
1880-1890 – The railroad between Mexico and the United States is created. Many Mexicans find jobs as railway workers.
1910-1917 – The Mexican Revolution causes an increase in Mexican immigrants to the United States.
1924 – The Border Patrol is founded. It changes the immigration of Mexicans greatly by creating a category of “illegal” immigrants.
1929 – The Great Depression hits the United States. Many farmers from Oklahoma, Texas, and Arkansas came to California and the competition for jobs greatly increased.
1942 – The Bracero program was started, which allowed workers on Mexican farms to come to the United States. Many Americans hired these “braceros” because they would accept less pay and work longer hours. This left many Mexican Americans without jobs. The families of these braceros lived in shacks or sometimes were homeless because they were getting paid so little. They moved to wherever work was available. In Mexico, they signed contracts that they did not fully understand. When the contract ran out, they were forced to move back to Mexico.
1959 – The Mexican American Political Association was established. It along with Cesar Chavez fought for the civil rights of Mexican Americans and was against illegal immigration because it lowered wages for citizens.
1972-1973 – The Immigration and Naturalization Service increased enforcement of border patrol. The MAPA and Chavez switched their focus from illegal immigration to the bad economy that took advantage of the Mexican workers and displaced them from their homes.
1986 – The Immigration Reform and Control Act was passed. It said that employers could not knowingly employ illegal immigrants and that undocumented immigrants who had come to the United States before 1982 were given amnesty. Although it was supposed to stop the flow of immigration from Mexico, it did not.
1994 – Operation Gatekeeper was started which increased the intensity of border control in urban areas. This meant that immigrants who wanted to cross the border illegally had to do so though dangerous desert areas. Many people have died trying to get across the border since then.
Today – Some braceros can still be found working in parts of Texas and New Mexico. They are no longer called braceros, but they are still exploited for their labor.
Migrations
Animal 
Human 
Dance/Art