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 Editorials | August 2007 
Mexican Charities are Solution to Immigration Debate
 Dick Hughes - Salem StatesmanJournal
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 |  | It's an understatement to say that creating an equivalent number of decent jobs in Mexico won't be easy.
|  | | Hogar Infantil in southernmost Mexico is far from the immigration debate that rages in the United States.
But it strikes me that places like Hogar and other Mexican organizations are part of the immigration solution.
Simply put: People won't make the desperate, dangerous trek to the United States if they can find jobs, food, education and health care in their home country.
Mexico possesses considerable natural resources and immense intellectual capital. The country also has a history of government inefficiency and corruption, which has exacerbated the divide between rich and poor.
The elite can commute by helicopter across Mexico City, avoiding the streetside kidnappings for ransom. The poorest of the poor live on municipal garbage dumps, scavenging items to sell. Their children spend all day trying to make a bit of money, not going to school.
Poverty in Mexico's rural regions, especially among indigenous people, has caused many to move to cities, where some join sprawling slums. In turn, many head north, across the U.S. border, in search of jobs that will feed their families.
Those U.S. jobs have become a pillar of the Mexican economy.
Last year, Latin American immigrants in Oregon sent about $383 million back to their home countries, mostly to Mexico, according to data from the Inter-American Development Bank.
Overall, Mexicans living in the United States sent $23 billion back home in 2006. Those remittances are Mexico's second-largest source of foreign income, next to oil.
It's an understatement to say that creating an equivalent number of decent jobs in Mexico won't be easy.
Obviously, on a macro level, U.S. political and business leaders must push for fundamental reforms and economic development in Mexico. Such actions are in our nation's best interest, as well as Mexico's.
On a micro level, we Oregonians also have a role.
That is where places such as Hogar come in. Located in the impoverished state of Chiapas, the orphanage gives 80 children a long-term, loving home. They go to school, do chores and develop positive character traits. Many go on to university or other specialized training, often with help from the orphanage.
These children aren't desperate to come to America. After leaving Hogar, they want to stay in Chiapas, near siblings and whatever other family they have - if they can find jobs.
By supporting Hogar through its U.S. fundraising board, we are giving them a chance.
Another example is Oregon-based Medical Teams International.
Formerly known as Northwest Medical Teams, the organization has sent 860 teams to Mexico since 1985. MTI arrived to provide disaster relief from the devastating Mexico City earthquake, and stayed to assist with long-term development.
Although U.S. volunteers remain important, MTI works with its sister organization in Mexico to operate many of the programs.
One project involves 70 families who built their "homes" with scavenged materials on a dump outside Mexico City. Malnutrition, alcoholism and other problems are rampant.
Through the MTI project, children get breakfast and go to school. Families learn to prepare more nutritious meals. Women learn sewing and embroidery from which they can make money. Teens learn computer skills for jobs or higher education. Volunteers help build latrines and shelters, so families gain a rudimentary "home."
Working with its sister organization and Mexican agencies, MTI tries to establish and nourish community-run efforts - so people have a stake in their own future.
The salaries paid locally and the supplies bought locally help that local economy. The attention to basic skills and shelter give people the opportunity for a better life.
That will make a difference - in Mexico and the U.S.
Contact Dick Hughes at dhughes@StatesmanJournal.com |
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