Bus to US poster

I think everybody knows that immigration by Mexicans is a big issue in the US. But you'd be amazed at the view from our end. The entire migration issue is having a profound impact on all of Mexico and the entire Mexican people. We have been to many, many towns whose entire working population is working in the US. We went to a big festival in the town of Jerez the other day - everyone assured us that 99% of the populatin of Jerez is working in the US. That's why the festival is such a big deal - many of the "paisanos", as US-workers are known, return for the fiesta. It's the one cultural connection with the old home town.

Everywhere we go, we see signs for the bus to the US. There are amazingly good prices. From Chihuahua you can get to Denver for US $69. From where we are today in northern Guanajuato, you can get to Dallas for US $40. At least that's what the sign claims.

It's not hard to figure out why you'd work in the US for $100/day instead of working here for (maybe) $10/day. But it is hard to figure out what the cultural results are after a few more decades of this.

I don't think we have talked with a single man of working age who has not made at least one working trip to the US. That's how many people there are working "on the other side", as they say here.