The matrícula consular was a laminated photo ID card bearing the person's name and home address in the United States, which was issued by Mexican officials without inquiring about the individual's immigration status in the United States. The cards included a number of antiforgery techniques used in ID cards issued by the U.S. government. The Mexican government began issuing these cards March 6, 2003, and as of February 2005 some 2.8 million matrícula consulars had been disbursed.
Obtaining a U.S. Driver's License
While it is not accepted as proof of legal status in the United States, the matrícula consular is accepted as identification by many law enforcement officials and local governments. The U.S. Treasury Department ruled in 2003 that the card could be used to open bank accounts, an option previously unavailable to aliens without proof of legal status. Of the migrants surveyed, 39% had used the card to open a U.S. bank account. The Pew study noted that, according to the National Immigration Law Center, as of January 2005 ten states accepted the matrícula consular as ID for persons seeking driver's licenses. Nineteen percent of all individuals surveyed reported they had used the card to obtain a U.S. driver's license, despite the fact that, of the cities in which the survey was conducted, only Dallas was in a state that issued driver's licenses based on a matrícula consular. From 11% to 31% of respondents in the other cities said they had used it to get a driver's license. (See Table 5.7.)
The Pew survey noted that applying for a matrícula consular did not mean that an individual was an unauthorized migrant (illegal alien). However, both permanent and temporary legal immigrants would have other forms of ID, such as a valid Mexican passport; permanent legal immigrants also would have a green card and be eligible for a Social Security card and driver's license in all states.
Where Do Mexican Immigrants Settle in the
United States?
Mexican migrants, both legal and illegal, were once found primarily in the South and border states where agricultural employment was most available. Since 1990 more Mexican migrants have moved into other areas of the country in search of job opportunities. Figure 5.7 provides a visual image of where Mexican-born migrants lived in greatest numbers according to the 2000 census. Some researchers have suggested that illegal aliens did not respond to the census and therefore they were not counted in the census figures. However, many census enumerators, who went in person to addresses that had not responded to the census by mail, told a different story. They related that in face-to-face interviews, illegal aliens frequently identified themselves. Some said they thought it was an honor to be counted in the U.S. census. Often they stated that they wanted to be sure their children were listed in the census, regardless of whether they were born in the United States.
FIGURE 5.7
The foreign-born from Mexico as percentage of total county population, 2000
Profile of Mexican Migrants
According to the Pew survey's findings, 48% of Mexican migrants interviewed were between the ages of nineteen and twenty-nine and 42% had been in the United States five years or less. Most (59%) wanted to remain in the United States as long as they could or for the rest of their lives. The Pew survey noted an increase of women (40%) in what had been a male-dominated flow of immigrants in the past. In addition, the group was better educated than the average population of Mexico (where only 7% of the adult population had completed high school) and more came from cities than agricultural areas. Thirty-six percent of those surveyed had completed lower secondary school (equivalent to U.S. grades 7–9) or vocational school, and 22% had completed high school. The largest share (27%) said they earned between $200 and $299 per week in the United States. Of all individuals surveyed, 54% said they spoke little or no English.
Furthermore, 68% of respondents said they had children, while 35% reported they had children enrolled in U.S. schools. Eighty-two percent said they had relatives
TABLE 5.8
Major industries of employment for Mexican migrants surveyed in selected cities, July 2004–January 2005
| Los Angeles | New York | Dallas | Chicago | Fresno | Raleigh | Atlanta | Total | Matrícula ID | No U.S. ID | |
| Agriculture | 3 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 52 | 10 | 5 | 8 | 7 | 6 |
| Hospitality | 13 | 26 | 16 | 17 | 6 | 10 | 16 | 15 | 17 | 18 |
| Construction | 9 | 15 | 26 | 12 | 5 | 37 | 26 | 16 | 17 | 17 |
| Manufacturing | 19 | 11 | 13 | 23 | 5 | 17 | 19 | 16 | 17 | 16 |
| Janitorial and landscaping | 9 | 9 | 11 | 9 | 4 | 10 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 10 |
| Domestic service | 6 | 8 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| Commerce/sales | 10 | 8 | 4 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 4 | 7 | 7 | 7 |
| Installation, maintenance and repair | 3 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 2 |
| Transportation and warehousing | 3 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 3 | * | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
other than children or spouse living in the United States. Of those who had been in the United States six to ten years, more than half (52%) had no photo ID issued by a U.S. government agency, and 26% of those who had lived in the United States fifteen years or more did not have such an ID.
While 47% of the total group surveyed worked in hospitality, construction, or manufacturing industries, the share varied greatly by the city in which the survey was conducted. The percentage employed in the hospitality industry (hotels, restaurants, and bars) was highest in New York City (26%). Manufacturing claimed the greatest share in Chicago (23%). In Dallas (26%), Raleigh (37%), and Atlanta (26%) the greatest share worked in construction. (See Table 5.8.) Construction workers tended to be male, younger than the average for the survey group, and earned more money. Agricultural workers tended to be older, less educated, and a disproportionate share had lived in the United States more than fifteen years. Only 10% of respondents said they did not work, and these were predominantly females.
Public Agenda, a nonpartisan opinion research organization, also interviewed immigrants for a study released in 2005 (Now That I'm Here: What America's Immigrants Have to Say about Life in the U.S. Today, New York). One section of the study compared Mexican immigrants to immigrants from other countries. Mexican immigrants were almost three times more likely to lack English language skills when they came to the United States (71% compared to 26%); almost four times as likely to lack a high school diploma (35% compared to 9%); more than twice as likely to lack health insurance (40% compared to 17%); and more likely to have an annual household income of $25,000 or less (44% compared to 27%). (See Figure 5.8.)
When Public Agenda asked immigrants what things were better in the United States and what things were better in their home country, Mexican immigrants found the United States better in all categories to a greater degree than immigrants from other countries. Mexican immigrants differed most from all other immigrants on issues of health care and a place to raise children. Just 6% of Mexican immigrants thought their home country was better than the United States at making good health care available, while 22% of other immigrants preferred health care in their home countries. Similarly, 9% of Mexican immigrants thought their home country was a better place to raise children compared to 26% of immigrants from other countries. All immigrants agreed by a strong majority that the United States had a more honest government, a trustworthy legal system, and honored women's rights. (See Figure 5.9.)
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