Mexico–United States border: Difference between revisions

{{Short description|International border in North America}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=NovemberFebruary 20172024}}

| territory1 = {{MEX}}<br>

| territory2 = <br>{{USA}}

[[File:Border USA Mexico.jpg|thumb|300pxupright=1.4|The vast majority of the current border was decided after the [[Mexican–American War]] (1846–1848). Most of the border is settled on the Rio Grande River on the border of Texas and northeastern Mexico. To the left lies San Diego, California and on the right is Tijuana, Baja California. The building in the foreground on the San Diego side is a sewage treatment plant built to clean the [[Tijuana River]].]]

[[File:Plaque at Mexico United States border.svg|thumb|300pxupright=1.4|A typical plaque constructed by the [[International Boundary and Water Commission]] and mounted at the exact location of the border]]

The '''Mexico–United States border''' ({{lang-es|frontera Estados Unidos–México}}) is an [[Border|international border]] separating [[Mexico]] and the [[United States]], extending from the [[Pacific Ocean]] in the west to the [[Gulf of Mexico]] in the east. The borderIt traverses a variety of terrains, ranging from urban areas to deserts. The Mexico–U.S. border is the most frequently [[List of Mexico–United States border crossings|most frequently crossed]] border in the world<ref name="BGTG" /><ref name="auto">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aHYt0RNSDfgC&q=most%20frequently%20crossed%20border%20guinness&pg=PA457|title=Guinness World Records 2009|last=Glenday|first=Craig|publisher=Random House Digital, Inc.|year=2009|isbn=978-0553592566|page=457|access-date=March 9, 2011}}</ref> with approximately 350 million documented crossings annually.<ref name="BGTG">{{cite[[Illegal book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hknZxFWtWnQC&pg=PA75|title=Retirementimmigration Withoutto Borders:the HowUnited toStates|Illegal Retirecrossing Abroad{{snd}}inof Mexico,the France,border Italy,to Spain,enter Costathe Rica,United Panama,States]] andhas Othercaused Sunny,the Foreign Places|last=Golson|first=Barry|publisher=[[SimonMexico–United &States Schusterborder crisis]]|year=2008|isbn=978-0743297011|location=New. York,It Newis York|page=75|author2=Thiaone Golson|access-date=Marchof 9,two 2011}}</ref><refinternational name="google.com">{{citeborders newsthat |title=US,the MexicoUnited openStates firsthas, newthe borderother crossingbeing inthe 10northern years[[Canada–United |location=WashingtonStates |url=https://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jHLM81sN-H02Sf1CANZvBoE9mUwAborder]]; |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140228012612/https://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jHLM81sN-H02Sf1CANZvBoE9mUwAMexico |archive-date=Februaryhas 28,two 2014other borders: |newspaper=[[Agence FranceBelize-PresseMexico border|AFPwith Belize]] |date=Januaryand 12, 2010 |access[[Guatemala-date=December 3, 2012Mexico border|quote=The US–Mexico border is the busiest in the world, with approximatelyGuatemala]]. 350The million crossings per yearMexico-U.S. }}</ref> Itborder is the tenth-longest border between two countries in the world.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/countries-with-the-longest-land-borders.html|title=Countries With the Longest Land Borders|website=WorldAtlas|date=August 2019|language=en|access-date=2019-11-01}}</ref>

The total length of the continental border is {{convert|3,145|km|mi|abbr=off|sp=us}}. From the Gulf of Mexico, it follows the course of the [[Rio Grande|Rio Grande (Río Bravo del Norte)]] to the border crossing at [[Ciudad Juárez|Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua]], and [[El Paso, Texas]]. Westward from [[El Paso–Juárez]], it crosses vast tracts of the [[Chihuahuan Desert|Chihuahuan]] and [[Sonoran Desert|Sonoran]] deserts to the [[Colorado River Delta]] and [[San Diego–Tijuana]], before reaching the Pacific Ocean.<ref name="us-ibwc-about">{{Cite web |url=http://www.ibwc.gov/About_Us/about_us.html |title=ArchivedThe copyInternational Boundary and Water Commission - Its Mission, Organization and Procedures for Solution of Boundary and Water Problems |access-date=September 4, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924032356/http://www.ibwc.gov/About_Us/About_Us.html |archive-date=September 24, 2015 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }}</ref>

Four American states border Mexico: [[California]], [[Arizona]], [[New Mexico]] and [[Texas]]. One definition of [[Northern Mexico]] includes only the six Mexican states that border the U.S.: [[Baja California]], [[Chihuahua (state)|Chihuahua]], [[Coahuila]], [[Nuevo León]], [[Sonora]] and [[Tamaulipas]].<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_DDre5B1lLcC&pg=PA175|title=Consuming Mexican Labor: From the Bracero Program to NAFTA|last1=Mize|first1=Ronald L.|last2=Swords|first2=Alicia C. S.|date=2010|publisher=University of Toronto Press|isbn=9781442601581978-1-4426-0158-1|pages=175|language=en}}</ref>

[[File:Algodones sand-dune-fence.jpg|thumb|right|250px|[[U.S. Border Patrol]] at Algodones Sand Dunes, California. The fence on the U.S.–Mexican border is a special construction of narrow, {{convert|15|ft|abbr=on|order=flip}} tall elements, that are movable vertically. This way, they can be lifted on top of the ever shifting sand dunes.]]

The Mexico–United States border extends {{convert|3,145|km|mi|abbr=off|sp=us}}, in addition to the maritime boundaries of {{convert|29|km|mi|abbr=on}} into the [[Pacific Ocean]] and {{convert|19|km|mi|abbr=on}} into the [[Gulf of Mexico]].<ref name="1970BT">{{cite web|url=http://faolex.fao.org/docs/pdf/bi-51757.pdf|title=Treaty to Resolve Pending Boundary Differences and Maintain the Rio Grande and Colorado River as the International Boundary between the United States of America and México|date=November 23, 1970|access-date=December 7, 2014}}</ref><ref name="ssrn">{{cite journal|last=McCarthy|first=Robert J.|date=Spring 2011|title=Executive Authority, Adaptive Treaty Interpretation, and the International Boundary and Water Commission, U.S.–Mexico|journal=Water Law Review|pages=3–5|ssrn=1839903}}</ref> It is the tenth-longest border between two countries in the world.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/countries-with-the-longest-land-borders.html|title=Countries With the Longest Land Borders|website=WorldAtlas|date=August 2019|language=en|access-date=November 1, 2019}}</ref>

The Mexico–U.S. border begins at the [[Initial Point of Boundary Between U.S. and Mexico]], which is set one marine league (three [[nautical mile]]s) south of the southernmost point of [[San Diego Bay]]. The border then proceeds for {{convert|227|km|mi|abbr=on}} in a straight line towards the confluence of the [[Colorado River]] and [[Gila River]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://sandiegohistory.org/journal/v54-1/pdf/Levanetz.pdf|title=A Compromised Country: Redefining the U.S.-Mexico Border|last=Levanetz|first=Joel|website=San Diego History Center|access-date=2019-08-August 27, 2019}}</ref><ref name=":0" /> The border continues southwards along the Colorado River for {{convert|39|km|mi|abbr=on|sp=us}}, until it reaches a point {{convert|20.|mi|abbr=on|order=flip}} south of the Gila River confluence. The border then follows a series of lines and [[Circle of latitude|parallels]] totaling {{convert|859|km|mi|abbr=on}}. First, it follows a straight line from the Colorado River to the intersection of the 31°&nbsp;20′ parallel north and the [[111th meridian west]]. It then proceeds eastwards along the 31°&nbsp;20′ parallel north up to a meridian {{convert|100.|mi|abbr=on|order=flip}} west of the point where the [[Rio Grande]] crosses the 31°&nbsp;47′ parallel north,<ref name=":0" /> It then proceeds northwards along that meridian up to the 31°&nbsp;47′ parallel north and then eastwards along that parallel until it meets the Rio Grande.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.library.pima.gov/content/gadsden-purchase/|title=Gadsden Purchase|website=Pima County Public Library|language=en-US|access-date=2019-08-August 30, 2019}}</ref>

According to the [[International Boundary and Water Commission]],<ref>{{Cite web |urlname=https://www.ibwc.gov/About_Us/about_us.html |title=Archived copy |access"us-date=January 25, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180504194528/https://www.ibwc.gov/About_Us/About_Us.html |archive-date=May 4, 2018 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }}<about"/ref> the continental border then follows the middle of the Rio Grande—according to the 1848 [[Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo]] between the two nations, "along the deepest channel" (also known as the [[thalweg]])—a distance of {{convert|2,020.|km|mi|abbr=on}} to its mouth at the Gulf of Mexico.<ref name=":0">{{cite web|url=http://www.ibwc.gov/Files/US-Mx_Boundary_Map.pdf |title=United States Section Directive |access-date=November 11, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111015035847/http://ibwc.gov/Files/US-Mx_Boundary_Map.pdf |archive-date=October 15, 2011 |df=mdy }}</ref> The Rio Grande frequently meanders along the Texas–Mexico border. As a result, the U.S. and Mexico have a treaty by which the Rio Grande is maintained as the border, with new cut-offs and islands being transferred to the other nation as necessary. The [[Boundary Treaty of 1970]] between Mexico and the U.S. settled all outstanding [[Territorial dispute|boundary disputes]] and uncertainties related to the Rio Grande border.

[[File:Mapa Mexico 1842.PNG|thumb|left|300pxupright=1.4|Map of Mexico in 1842]]

In the mid-16th century, after the discovery of silver, settlers from various countries and backgrounds began to arrive in the area. This period of sparse settlement included colonizers from different backgrounds. The area was part of [[New Spain]]. In the early 19th century, the U.S. bought the lands known as the [[Louisiana Purchase]] from [[France]] and began to expand steadily westward.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/troublesomeborde00osca_0|url-access=registration|title=Troublesome Border|last=Martínez|first=Oscar J.|publisher=University of Arizona Press|year=1988|isbn=978-08165110440-8165-1104-4|location=Tucson}}</ref>

Five years later, the [[Gadsden Purchase]] completed the creation of the current U.S.–Mexico border. The purchase was initially to accommodate a planned [[Transcontinental railroad|railway right-of-way]]. These purchases left approximately 300,000 people living in the once disputed lands, many of whom were Mexican nationals. Following the establishment of the current border, several towns sprang up along this boundary, and many of the Mexican citizens were given free land in the northern regions of Mexico in exchange for returning and repopulating the area.<ref>{{cite book|title=The Late Great Mexican Border: Reports from a Disappearing Line|publisher=Cinco Puntos Press|year=1996|isbn=978-09383172410-938317-24-1|editor1-last=Byrd|editor1-first=Bobby|location=El Paso|editor2-last=Mississippi|editor2-first=Susannah}}</ref>

The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo and another treaty in 1884 were the agreements originally responsible for the settlement of the international border, both of which specified that the middle of the Rio Grande was the border, irrespective of any alterations in the channels or banks. The Rio Grande shifted south between 1852 and 1868, with the most radical shift in the river occurring after a flood in 1864. By 1873 the moving river-center border had cut off approximately {{convert|2.4|km2|acres|abbr=|sp=us}} of Mexican territory in the El Paso-Juarez area, in effect transferring the land to the U.S.. By a treaty negotiated in 1963, Mexico regained most of this land in what became known as the [[Chamizal dispute]] and transferred {{convert|1.07|km2|acres|abbr=on}} in return to the U.S. Border treaties are jointly administered by the [[International Boundary and Water Commission]] (IBWC), which was established in 1889 to maintain the border, allocate river waters between the two nations, and provide for flood control and water sanitation. Once viewed as a model of international cooperation, in recent decades the IBWC has been heavily criticized as an institutional anachronism, by-passed by modern social, environmental and political issues.<ref name="ssrn" /> In particular, jurisdictional issues regarding [[water right]]s in the [[Rio Grande Valley (Texas)|Rio Grande Valley]] have continued to cause tension between farmers along the border, according to Mexican political scientist [[Armand Peschard-Sverdrup]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Peschard-Sverdrup |first1=Armand |title=U.S.-Mexico Transboundary Water Management: The Case of the Rio Grande/Rio Bravo |year=2003 |publisher=Center for Strategic & International Studies |isbn=978-08920642430-89206-424-3 |edition=1}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Yardley |first1=Jim |title=Water Rights War Rages on Faltering Rio Grande|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2002/04/19/us/water-rights-war-rages-on-faltering-rio-grande.html |access-date=5 April 5, 2020 |work=The New York Times |date=April 19, 2002}}</ref>

The economic development of the border region on the Mexican side of the border depended largely on its proximity to the U.S., because of its remoteness from commercial centers in Mexico. During the years of Mexican President [[Porfirio Díaz]], between 1876 and 1910, the border communities boomed because of close ties to the U.S. and the Mexican government's support for financial investments from the U.S.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780195112283/page/433|title=Oxford History of Mexico|last=Hart|first=John M.|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2000|isbn=978-01951122830-19-511228-3|location=New York|pages=[https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780195112283/page/433 433–466]|chapter=The Mexican Revolution, 1910–1920}}</ref> Railroads were built that connected the northern Mexican states more to the U.S. than to Mexico, and the population grew tremendously. The mining industry also developed, as did the U.S.'s control of it. By the early 20th century companies from the U.S. controlled 81% of the mining industry and had invested US$500 million in the Mexican economy overall, 25% of it in the border regions.<ref name="Lorey, David E 1999">{{cite book|title=The U.S.-Mexican Border in the Twentieth Century|url=https://archive.org/details/usmexicanborderi0000lore|url-access=registration|last=Lorey|first=David E.|publisher=Scholarly Resources, Inc.|year=1999|isbn=978-08420275640-8420-2756-4|location=Wilmington}}</ref>

Although the Mexican Revolution caused insecurity in Mexico, it also strained U.S.–Mexico relations. With the Mexican Revolution lasting for 10 years, ending in 1920, and World War I simultaneously occurring between 1914 and 1918, the division between the U.S. and Mexico began to polarize the two nations. [[Mexican Border War (1910–1919)|Constant battles and raids along the border]] made both authorities nervous about borderland security. The [[Zimmermann Telegram|Zimmerman Telegram]], a diplomatic cable sent by Germany but intercepted and decrypted by British intelligence, was meant to bait Mexico into war with the U.S. in order to reconquer what was taken from them during the Mexican-American War. This inspired the U.S. [[Federal Bureau of Investigation]] to monitor suspicious activities and potential violence at the border.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Sherman|first=John W.|date=Fall 2016|title=Fascist 'Gold Shirts' on the Río Grande: Borderlands Intrigue in the Time of Lázaro Cárdenas<!-- |disabled url, this link is utterly useless for anyone not inside byu. url=http://web.a.ebscohost.com.erl.lib.byu.edu/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=20&sid=bfddb08a-48ad-4e62-9fcf-0656cd14af09%40sdc-v-sessmgr01-->|journal=Journal of South Texas|volume=30|pages=8–21}}</ref> Within 10 years, frequent provocations caused border towns to transform into battlefields, which intensified transborder restrictions, brought federal soldiers to patrol the border, and caused the construction of fences and barriers between border towns. When the battles concluded, restrictions for crossing the border were relaxed and most soldiers were sent home; however, the fences remained as a physical reminder of the division between the two nations. As years passed, more fences and higher barriers were established as attentions focused on the boundary demarcation between the U.S. and Mexico.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Line in the Sand: A History of the Western U.S.-Mexico Border|url=https://archive.org/details/linesandhistoryw00john|url-access=limited|last=St. John|first=Rachel|publisher=Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press|year=2011|isbn=978-06911561320-691-15613-2|pages=[https://archive.org/details/linesandhistoryw00john/page/n16 4]}}</ref>

The [[Banco Convention of 1905]] between the U.S. and Mexico allowed, in the event of sudden changes in the course of the Rio Grande (as by flooding), for the border to be altered to follow the new course.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ibwc.state.gov/Files/Convention_of_1905.pdf |title=Convention Between the United States and Mexico for the Elimination of the Bancos in the Rio Grande from the Effects of Article II of the Treaty of November 12, 1884 |date=June 5, 1907 |access-date=April 19, 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151009042029/http://www.ibwc.state.gov/Files/Convention_of_1905.pdf |archive-date=October 9, 2015 }}</ref> The sudden changes often created ''bancos'' (land surrounded by bends in the river that became segregated from either country by a cutoff, often caused by rapid accretion or avulsion of the alluvial channel), especially in the lower Rio Grande Valley. When these bancos are created, the [[International Boundary and Water Commission]] investigates if land previously belonging to the U.S. or Mexico is to be considered on the other side of the border.<ref>{{cite web |last=Metz |first=Leon C. |date=June 12, 2010 |title=Bancos of the Rio Grande |url=https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/rnb08 |work=Handbook of Texas Online |publisher=Texas State Historical Association |access-date=July 13, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161027194705/https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/rnb08%29 |archive-date=October 27, 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref> In all cases of these adjustments along the Rio Grande under the 1905 convention, which occurred on 37 different dates from 1910 to 1976, the transferred land was small (ranging from one to 646 acres) and uninhabited.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.ibwc.gov/Treaties_Minutes/Minutes.html | title=IBWC Minutes | publisher=[[International Boundary and Water Commission]] | access-date=September 11, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=zTEHCtUumBXk.k-ueCthwuSNs | title=USA-Mexico Bancos Map | access-date=September 11, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=Restless River, International Law and the Behavior of the Rio Grande |publisher=Texas Western Press |author=Mueller, Jerry E. |year=1975 |page=64 |isbn=978-08740405000-87404-050-0}}</ref>

The Rio Grande Rectification Treaty of 1933 straightened and stabilized the river boundary through the highly developed El Paso-Juárez valley. Numerous parcels of land were transferred between the two countries during the construction period, 1935–1938. At the end, each nation had ceded an equal area of land to the other.<ref>{{cite web|title=Minutes 144|url=http://www.ibwc.state.gov/Files/Minutes/Min144.pdf|author=International Boundary and Water Commission|access-date=2015-06-June 12, 2015|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160308032837/http://www.ibwc.state.gov/Files/Minutes/Min144.pdf|archive-date=March 8, 2016-03-08}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Minutes 158|url=http://www.ibwc.state.gov/Files/Minutes/Min158.pdf|author=International Boundary and Water Commission|access-date=2015-06-June 12, 2015|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160308033025/http://www.ibwc.state.gov/Files/Minutes/Min158.pdf|archive-date=March 8, 2016-03-08}}</ref>

On March 27, 2023, at least 38 detained migrants (mostly from Central America) were killed—and dozens more injured—in [[Ciudad Juárez migrant center fire|a&nbsp;fire]] started in protest inside a locked and crowded detention center cell in northern Mexico, with motives ranging from pending deportation to overcrowding and lack of access to drinking water.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Linthicum |first1=Kate |last2=McDonnell |first2=Patrick J. |last3=Minjares |first3=Gabriela |date=March 28, 2023-03-28 |title=At least 38 migrants killed in a fire at a detention center in Mexico |url=https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2023-03-28/mexico-border-dozens-dead-migrant-center-fire |access-date=March 29, 2023-03-29 |website=[[Los Angeles Times]] |language=en-US}}</ref>

The border separating Mexico and the U.S. is the most frequently crossed international boundary in the world,<ref name="BGTG">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hknZxFWtWnQC&pg=PA75|title=Retirement Without Borders: How to Retire Abroad{{snd}}in Mexico, France, Italy, Spain, Costa Rica, Panama, and Other Sunny, Foreign Places|last=Golson|first=Barry|publisher=[[Simon & Schuster]]|year=2008|isbn=978-0-7432-9701-1|location=New York, New York|page=75|author2=Thia Golson|access-date=March 9, 2011}}</ref><ref name="auto">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aHYt0RNSDfgC&q=most%20frequently%20crossed%20border%20guinness&pg=PA457|title=Guinness World Records 2009|last=Glenday|first=Craig|publisher=Random House Digital, Inc.|year=2009|isbn=978-0-553-59256-6|page=457|access-date=March 9, 2011}}</ref> with approximately 350 million legal crossings taking place annually.<ref name="BGTG" /><ref name="google.com">{{cite news |title=US, Mexico open first new border crossing in 10 years |location=Washington |url=https://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jHLM81sN-H02Sf1CANZvBoE9mUwA |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140228012612/https://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jHLM81sN-H02Sf1CANZvBoE9mUwA |archive-date=February 28, 2014 |newspaper=[[Agence France-Presse|AFP]] |date=January 12, 2010 |access-date=December 3, 2012 |quote=The US–Mexico border is the busiest in the world, with approximately 350 million crossings per year. }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nmsu.edu/~bec/BEC/Readings/10.USMBHC-TheBorderAtAGlance.pdf |title=The United States–Mexico Border Region at a Glance |website=United States–Mexico Border Health Commission |publisher=New Mexico State University |access-date=December 3, 2012 |quote=In 2001, over 300 million two-way border crossings took place at the 43 POEs. |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120915105245/http://www.nmsu.edu/~bec/BEC/Readings/10.USMBHC-TheBorderAtAGlance.pdf |archive-date=September 15, 2012 }}</ref>

There are 48 U.S.–Mexico border crossings, with 330 ports of entry. At these points of entry, people trying to get into the U.S. are required to open their bags for inspection.<ref name="Hodge, Roger D. 2012">{{cite journal|last=Hodge|first= Roger D. |title=Borderworld: How the U.S. Is Reengineering Homeland Security|url=http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2011-12/how-us-reengineering-homeland-security-borders|journal=Popular Science |volume=280 |issue= 1|year= 2012|pages= 56–81}}</ref> Border crossings take place by roads, pedestrian walkways, railroads and ferries. From west to east, below is a list of the border city "twinnings"; cross-border municipalities connected by one or more legal border crossings.

The [[San Ysidro Port of Entry]] is located between [[San Ysidro, San Diego|San Ysidro, California]] and [[Tijuana|Tijuana, Baja California]]. Approximately 50,000 vehicles and 25,000 pedestrians use this entry daily.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.politico.com/magazine/gallery/2017/02/photo-gallery-san-ysidro-california-us-mexico-border-000710?slide=0|title=A Day at the Busiest Border Crossing in the World|website=POLITICO Magazine|date=February 16, 2017 |language=en|access-date=2018-07-July 27, 2018}}</ref> In the U.S., [[Interstate 5 in California|I-5]] crosses directly to Tijuana, and the highway's southern terminus is this crossing. In 2005, more than 17 million vehicles and 50 million people entered the U.S. through [[San Ysidro]].<ref name="OECD2010">{{cite book|author=OECD|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7_vRPU5LZcIC&pg=PA331|title=Regional Development Policies in OECD Countries|year=2010|publisher=OECD Publishing|isbn=978-926408725592-64-08725-5|page=331}}</ref><ref name="Berndes">{{cite book|last=Berndes|first=Barry|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=h9ejDrOkkc4C&pg=PA227|title=The San Diegan&nbsp;– 41st Edition|publisher=The San Diegan|year=2009|isbn=978-18902261381-890226-13-8|page=227}}</ref><ref name="Gaynor2009">{{cite book|last=Gaynor|first=Tim|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Etodgf8bEGsC&pg=PA81|title=Midnight on the Line: The Secret Life of the U.S.–Mexico Border|date=2009|publisher=Macmillan|isbn=978-14299946201-4299-9462-0|page=81}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.-->|url=http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d08219.pdf|title=Border Security: Despite Progress, Weaknesses in Traveler Inspections Exist at Our Nation's Port of Entry|date=November 2007|publisher=United States Government Accountability Office|page=10|id=GAO-08-219|quote=and the busiest land crossing in the United States at San Ysidro, California, which processes over 17 million vehicles a year (see fig. 1);|access-date=September 8, 2014}}</ref> Among those who enter the U.S. through San Ysidro are ''transfronterizos'', American citizens who live in Mexico and attend school in the U.S.<ref>{{cite news|last=Brown|first=Patricia Leigh|date=January 16, 2012|title=Young U.S. Citizens in Mexico Brave Risks for American Schools|newspaper=New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/17/us/young-us-citizens-in-mexico-up-early-to-learn-in-the-us.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0|access-date=September 8, 2014}}</ref>

The average wait time to cross into the U.S. is approximately an hour.<ref name="MESA" /> The thousands of vehicles that transit through the border every day is causing air pollution in San Ysidro and Tijuana.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.voiceofsandiego.org/topics/science-environment/san-ysidro-is-getting-a-clearer-look-at-just-how-polluted-it-is/|title=San Ysidro Is Getting a Clearer Look at Just How Polluted it is|date=2018-04-April 23, 2018|work=Voice of San Diego|access-date=2018-07-July 27, 2018|language=en-US}}</ref> The emission of [[Carbon monoxide poisoning|carbon monoxide (CO)]] and other vehicle related air contaminants have been linked to health complications such as cardiovascular disease, lung cancer, birth outcomes, premature death, obesity, asthma and other respiratory diseases.<ref name="sandag">{{Cite web|url=https://www.sandag.org/uploads/publicationid/publicationid_1933_18945.pdf|title=Border Health Equity Transportation Study|date=February 27, 2015}}</ref> The high levels of traffic collusion and the extended wait times has affected the mental health, stress levels, and aggressive behavior of the people who cross frequently.<ref name="sandag" />

The San Ysidro border is heavily policed, separated by three walls, [[United States Border Patrol|border patrol]] agents and the [[U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://foreignpolicy.com/2011/06/24/the-worlds-most-dangerous-borders/|title=The World's Most Dangerous Borders|website=Foreign Policy|date=June 24, 2011 |language=en|access-date=2018-07-July 27, 2018}}</ref>

Tijuana is the next target for San Diegan developers because of its fast-growing economy, lower cost of living, cheap prices and proximity to San Diego.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.expatistan.com/cost-of-living/tijuana|title=Cost of Living in Tijuana, Mexico. Jul 2018 prices in Tijuana.|website=Expatistan, cost of living comparisons|language=en|access-date=2018-07-July 27, 2018}}</ref> While this would benefit the tourist aspect of the city, it is damaging to low-income residents that will no longer be able to afford the cost of living in Tijuana.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/karlazabludovsky/tijuana-wants-you-to-forget-everything-you-know-about-it|title=Tijuana Wants You To Forget Everything You Know About It|work=BuzzFeed News|access-date=2018-07-July 27, 2018|language=en}}</ref> Tijuana is home to many deportees from the U.S., many who have lost everything and do not have an income to rely on and are now in a new city in which they have to quickly adapt in order to survive.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/inequality/2017/dec/12/mexico-deportation-tijuana-trump-border|title=This is what the hours after being deported look like|last=Lakhani|first=Nina|date=2017-12-December 12, 2017|work=The Guardian|access-date=2018-07-July 27, 2018|language=en-GB|issn=0261-3077}}</ref> San Diego developers would bring many benefits to Tijuana, but deportees and the poor run the risk of being impacted by the [[gentrification]] of Tijuana.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.voiceofsandiego.org/border/small-san-diego-developers-see-a-new-frontier-in-tijuana/|title=San Diego Developers See a New Frontier in Tijuana|date=2015-11-November 30, 2015|work=Voice of San Diego|access-date=2018-07-July 27, 2018|language=en-US}}</ref>

In late 2006, the [[U.S. Department of Homeland Security]] (DHS) announced a rule regarding new identification requirements for U.S. citizens and international travelers entering the U.S. implemented on January 23, 2007. This final rule and first phase of the WHTI specifies nine forms of identification, one of which is required to enter the U.S. by air: a valid [[passport]]; a [[United States Passport Card|passport card]]; a state [[Driver's licenses in the United States#Enhanced driver's licenses|enhanced driver's license]] or state enhanced non-driver ID card (available in [[Michigan]], [[New York (state)|New York]], [[Vermont]], and [[Washington (state)|Washington]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.getyouhome.gov/html/lang_eng/eng_edl.html|title=WHTI: Enhanced Drivers License|website=Getyouhome.gov|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120215123453/http://www.getyouhome.gov/html/lang_eng/eng_edl.html|archive-date=February 15, 2012|url-status=dead|access-date=9 April 9, 2018|df=mdy-all}}</ref>) approved by the Secretary of Homeland Security; a trusted traveler program card ([[Global Entry]], [[NEXUS]], [[Free and Secure Trade|FAST]], or [[SENTRI]]); an enhanced tribal identification card; a Native American Tribal Photo Identification Card;

In August, 2015, Mexico began enforcing a rule that all foreign citizens that plan to stay in the country for more than seven days or are travelling on business will have to pay a 330 [[peso]]s ($21) fee and show their passport.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/border-baja-california/sdut-mexico-opens-new-pedestrian-port-san-ysidro-2015aug19-story.html|title=New pedestrian crossing unveiled in Tijuana|last=Dibble|first=Sandra|website=Sandiegouniontribune.com|access-date=April 9, 2018|date=August 20, 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/USA-Update/2015/0820/Why-it-s-Mexico-s-turn-to-tighten-the-US-border|title=Why it's Mexico's turn to tighten the US border|date=August 20, 2015|newspaper=[[Christian Science Monitor]]|access-date=April 9, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2015/08/20/433155278/new-rules-go-into-effect-at-busy-u-s-mexico-border-crossing|title=New Rules Go Into Effect At Busy U.S.–Mexico Border Crossing|website=Npr.org|date=August 20, 2015|access-date=April 9, 2018|last1=Wagner|first1=Laura}}</ref>

[[File:Mexico Baja California passport stamp.jpg|200px|thumbnailthumb|right|Passport stamp upon arrival in [[Tijuana, Baja California]] land border crossing]]

</ref> advance contact with port veterinarians is recommended.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.aphis.usda.gov/vs/ncie/portvet.html|title=Port Veterinarian List|publisher=Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS)|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061209004821/http://www.aphis.usda.gov/vs/ncie/portvet.html|archive-date=December 9, 2006|access-date=October 5, 2011}}</ref> Animals crossing the U.S.–Mexico border may have a country of origin other than the country where they present for inspection. Such animals include those from the U.S. that cross to Mexico and return, and animals from other countries that travel overland through Mexico or the U.S. before crossing the border.

[[File:Tijuana Border Traffic.jpg|thumb|left|Thousands of cars sit from fifteen minutes to two hours waiting to cross the border.<ref name="MESA">{{Cite news|url=http://www.otaymesa.org/border-waiting/|title=Border Wait Times and Border Crossing Statistics |work=otaymesa.org|access-date=2018-07-July 27, 2018|language=en-US}}</ref>]]

APHIS imposes precautions to keep out several equine diseases, including [[glanders]], [[Covering sickness|dourine]], [[equine infectious anemia]], [[Babesiosis|equine piroplasmosis]], [[Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus|Venezuelan equine encephalitis]], and [[contagious equine metritis]].<ref name="APHIS1997">{{cite web|url=http://permanent.access.gpo.gov/lps3025/imphorse.html|title=Equine Importation|publisher=Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS)|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101017004412/http://www.aphis.usda.gov/import_export/animals/animal_import/equine/equine_import_quarantine.shtml|archive-date=October 17, 2010|access-date=October 5, 2011}}</ref> APHIS also checks horses to prevent the introduction of [[tick]]s and other parasites. In the Lower Rio Grande Valley, U.S. Department of Agriculture inspectors look for horses and livestock that stray across the border carrying ticks. These animals are often called wetstock, and the inspectors are referred to as tickriders.<ref name="Miller2000">{{cite book |last=Miller |first=Tom |title=On the Border: Portraits of America's Southwestern Frontier |publisher=iUniverse |year=2000 |isbn=9780816509430978-0-8165-0943-0 |pages=72–73}}</ref>

APHIS imposes similar testing and certification requirements on horses from other parts of the world but without the quarantine for VEE. These horses are held in quarantine—usually three days—or until tests are completed. Because the disease equine piroplasmosis (equine [[babesiosis]]) is endemic in Mexico but not established in the U.S.,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ca.uky.edu/gluck/q/2003/oct03/q_main.htm|title=Veterinary Science|website=Ca.uky.edu|access-date=9 April 9, 2018}}</ref> transportation of horses from Mexico to the U.S. requires evaluation of horses for the presence of this disease. A leading exception to this rule is the special waiver obtained by riders participating in the Cabalgata Binacional Villista (see [[cavalcade]]).

==SecurityUS security==

[[File:Canyon, Rio Grande, Texas.jpeg|thumb|right|The [[Big Bend National Park]] is located at the border.]]

Data from the U.S. Border Patrol Agency's 2010 annual report shows that among the total number of border crossings without documentation from various countries into the U.S., 90% were from Mexico alone. In addition, there are more than 6 million undocumented Mexican nationals residing in the U.S.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://www.nap.edu/read/13498/chapter/1#ii|title=Options for Estimating Illegal Entries at the U.S.–Mexico Border The National Academies Press|publisher=The National Academies Press|year=2013|isbn=978-03092642660-309-26426-6|location=Washington D.C.|language=en|doi=10.17226/13498}}</ref> The border has a very high rate of documented and undocumented migrant crossings every year. With such a high rate of people crossing annually to the U.S., the country has invested in several distinct security measures.

In 2010, President [[Barack Obama]] signed an [[appropriation bill]] which gave the [[U.S. Customs and Border Protection|Customs and Border Protection]], specifically the Border Patrol, 600 million dollars to implement and improve security. The U.S. government has invested many millions of dollars on [[United States border security concerns|border security]], although this has not stopped undocumented immigration in the U.S.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Martínez|first1=Ruben|title=Fortress America|journal=Index on Censorship|date=2004|volume=33|issue=3|pages=48–52|doi=10.1080/03064220408537373|s2cid=220990170}}</ref> In June 2018, the U.S. government announced installation of [[facial recognition system]] for monitoring immigrant activities.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2018/jun/05/facial-recognition-us-mexico-border-crossing|title=US government to use facial recognition technology at Mexico border crossing|last=Levin|first=Sam|date=June 5, 2018-06-05|website=the Guardian|language=en|access-date=June 6, 2018-06-06}}</ref>

The Border Patrol was created in 1924 with its primary mission to detect and prevent the illegal entry of immigrants into the U.S. Together with other law enforcement officers, the Border Patrol maintains the U.S.' borderlands—regulating the flow of legal immigration and goods while patrolling for undocumented migrants and trafficking of people and contraband. The present strategy to enforce migration along the U.S.–Mexico border is by the means of "prevention through deterrence". Its primary goal is to completely prevent undocumented immigrants from entering the U.S. from Mexico rather than apprehending the unauthorized who are already in the country. As assertive as it was, "prevention through deterrence" was arguably unsuccessful, with a doubling in size of undocumented immigrants population during the two decades leading up to 2014.<ref name=":04">{{Cite journal|last=Ewing|first=Walter A.|date=2014|title=Enemy Territory: Immigration Enforcement in the US–Mexico Borderlands|url=https://heinonline.org/HOL/P?h=hein.journals/jmighs2&i=198.|journal=Journal on Migration and Human Security|volume=2|issue=3|pages=198–222|via=HeinOnline|doi=10.14240/jmhs.v2i3.32|doi-broken-date=February 19, 2024 |doi-access=free}}</ref><ref name="cbp.gov" />

According to Vulliamy, one in five Mexican nationals will visit or work in the U.S. at one point in their lifetime.<ref name="Vulliamy2010">{{cite book|last=Vulliamy|first=Ed|url=https://archive.org/details/amexicawaralongb00vull|title=Amexica: War Along the Borderline|date=2010|publisher=Farrar, Straus and Giroux|isbn=978-03741044120-374-10441-2}}</ref> As of 2010, the border is guarded by more than 20,000 Border Patrol agents, more than at any time in its history.<ref name="2010-06-fact sheet">{{cite web |last=U.S. Department of Homeland Security |title=Fact Sheet: Southwest Border Next Steps |date=June 23, 2010 |url=https://www.dhs.gov/ynews/releases/pr_1277310093825.shtm |access-date=August 6, 2010}}</ref> The border is paralleled by [[United States Border Patrol interior checkpoints|U.S. Border Patrol interior checkpoints]] on major roads generally between {{convert|25|and|75|mi|abbr=on|order=flip|km}} from the U.S. side of the border, and [[garitas]] generally within {{Convert|50.|km|abbr=on}} of the border on the Mexican side.<ref name="GAO2005">{{cite web|url=http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d05435.pdf|title=Border Patrol: Available Data on Interior Checkpoints Suggest Differences in Sector Performance|publisher=[[United States General Accounting Office]]|date=July 2005}}</ref><ref name="GAO2009">{{cite web|url=http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d09824.pdf|title=Border Patrol: Checkpoints Contribute to Border Patrol's Mission, but More Consistent Data Collection and Performance Measurement Could Improve Effectiveness|publisher=[[United States General Accounting Office]]|date=August 2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.aduanas.sat.gob.mx/aduana_mexico/2007/RCGMCE/2007/Anexo_25.doc |author=Aduana Mexico|year= 2007|title= Aduanas 25 de las Reglas de Caracter General en Materia de Comercio Exterior para 2007|language=es|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120224013954/http://www.aduanas.sat.gob.mx/aduana_mexico/2007/RCGMCE/2007/Anexo_25.doc |archive-date=February 24, 2012}}</ref>

In January, 2013, the [[Government Accountability Office]] released a report stating that the U.S. Border Patrol intercepted 61% of individuals illegally crossing the border in 2011, which translates to 208,813 individuals not apprehended.<ref name="JAN13GAO">{{cite news|first=Stephen|last= Dinan |title=Interceptions of immigrants stubbornly low |url=http://m.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/jan/9/interceptions-immigrants-stubbornly-low/ |newspaper=Washington Times |date=January 9, 2013 |access-date=January 12, 2013}}</ref> 85,827 of the 208,813 would go on to illegally enter the U.S., while the rest returned to Mexico and other Central American countries.<ref name="JAN13GAO" /> The report also shows that the number of illegal border crossings has dropped.<ref name="JAN13GAO" />

The [[Human Rights Watch]] cited on April 22, 2020, that a U.S.–Mexico border shutdown could be expected following the [[Coronavirus disease 2019|COVID-19]] public health emergency. According to HRW, the new rule introduced by the [[Centers for Disease Control and Prevention|CDC]] overlooks the fact that the U.S. is obligated to protect refugees from return to conditions threatening prosecution, as per treaties.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.hrw.org/news/2020/04/22/tell-trump-administration-protect-asylum-seekers|title=Tell the Trump Administration to Protect Asylum Seekers |access-date=22 April 22, 2020|website=Human Rights Watch|date=April 22, 2020 }}</ref>

President Joe Biden's border executive plan as the COVID-19 restrictions —– known as Title 42 – expired in May 2023.

The U.S. government had plans in 2006, during the [[Presidency of George W. Bush|Bush administration]], to erect a border fence along the Mexico–U.S. border. The controversial proposal included creating many individual fences. Almost {{Convert|600.|mi|km|abbr=on|order=flip}} of fence were constructed, with each of the individual fences composed of steel and concrete.<ref name="Vulliamy2010" /> In between these fences are infrared cameras and sensors, National Guard soldiers, and SWAT teams on alert, giving rise to the term "virtual fence".<ref name="Vulliamy2010" /> Construction on the fence began in 2006, with each mile costing the U.S. government about $2.8 million.<ref name="Hodge, Roger D. 2012">{{cite journal|last=Hodge|first= Roger D. |title=Borderworld: How the U.S. Is Reengineering Homeland Security|url=http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2011-12/how-us-reengineering-homeland-security-borders|journal=Popular Science |volume=280 |issue= 1|year= 2012|pages= 56–81}}</ref> In 2010, the initiative was terminated because of costs, after having completed {{convert|640.|mi|km|abbr=on|order=flip}} of either barrier fence or vehicle barriers, that were either new or had been rebuilt over older, inferior fencing. The [[Boeing]]-built SBI-net systems of using radar, watchtowers, and sensors (without a fence or physical barrier) were scrapped for being over budget, full of glitches, and far behind schedule.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/03/16/AR2010031603573.html|title=Work to cease on 'virtual fence' along U.S.–Mexico border|last=Hsu|first=Spencer S.|date=March 16, 2010|newspaper=The Washington Post}}</ref>

According to the U.S. Border Patrol, apprehensions of Central Americans at the border reduced from 70,000 to 55,000 attempted illegal migrants from 2007 to 2011. Thereafter, the number of apprehensions increased dramatically to 95,000 in 2012, 150,000 in 2013 and 220,000 in 2014. The increased apprehensions could have been the result of improved border security or a dramatic rise in attempted crossings, or both.<ref name="officialstats">{{cite web |title=Statistics – SW Border apprehensions |url=https://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/stats/usbp-sw-border-apprehensions |website=www.cbp.gov |publisher=CBP – US Border patrol (Official website) |access-date=6 November 6, 2018}}</ref>

|newspaper=San Diego Union Tribune |access-date=January 17, 2008}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pEKUJGT2xr4 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211221/pEKUJGT2xr4 |archive-date=2021-12-December 21, 2021 |url-status=live| title=MSNBC report on Border incursion Oct 18 2007 |publisher=MSNBC |access-date=January 17, 2008}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11226144 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060318115739/http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11226144/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=March 18, 2006 |title=Mexican incursions inflame border situation |publisher=MSNBC |access-date=January 17, 2008}}</ref> In 2014 the U.S. Department of Homeland Security informed California Representative [[Duncan D. Hunter]] that since 2004, there have been 300 documented border incursions, which resulted in 131 individuals being detained.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://hunter.house.gov/press-release/dhs-hunter-more-300-border-incursions-mexican-military-and-law-enforcement-authoriti-0 |title=DHS to Hunter: More than 300 border incursions by Mexican military and law enforcement authorities since January 2004 |date=June 17, 2014 |website=Congressman Duncan Hunter |publisher=United States House of Representatives |access-date=June 17, 2014 |archive-date=July 13, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190713105000/https://hunter.house.gov/press-release/dhs-hunter-more-300-border-incursions-mexican-military-and-law-enforcement-authoriti-0 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In 2019, there have been humanitarian crises on the border because of lack of resources. Migrant children have specifically been affected.<ref name="roguerocket.com">Stenn, L. (2019, June 25, 2019). Hundreds of Migrant Children Moved From Border Facility After Poor Conditions Exposed. Retrieved from https://roguerocket.com/2019/06/25/hundreds-of-migrant-children-moved-from-border-facility-after-poor-conditions-exposed/</ref> Democratic members of the House of Representatives introduced legislation that would aid the humanitarian crisis by giving $4.5 billion to emergency spending to address the humanitarian crisis at the border, with significant funding for priorities including legal assistance, food, water, and medical services, support services for unaccompanied children, alternatives to detention, and refugee services.<ref>House Democrats Introduce Emergency Border Supplemental. (2019, June 21, 2019). Retrieved from https://appropriations.house.gov/news/press-releases/house-democrats-introduce-emergency-border-supplemental</ref>

Distribution of natural resources across the border has also been a major challenge, particularly for water use and water quality. Toxic sewage flowing into Mexico, and over-consumption of water from the Colorado River Basin and middle-lower Rio Grande have been central to the conflict. Large-scale infrastructure investments may be necessary to address the growing water and energy issues in this arid region.<ref name="Applied Energy 2021 p. ">{{cite journal | title=Combatting water scarcity and economic distress along the US-Mexico border using renewable powered desalination | journal=Applied Energy | volume=291 | date=June 1, 2021-06-01 | issn=0306-2619 | doi=10.1016/j.apenergy.2021.116765 | url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0306261921002725 | access-date=July 2, 2021-07-02 | page=116765| last1=Roggenburg | first1=Michael | last2=Warsinger | first2=David M. | last3=Bocanegra Evans | first3=Humberto | last4=Castillo | first4=Luciano | s2cid=233583448 }}</ref>

In 2016, Republican nominee for president [[Donald Trump]] proposed building a border wall to control immigration. He declared that, as president, he would force Mexico to pay all costs.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.cnn.com/2016/08/30/politics/donald-trump-enrique-pea-nieto-mexico/|title=Mexican president disputes Trump over border wall payment discussion|first1=Stephen|last1=Collinson|first2=Jeremy|last2=Diamond|website=CNN|date=September 1, 2016|access-date=October 7, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-37243269|title=How realistic is Donald Trump's Mexico wall?|date=September 1, 2016|website=BBC News|language=en-GB|access-date=October 7, 2016}}</ref> On January 25, 2017, several days after his inauguration and two days in advance of a planned meeting in Washington, D.C., with Mexican President [[Enrique Peña Nieto]], new U.S. president Trump signed [[Executive Order 13767]] to enable the building of the wall.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-38740717|title=Trump orders wall to be built on Mexico border|date=January 26, 2017|website=BBC News|language=en-GB|access-date=January 26, 2017}}</ref> Peña Nieto denied that Mexico would pay for the wall and declined the meeting.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-38753826|title=Mexico: We will not pay for Trump border wall|date=January 26, 2017|website=BBC News|language=en-GB|access-date=January 26, 2017}}</ref> Shortly after, Trump announced that he intended to impose a 20% tariff on Mexican goods.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-mexico-idUSKBN15A1VF|title=Trump seeks 20 percent tax on Mexico goods to pay for wall, crisis deepens|date=January 26, 2017|website=Reuters|language=en-GB|access-date=January 26, 2017}}</ref> Mexico did not make any payments. Tariffs increase the price of goods resulting in a tax paid by the consumer.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Baum |first1=Caroline |title=Forget what Donald Trump said: Tariffs are a tax on American consumers |url=https://www.marketwatch.com/story/forget-what-donald-trump-said-tariffs-are-a-tax-on-american-consumers-2019-03-06 |access-date=March 7 March, 2019 |website=MarketWatch |date=March 6 March, 2019}}</ref>

[[File:Cerco fronterizo de H. Nogales y Nogales.jpg|thumb|left|250px|Nogales border fence]]

On November 8, 2018, the Trump administration announced new rules to deny asylum to anyone who crosses into the U.S. illegally from any nation, at Trump's discretion. This was based on the Supreme Court decision of ''[[Trump v. Hawaii]]'' and the presidential powers of the [[Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965]].<ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/08/us/politics/trump-asylum-seekers-executive-order.html | title= Trump Claims New Power to Bar Asylum for Immigrants Who Arrive Illegally | first = Michael | last = Shear | date = November 8, 2018 | access-date = December 21, 2018 | work = [[The New York Times]] | url-access = limited}}</ref> Trump signed a proclamation the next day to specify that people crossing the Mexican border illegally would not qualify for asylum; he called the march of migrants from Central America towards the U.S. a "crisis".<ref name="nytimes asylum 20181109">{{cite web | url = https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/09/us/politics/trump-asylum-seekers-executive-order.html | title= Trump Suspends Some Asylum Rights, Calling Illegal Immigration 'a Crisis' | first1 = Michael | last1= Shear | first2 = Eileen | last2= Sullivan | date= November 9, 2018 | access-date = December 21, 2018 | work =[[The New York Times]] | url-access = limited}}</ref> Civil rights groups strongly criticized the move, and several groups, including the [[Southern Poverty Law Center]], the [[American Civil Liberties Union]], and the [[Center for Constitutional Rights]], filed a lawsuit in the [[United States District Court for the Northern District of California|U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California]] to challenge the proclamation.<ref name="nytimes asylum 20181109" /> Judge [[Jon S. Tigar]] ruled in favor of the advocacy groups on November 20, 2018, placing an injunction on the administration to delay implementation of the rule.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/20/us/judge-denies-trump-asylum-policy.html | title = Federal Judge Blocks Trump's Proclamation Targeting Some Asylum Seekers | first= Miriam | last= Jordan | date = November 20, 2018 | access-date= December 21, 2018 |work = [[The New York Times]] | url-access = limited}}</ref> The administration appealed to the [[United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit|Ninth Circuit]], where a divided 2-1 panel ruled that the new asylum rules were inconsistent with existing law and upheld the injunction.<ref>{{cite web| url = https://apnews.com/1833470d0588418b9c686a61a5de662e | title = US appeals court won't immediately allow Trump asylum ban | date = December 7, 2018 | access-date = April 26, 2020 | website = AP News | first = Sudhin | last = Thanawala }}</ref> On December 21, 2018, the Supreme Court declined to hear the administration's challenge, leaving the injunction in place and preventing the asylum ban from being enforced.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.cnn.com/2018/12/21/politics/supreme-court-upholds-block-on-trumps-asylum-ban/index.html | title= Supreme Court upholds block on Trump's asylum ban | first1= Caroline | last1= Kelly | first2 = Ariane | last2 = de Vogue | date= December 21, 2018 | access-date = December 21, 2018 | work = [[CNN]] }}</ref>

During the 2018 fiscal year, U.S. border agents arrested 107,212 people traveling in families, a record-high number. During the following five months (October 2018 through February 2019), that record was shattered by the arrest of 136,150 people traveling in families.<ref>{{cite web |title=U.S. Border Patrol Southwest Border Apprehensions by Sector FY2018 |url=https://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/stats/usbp-sw-border-apprehensions |website=U.S. Customs and Border Protection |access-date=7 March 7, 2019}}</ref> On March 31, 2019, Trump threatened to close the border, cutting off trade between the countries.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2019/04/01/trump-cutting-aid-closing-ports-border-patrol-stressed-migrant-families-released/3329728002/|title=Cutting aid and closing ports: Here's what's happening at the southern border|website=USA Today|language=en|access-date=April 1, 2019|first=Alan|last=Gomez|date=April 1, 2019}}</ref> On April 4, Trump said that instead he would give Mexico a year to stop illegal drugs from coming into the U.S. If this did not happen, he said tariffs on automobiles would be used first, and then closing of the border.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2019/04/04/border-trump-says-he-delay-sealing-off-southern-border-year/3353761002/|title=President Trump says he will delay closing the border with Mexico for a year|last1=Collins|first1=Michael|last2=Fritze|first2=John|last3=Jackson|first3=David|work=[[USA Today]]|date=April 4, 2019|access-date=April 26, 2020}}</ref>

[[File:United States-Mexico-border-wall-Progreso-Lakes-Texas.jpeg|thumb|right|250px|U.S.–Mexico border wall, [[Progreso Lakes, Texas]]]]

While running for president, Trump claimedestimated that a border wall would cost $8 to $12 billion<ref>{{cite magazine |last1=Bennett |first1=Brian |last2=Berenson |first2=Tessa |last3=Abramson |first3=Alana |title=How Republicans Are Talking Trump Into Accepting a Smaller Border Wall Deal |url=https://time.com/5528673/donald-trump-congress-border-security-compromise-republicans/ |access-date=April 26, 2020 |magazine=Time |date=February 13, 2019}}</ref> and that he could force Mexico to pay for it. Actual costCost estimates of the proposed wall vary widely. In early 2017, shortly after Trump took office, the DHS estimated the cost at $22 billion,<ref>{{cite news |last1=Greenwood |first1=Max |title=DHS report pegs cost of border wall at up to $21.6 billion: report |url=https://thehill.com/business-a-lobbying/318841-dhs-report-pegs-cost-of-border-wall-as-high-as-216-billion-report |access-date=7 March 7, 2019 |newspaper=The Hill |date=9 February 9, 2017}}</ref> while Democratic staff on the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee estimated $70 billion to build the wall and $150 million in annual maintenance.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Carney |first1=Jordain |title=Senate Dems: Trump's border wall could cost nearly $70 billion |url=https://thehill.com/blogs/floor-action/senate/329359-senate-dems-trumps-border-wall-could-cost-nearly-70-billion |access-date=7 March 7, 2019 |newspaper=The Hill |date=18 April 18, 2017}}</ref> Significant [[cost overrun]]s and missed deadlines are common in government projects; in recent U.S. history, see, for example, the [[Big Dig]] and the [[Boeing 787 Dreamliner|Boeing Dreamliner]].

During the Trump administration, {{Convert|455|mi|abbr=on|order=flip}} were added to barrier between the two countries. The construction of the wall has been halted by President [[Joe Biden]] as he canceled the national emergency declaration, originally used by Trump.<ref>{{Cite news|last1=Miroff|first1=Nick|last2=Hernandez|first2=Arelis R.|date=January 20, 2021|title=Biden orders a 'pause' on border wall construction, bringing crews to halt|language=en-US|newspaper=Washington Post|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/biden-border-wall-executive-order/2021/01/20/5f472456-5b32-11eb-aaad-93988621dd28_story.html|access-date=2021-10-October 25, 2021|issn=0190-8286}}</ref>

The U.S. Border Patrol detained more than 1.7 million migrants crossing the U.S.-Mexico border illegally in fiscal year 2021, the highest number ever recorded.<ref>{{cite news |title=Record high migrant detentions at US-Mexico border |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-59019791 |work=BBC News |date=October 23, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Situation at the southern border worse that you probably realize |url=https://thehill.com/opinion/immigration/581513-situation-at-the-southern-border-worse-that-you-probably-realize |work=The Hill |date=November 15, 2021}}</ref> A greater demographic diversity of southwest border apprehensions have been noted in 2021.<ref>Stef W. Kight. (30 January 30, 2022). "U.S. border draws migrants from Russia, Ukraine".

[https://www.axios.com/us-border-migrants-russia-ukraine-651b35ab-8cf1-480c-afe5-8961e9c98e45.html Axios website] Retrieved 31 January 31, 2022.</ref>

Humanitarian groups such as Humane Borders, No More Deaths, and Samaritans provide water in order to reduce deaths of immigrants who are journeying through the Arizona desert.<ref name="auto2">{{Cite news|url=http://tucson.com/news/local/border/us-allows-new-water-stations-by-border/article_a8dc1191-74fc-5a8a-9ad0-409b7a1e8b65.html|title=US allows new water stations by border|last=Star|first=Brady McCombs Arizona Daily|work=Arizona Daily Star|access-date=April 6, 2018-04-06|language=en}}</ref> A policy passed in 2010 by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife federal agency allows water drums to be placed on roads of disturbed areas.<ref name="auto2" />

[[File:Tijuana-san diego border deaths.jpg|thumb|left|250px|Memorial coffins on the US-Mexico barrier in Tijuana for those killed crossing the border fence]]

[[File:BigBendMexicans.jpeg|thumb|right|250px|Mexicans crossing the Río Grande face the [[Big Bend National Park]]]]

In Mexico, most humanitarian groups focus on assisting the deportees. As rates of deportation increase, "the deportation of many individuals is becoming more and more notable" in the streets of Mexico cities.<ref name=":02">{{Cite web|url=http://www.atencionsanmiguel.org/2018/02/16/new-organization-emerges-to-aid-deported-mexican-nationals/|title=New Organization Emerges to Aid Deported Mexican Nationals {{!}} San Miguel de Allende {{!}} Atención San Miguel|website=Atencionsanmiguel.org|language=en-US|access-date=April 6, 2018-04-06|archive-date=April 7, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180407054208/http://www.atencionsanmiguel.org/2018/02/16/new-organization-emerges-to-aid-deported-mexican-nationals/|url-status=dead}}</ref> As a result, many humanitarian groups have formed in Mexican cities where undocumented individuals are deported such as [[Nogales, Sonora]]. The humanitarian groups consist of faith-based communities and primarily non-profit organizations that assist deportees, many of whom do not have any resources with them such as money, food, or family information, and who would otherwise become homeless and emotionally and psychologically devastated.<ref>{{CitationCite AV media|last=Burr|first=Pete|title=Kino Border Initiative – the church without frontiers|date=2017-02-February 28, 2017|url=https://vimeo.com/206180020|access-date=April 6, 2018-04-06|via=[[Vimeo]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.qeh.ox.ac.uk/content/humanitarianism-ground-humanitarian-aid-migrants-and-refugees-mexico|title=Humanitarianism from the ground: humanitarian aid to migrants and refugees in Mexico {{!}} Oxford Department of International Development|website=Qeh.ox.ac.uk|language=en|access-date=April 6, 2018-04-06|archive-date=April 7, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180407055211/http://www.qeh.ox.ac.uk/content/humanitarianism-ground-humanitarian-aid-migrants-and-refugees-mexico|url-status=dead}}</ref> Contributing factors that might have caused them to be devastated can either be that they were separated from "their family members or the inability to work legally in the United States".<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.kinoborderinitiative.org|title=Kino Border Initiative – Iniciative Kino para la Frontera|website=Kino Border Initiative|language=en-US|access-date=April 6, 2018-04-06}}</ref> Therefore, the primary purpose of the humanitarian groups on the Mexico side of the border is to create a pathway for transitional support such as providing the deportees food, shelter, clothing, legal help and social services.<ref name=":02" /> In addition, there are humanitarian groups that provides meals and shelter to deportees according to their deportation documents. Humanitarian groups along the border in Mexico are El Comedor, Nazareth House, Camino Juntos, [[La 72]], and FM4: Paso Libre.

==BorderUS border zone policies==

Per the [[Environmental_issues_along_the_Mexico–United_States_borderEnvironmental issues along the Mexico–United States border#La_Paz_AgreementLa Paz Agreement|La Paz Agreement]],<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2015-09/documents/lapazagreement.pdf|title=La Paz Agreement|website=Epa.gov|access-date=9 April 9, 2018}}</ref> the official "border area" extends {{convert|100.|km|mi|abbr=on}} "on either side of the inland and maritime boundaries" from the Gulf of Mexico west into the Pacific Ocean. There is also a [[#100-mile border zone|100-mile border zone]].

{{One source section|date=June 2018}}
[[File:Defense.gov photo essay 060719-A-3715G-077.jpg|thumb|A U.S. [[Army National Guard]] member working with the U.S. Border Patrol in support of [[Operation Jump Start]], Arizona, July 2006]]

A National Border Patrol Strategic Plan was first developed in 1994; it was then updated in 2004 and 2012. In 2004, the updated strategy focused on command structures, intelligence and surveillance, enforcement and deployment of U.S. Border Patrol agents to better respond to threats at the border. The strategic planning led to broader policy development for the DHS which led to the [[Secure Border Initiative]] (SBI) in 2005 to secure U.S. borders and reduce illegal migration. The main components of SBI dealt with staffing concerns, removal capacity, surveillance and tactical infrastructure and interior enforcement.<ref name="Seghetti">{{cite journal|last1=Seghetti|first1=Lisa|title=Border Security: Immigration Enforcement Between Ports of Entry|journal=Congressional Research Service|date=December 31, 2014|url=https://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/homesec/R42138.pdf}}</ref> The aim of this initiative is to overcome the limitations of physical barriers through the use of surveillance technologies known as "SBInet."<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |date=2010-04-April 15, 2010 |title=The Rise and Fall of the Secure Border Initiative's High-Tech Solution to Unauthorized Immigration |url=https://www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/research/rise-and-fall-secure-border-initiative%E2%80%99s-high-tech-solution-unauthorized-immigration |access-date=2022-10-October 26, 2022 |website=American Immigration Council |language=en}}</ref> The SBInet technology has not worked as well as potentially intended, facing a number of technical issues that have limited its effectiveness.<ref name=":3" /> Part of the initiative also focused on increasing detention and removal capacity, with an objective to add an additional 2,000 beds to detentional facilities.<ref name=":4">{{Cite web |title=Fact Sheet:Secure Border Initiative |url=https://www.hsdl.org/?view&did=440470 |access-date=2022-10-October 26, 2022 |website=Homeland Security Digital Library |language=en-US}}</ref> With expansion of detention and removal capabilities this was also the objective to end the "catch and release" process that had been occurring previously.<ref name=":4" /> An additional component was “high"high consequence enforcement”enforcement", which was not the subject of a formal public policy document. There was the allowance, historically, for voluntary returns of individuals apprehended at the border by Border Patrol agents. These voluntary returns, after the SBI of 2005, were limited to three “high"high consequence outcomes”outcomes".<ref name="Seghetti" />

Another "high consequence outcome" is the increase in criminal charges. The DHS has also worked with the [[U.S. Department of Justice]] (DOJ) to increase the number of apprehended individuals crossing the border illegally who are charged with criminal offenses. Most of these cases are prosecuted under Operation Streamline.<ref name="Seghetti" /> The third “high"high consequence outcome”outcome" is known as remote repatriation. This is the return of apprehended Mexicans to remote locations by Border Patrol rather than the nearest Mexican port of entry.<ref name="Seghetti" />

The [[Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution]] protects against unreasonable [[search and seizure]]. However, under the border search exception, this protection does not fully apply at borders or border crossings (also known as ports of entry) or in the border zone. This means that much of the U.S. population is subject to CBP regulations including stop and search. There are some limits to CBP officials’officials' ability to stop and search. For instance CBP officials are not allowed to pull anyone over without a reasonable suspicion of immigration violation or crime, or search vehicles without warrant or probable cause.<ref name="100mileborder" /> The [[ACLU]], however, found that CBP officials routinely ignore or misunderstand the limits of authority, and this is compounded by inadequate training, lack of oversight and failure to hold officials accountable for abuse—incidence of abuse is common.<ref name="100mileborder" />

In December 2009, it was decided in ''United States v. Roblero-Solis'' that en masse judicial proceedings like those in Operation Streamline violated Rule 11 in the [[Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure]]. Rule 11 states that the court must determine that a guilty plea is voluntarily made by addressing the defendant personally in court. The ''Roblero-Solis'' case determined that “personally”"personally" means that the judge must address the defendant in a person-to-person manner. Though many courts have changed their procedures to adapt to the ruling, there are still forms of en masse trials practiced at the border.<ref name="Nazarian" />

The Agreement on Cooperation for the Protection and Improvement of the Environment in the Border Area, known as the ''La Paz Agreement'', was signed into law on August 14, 1983, and became enforceable on February 16, 1984.<ref>{{cite web|url = http://www.epa.gov/Border2012/docs/LaPazAgreement.pdf|title = Agreement on Cooperation for the Protection and Improvement of the Environment in the Border Area|year=1983 |access-date = December 2, 2014|publisher = US Environmental Protection Agency}}</ref> This agreement to protect the environment is the political foundation between the U.S. and Mexico for 4 subsequent programs. Each program has addressed environmental destruction in the border region resulting from the rise of the [[maquiladora]] industries, those who migrated to northern Mexico to work in the industries, the lack of infrastructure to accommodate the people, Mexico's lax regulations concerning all these factors, the resulting spillover into the U.S., and the U.S.'s own environmentally destructive tendencies. The programs were: IBEP (1992), Border XXI (1996), Border 2012 (2003) and Border 2020 (2012).<ref>{{cite web|last=Smith|first=Colin|title=1 U.S. &nbsp;– Mexico Cooperation for the Health of the Environment in the Border Region: A Policy History Analysis|url=https://www.academia.edu/2640698|archive-url=https://archive.today/20131113160840/http://www.academia.edu/2640698/U.S._-_Mexico_Cooperation_for_the_Health_of_the_Environment_in_the_Border_Region_A_Policy_History_Analysis|url-status=dead|archive-date=November 13, 2013}}</ref>
{{one source|section

[[File:Mexico-US border at Tijuana.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Mexico–U.S. border wall at Tijuana, Mexico]]

[[File:Nogales-Grand Avenue Port of Entry.jpg|thumb|left|250px|Entrance into Mexico at Nogales, AZ ]]

These transborder students also raise questions about the acquisition of healthcare, as most Mexican students who attend university in the U.S. who also have family across the border are known to use the Mexican healthcare system instead of U.S. or university sources.<ref name=":1">{{Cite journal|last1=Fernández|first1=Leticia|last2=Amastae|first2=Jon|date=September 1, 2006-09-01|title=Transborder use of medical services among Mexican American students in a U.S. border university|journal=Journal of Borderlands Studies|volume=21|issue=2|pages=77–87|doi=10.1080/08865655.2006.9695661|s2cid=143982920|issn=0886-5655}}</ref> The opposite case was also studied, seeking to find if U.S. students and citizens outsource their medical care from Mexican hospitals; however it was concluded that the use of, "cross-border healthcare diminishes significantly with English language acquisition."<ref name=":1" />

Also researched is the impact of changing education for those children who attended school in the U.S. prior to deportation, and are now readjusting to a new education system within Mexico. In one study, when repatriated children were asked about how their world perspectives were changed once they returned to Mexico, they spoke to three main areas, "shifting identities, learning and losing named language, and schooling across borders."<ref name=":2">{{Cite journal|last=Kleyn|first=Tatyana|date=April 3, 2017-04-03|title=Centering Transborder Students: Perspectives on Identity, Languaging and Schooling Between the U.S. and Mexico|journal=Multicultural Perspectives|volume=19|issue=2|pages=76–84|doi=10.1080/15210960.2017.1302336|s2cid=149362544|issn=1521-0960}}</ref> The most frequent point mentioned in terms of changing schooling is the difficulty to adapt to a system in which they are unfamiliar, in a named language they might have lost, and where there is minimal continuity in the methodology of teaching. It is suggested in this study that while the U.S. has a long history of teaching immigrant students, along with tried and tested assimilation programming to support foreign children in U.S. border schools, Mexican systems do not, making the change nearly impossible for newly deported students to learn.<ref name=":2" /> While the Mexican Secretariat of the Public has vowed to change the legislation surrounding this issue, bilingual education is still only awarded to expensive private schools.<ref name=":2" />

* Spillover of the [[Mexican drug war]]