The Link Between Poverty, Illegal Immigration and Human Trafficking

Paper I wrote for school that I wanted to save.

Within every society is a part of the population that lives in poverty. There are three layers within this segment of society. One is absolute poverty, a state that refers to the group of people that lives below the poverty line and cannot afford to purchase basic goods and services needed to maintain standard living. Then there is relative poverty, which is a floating standard of destitution that analyzes individual total income and spending patterns with those of the general population. Individuals with low incomes that use most of their money on goods and services, compared to the general population, fall into the category of people living in relative poverty. Lastly, there is the underclass, which is a term used by sociologists to describe the individuals who live in long term poverty and who are unskilled and lack training. One of the side effects of poverty which, if not tackled at its source, can end up costing many more lives and billions of dollars.

One such side effect is illegal immigration. This is a practice in which a society’s poor engages in a search of a better life and opportunities in another country, not just for themselves but for their families as well. When done illegally, it is an extremely dangerous feat since they could fall prey to bandits, traffickers, disease and sometimes lose their lives. One does not need to look further than one’s own backyard to see the negative effects of illegal immigration. Based on information received from the Mexican foreign ministry, the San Francisco Chronicle reported that “431 migrants died trying to enter the United States in 2003, and 373 died in 2004.” This is an average of more than one death per day along our own borders.

As the debate on what to do with illegal immigrants in the United States continues, the side of the coin that remains obscured from view is the poverty that these people are trying to escape. In their book Mexico: The Struggle for Democratic Development, authors Levy and Bruhn wrote “Poverty and inequality are deep rooted in Mexico. The government’s own figures indicate that almost half the population lives in poverty, unable to meet the Food and Agriculture Organization’s minimal food intake standards, and about seventeen million are in what is classified as extreme poverty” (Levy, Bruhn 13). Seventeen million is an astonishing number of people that not only includes adults but children as well. The immigrants that illegally live on American soil today are here to escape that poverty.

Africa is the poorest continent on the planet and time after time news is brought to the world stage of a society on the brink of starvation. About ten years ago the undernourished children of Nigeria were plastered across the television screens, and more recently, the children of Niger. The reason why this happens is because most African societies rely heavily on farming to feed, clothe and shelter their families. Over the years, the continent has suffered from severe droughts and governments have neglected to put systems into place for families to survive by means other than farming. As a result, the majority of the African population remains poor surviving on less than one dollar a day.

The thousands of Africans that trek through the Sahara desert to cross the Moroccan border into Spain and the European Union seek to escape this poverty. This is by no means a safe endeavor as it involves hiding in clumps of trees and waiting for the right opportunity to rush the fences, which are topped with barbed wires and razors. But this is not the worse of the problems that these immigrants face. They travel hundreds of miles on foot, and because of lack of nutrition and healthcare, they suffer from ill health and fall victim to diseases. Additionally, if they make it to Morocco and are caught, they are taken by the Moroccan authorities to the farthest end of the Algerian desert to find their way back home without any supervision, funds or protection. Many once left to their own devises, turn around and start the trip back to the Moroccan/Spain border hoping that they will not get caught again.

In addition to individual efforts to illegally cross borders is the human trafficking aspect. In some cases, an individual contacts traffickers to organize passage. In others, traffickers solicit individuals with promises of jobs and bright futures. The poor within a society are particularly susceptible to human trafficking, as many times they are told they don’t need to pay upfront and that they can repay their travel expenses when they arrive at their destination and start working.

Not so long ago, thirty two Chinese stowaways were discovered in two containers on a cargo ship which was at sea for two weeks. This was not an individual effort and required the assistance of a human trafficker. But this was a lucky group of individuals, as many that are smuggled from their country, once at their final destination, only end up under the care of their traffickers. Amnesty International’s Firefly Project reported that “An estimated 20,000 people are trafficked into the United States every year. Unlike drugs or arms, humans are used as “products” that can be reused and resold.”

Many of these people live in servitude, as once they arrive at their destination, their passports are taken from them and they are forced to work to pay off their transportation fees for little or no salary. In addition to having no money, they live in fear for themselves and their families, as many times their families in their native countries are threatened with violence. It is unthinkable that in the twenty first century people are viewed as products that can be owned, used and sold.

Individuals that are relatively well off in their own countries seek legal ways to leave, such as obtaining holiday visas, continuing education and employment sponsorships by international organizations. It is society’s poor that are denied such opportunities and fall back on illegal and dangerous means of departure from their home countries.

Today security at the borders of developed countries are tightening as governments seek to curb the influx of illegal immigrants into Europe, North America and other developed nations around the world.

The United States is tackling the issue of Mexicans living illegally in the United States and many arguments have been raised as to why they should not be allowed to stay here. Among the reasons given is that they endanger our national security due to the false documentation which they use, they are taking the jobs that should go to legal American residents, and they committed a crime by crossing the borders illegally and should not be rewarded. These reasons are no different from the ones used by Spain and other countries as an excuse to close their borders.

The managing of illegal immigrants costs governments money which is the moneys of taxpayers. According to Jonathan Xavier Inda, in his recently released book Targeting Immigrants: Government, Technology, and Ethics, “Whether it is healthcare, social services, or education, “illegal” immigrants are said to take advantage of public resources. The cost of this abuse is seen to be borne, of course, by tax-paying citizens” (Inda 112). This is most certainly true, but the other side of the coin is that it is a money making venture for some.

Spain’s alliance with Morocco, which called for Morocco to step up border patrols and return anyone caught attempting to cross the border to their country of origin, has cost both Spain and Morocco a lot. In addition to the finances to build the fences higher and putting more police on border patrol, they have also had to face the human rights violations that came to light after individuals reported having been beaten and left on the verge of starvation in the middle of the arid desert. The issue of human trafficking is costing governments worldwide millions of dollars to combat, and still with very little success in denting this highly organized criminal activity.

But while governments and non-government organizations are seeking to curb illegal immigration, they are neglecting the source of the problem. As they continue to use taxpayer dollars to build the border fences higher, increase border patrols and apprehend the criminals that engage in human smuggling, they have lost sight of as long as entire societies live in poverty, there will always be illegal immigration and individuals will become more resourceful in how they engage in this activity.

Even though it does not solve the problem immediately, governments should look to building infrastructure within societies that will allow every individual in a society to earn a living by which they can reside above the poverty line. They should build systems where people have access to social services, education, healthcare and other means of supporting and bettering their families. These are the things that if individuals lack in their own communities they will cross borders to find. Also, individuals that have the means of supporting themselves and their families are less susceptible to predators.

While the venture of alleviating poverty on such a large scale may seem a daunting and costly task, it is will cost much less than the continuing fight to stop illegal immigration and human trafficking. When one adds in moneys that governments pledge to fight hunger and disease, the cost of the upkeep of the world’s poor becomes much bigger. And these are all only “bandages” that are placed on a much bigger problem.

In fighting poverty and empowering societies, they will stem the flow of illegal immigration, human trafficking figures will decrease, less of the world’s poor would die of starvation and hunger and disease, and tax payers’ monies would be put to better use.

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