More Than Just Male Laborers: A History of Deportation, 1942–64

The United States has deported more than 52 million people since the 1940s, more than 90 percent of whom are Mexican. While male laborers comprised the majority of deportees, they were far from the only ones deported or affected by deportation. Based on Spanish- and English-language archival sources and oral histories in Mexico and the United States, this paper examines how deportation affected Mexican men, women, and children on both sides of the border from the 1940s to the 1960s. It explores the impact of the Immigration and Naturalization Service’s policies and tactics on individuals, families, and communities. Additionally, the paper reveals the diverse ways in which Mexican men and women on both sides of the border shaped the history of deportation. In some cases they advocated on behalf of themselves or their family members, while in others they actually called for their deportation. This paper argues that to understand the history of deportation we must go beyond individual deportees and examine how deportation affected—and was affected by—families and communities.