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[Prof.Gringo]

None of this is much of a surprise. Mexican migrant laborers have always maintained strong ties to Mexico, and have supported the Mexican economy for years by providing the 2nd largest source of money into the Mexican economy after oil exports.

The problem has long been the income inequality between the US and Mexico along with the US need for a steady supply of cheap labor. Anti-illegal immigration backlash in the US along with increased enforcement by CBP & ICE have had a real psychological impact as well as the downturn in the US economy.

The Mexican migrant of today faces tough odds just crossing the US border or having to pay thousands of dollars upfront to a smuggler. The rash of attacks within Mexico against migrants has shown the darkside of human smuggling.

Once inside the US tough new anti-illegal immigrant laws and sentiment make it a tough life. And to top it off, the jobs just are not there like they were just a few short years ago.

But the pull of El Norte remains strong, and soon, when the US economy picks up steam again, the prospect of being able to make in a week in the US what a laborer makes in a month in Mexico will prove too strong a pull, and despite all the drawbacks, Mexicans will cross the border again in much larger numbers.