"Economica."
It's the one word Jose and Maria, two Mexican immigrants in Leflore County, mention most when they talk about leaving Mexico for the United States.
In their home state of Guanajuato, Mexico, about 200 miles northwest of Mexico City, jobs are scarce and the opportunity to advance in a company is non-existent, Jose said. He earns $5.75 an hour working on a catfish processing line. That is twice the amount he would make in a factory back home.
Jose is 22 years old; Maria is 20. Neither has a valid visa or speaks English, and even though Jose owns a car, he cannot get a driver's license. They are two of the estimated 5 million illegal immigrants who now call the United States home.
Jose and Maria asked that their real names not be used because they fear they will be deported or Jose will lose his job.
The couple pays all its monthly bills from Jose's meager paycheck. Because they do not have valid identification, there is no way to get credit. If there is money left over at the end of the month, it may be sent home to Mexico. However, Jose said that is usually not a decision that has to be made.
Jose is adamant that he and Maria are not in the United States to steal jobs; they just want to make a better life for their family and future children. Jose knows he is breaking the law to reach his dreams, but he believes immigrants like Maria and himself should be given a chance because they work hard at jobs that many Americans do not want, and they do not cause problems.
Jose and Maria both have the Mexican equivalent of a high school education. Though he cannot speak English, Jose can readily discuss current events with the help of a translator, and he keeps close watch on President Bush's proposal to legitimize millions of illegal workers in the United States.
He said that he realizes he is breaking the law and that he risks being fired or deported every day. However, if he is deported, he said he will try to come back to the United States as quickly as possible.
Though he has no documentation, Jose has worked at two catfish-processing facilities in the Delta. Although most of the Hispanic population in the region are legal workers with temporary visas, Jose said he knows of other workers who, like he and his wife, do not have "papeles," or visas.
The Journey from Mexico
Even though both Jose and Maria are in the United States illegally now, their journey from Central Mexico to the Mississippi Delta began legally.
About one year ago, Maria had made plans to cross the U.S.-Mexican border illegally to search for a job. However, as she was finalizing those plans, Maria learned through a friend about a catfish processor which was hiring Mexican workers and providing valid visas. She then contacted a lawyer in Monterrey who arranged her paperwork, and she came to America with all of her possessions packed in one suitcase.
Maria said the most difficult part of coming to a new country was leaving her family and new husband behind, but moving to the United States was her only chance to improve her quality of life.
Jose was not able to obtain a visa with his wife and remained behind in Mexico. However, after two months of separation, his desire to see Maria led him to find another way to cross "la frontera," the U.S.-Mexican border.
Jose paid $1,700 to hire a "coyote," a guide who transports illegal immigrants across the border, to take him into Arizona.
When he crossed the border, Jose only carried a large bottle of water that would keep him alive in the desert.
Jose said he was aware of the dangers involved in crossing the border with a "coyote," but that was the only way he could join his wife in America.
In May, 14 illegal immigrants died of heat exposure and lack of water trying to cross the border in the same area. Their guide abandoned them, leaving them to fend for themselves in the harsh Arizona desert.
Jose knew this was a risk, but he said he had to make a choice of taking a chance at a better life or staying in Mexico.
He and about 20 others successfully crossed the border last fall. When he arrived in the Delta, he went to work with his wife, who was employed legally at the time.
Jose did not tell his boss that he did not have "papeles," but he said he was not asked to provide them either.
Leflore County's two processors, America's Catch and Heartland Catfish, say their companies check each employee's documents and do not hire illegal immigrants.
"They have to have the proper green card or proper documentation to be hired here," said Danny Walker, chief executive of Heartland. "If they have fake papers, that is a possibility, but we check every employee's documents."
Just a few months after Jose arrived in the United States, Maria was forced to miss work because of problems with a pregnancy and an eventual miscarriage. She said the missed time caused her to lose her job.
During the emotional strain of Maria's miscarriage and extra reliance on Jose for work, Maria's visa expired. They decided not to try to renew the visa for fear of drawing attention to themselves and being sent back to Mexico.
Instead, Jose moved to a new job, and Maria remained at home, trying to stay healthy because she is pregnant again.
Life in America
With their first child due at the end of December, Jose said his main goal is for his child to be born in the United States. Any child born in the country, regardless of the parents' nationality, is legally a U.S. citizen.
Jose said that even though he wants his child to consider himself a Mexican, he also wants that child to be a member of the American culture. For Jose, that includes learning English and being accepted by society - the same things he wants for himself and Maria.
Jose said he understands complaints by Americans that he should learn English if he wants to live in America, and he said that he would like to take classes. However, he does not have money to hire a teacher or a flexible schedule that allows him to leave the apartment he rents.
At his previous job, Jose said the company offered one hour of English classes per week, but that was not enough time to learn.
Jose wants to learn English so he can operate in the community but also so he can overcome the discrimination he feels, particularly in the workplace.
He claims that his supervisors allow black and white workers to use the bathroom whenever they need to, but the Hispanic workers are often told to wait or are given only three minutes' break.
In addition, he said that many line workers speak in English throughout the day, but if Hispanic workers begin to converse in Spanish, they are told to be quiet and go back to work.
And though he has no proof of it, Jose believes that white and black employees are paid more than Hispanics.
Heartland's Walker and Solon Scott III, president of America's Catch, both said they have not received any complaints by Hispanic workers of disparate treatment at their companies.
Scott said the pay schedule at America's Catch is set by a pre-determined pay scale based on job type and length of employment.
"We have never heard any complaints," he said. "We certainly allow conversation on the line. If it gets disruptive, we stop it, but that goes for anybody."
Life outside the workplace is better, Jose said, but he still feels scrutinized when he is in public.
That is not his primary concern, though. Jose said he does not have time to worry about discrimination because he wants to make sure he avoids immigration officials. Every time he drives to the store or takes his wife for medical checkups, he anxiously watches for officers, wondering if this will be the day he is caught without a driver's license or enough English to explain his situation.
But Jose said he cannot worry about such situations too much. He believes the worst that can happen is that he will be sent back to Mexico, where he will simply prepare to cross the border again - into the United States, where jobs and hope are waiting.
