The reason for immigration - legal and illegal - from poor nations to the US and Europe is the devastating effect of neo liberalism (formerly known as imperialism). The stronger nations have imposed privatizing schemes upon poorer nations so as to force the latter to put up for sale to foreign corporations their nation's resources and industries. At the same time, they seek to shrink the weaker government's power to impose tariffs to protect its native industry, provide a social safety net and subsidize native industries like the US does as a "nanny state" for its big corporations.

This creates a pool of desperate people left with nothing but their labor to sell. Impoverished Mexican farmers and farm workers can't compete with the artificially below market price of corn of US agri-giants, thanks to generous US government subsidies. The Mexican government is not allowed to respond in a similar fashion and come to the aid of its farmers - neo liberalism opposes "big government" for poor countries! -so they come to Mexico City and Tijuana looking for jobs and when they find none, they come up north. In India where there is no richer nation on its border for people to escape to, similarly impoverished farmers - between 10 and 15,000 - have been committing suicide!
 
Isn't it obvious that most people would prefer to stay in the communities where their families have lived for decades and even centuries, with their own language, culture and customs intact? Neo liberalism has destroyed their world, and hysteria about a "Mexican invasion" serves the ruling class as a diversion. Is "illegal immigration" responsible for over 100,000 jobs being cut by Ford and GM? Is it responsible for the de-industrializing of the US and the loss of millions of good paying union jobs in manufacturing? Is it responsible for the decay of US urban centers? the decline of public schools? the weakness of the dollar?? We must speak out against the devastation wrought by modern day imperialism both here and abroad, and stand up strongly for its victims, NOT join in on the attack against them.