Building a New Home: Modes of Incorporation for 1.5-Generation Return Migrants in Mexico

Barack Obama gained the title of “deporter in chief” due to the emphasis he put on immigration enforcement. During his two administrations (2009–2013, 2013–2017), deportation numbers skyrocketed leading to massive flows of Mexicans being forced to return to the country they were born. While Mexico’s government has not been able to respond to the various needs of their returnees, reintegration many times implies crisis as Mexican migrants face considerable obstacles in the medium and long term—labor, educational, bureaucratic, cultural, and even linguistic—particularly those migrants who have spent a considerable part of their lives in the US. This study examines 45 Mexican returnees with two specific profiles: 25 of our participants were collegegoers (they had completed a degree or were studying one in a Mexican institution) at the time of the interview and 20 worked as agents in call centers. The chapter investigates educational and labor incorporation experiences in Mexico to uncover diverse adaptation strategies and agency manifestations developed by young returnees to adjust to their new environment.