ABSTRACT
Migration and citizenship issues continue to plague the North American “partnership.” Labor mobility was a pressing issue that was largely ignored during the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) negotiations, apart from the NAFTA visa that was introduced in chapter 16 of the agreement. In the United States, efforts at comprehensive immigration reform remain mired in Congress, although advocates hope that President Obama will fulfill his promise to carry out such reform during his second term. Meanwhile, some US states continue to adopt increasingly punitive and restrictive measures to restrict the rights of migrants (such as the recent legislation passed in the Arizona legislature). The high proportion of undocumented migrants who come to the United States from Mexico make this a truly North American problem, and the bad will it has created between the two countries threatens to stall deeper integration.
