ABSTRACT
In this chapter, the author identifies some of the key strands of transborder internationalism in which North American and Mexican workers and unions have been involved this century. Noted is the degree to which many of these forms of internationalism were contingent on factors that in the 1990s are weaker or nonexistent, in particular, the author underlines the dependence of earlier internationalisms and solidarities on the radical grand narratives that have been weakened by the collapse of the Cold War and the waning of optimism about projects of global transformation. The chapter identifies several forms of transborder internationalism that have emerged during the 1990s, partly in response to the challenge posed by free trade, globalization, and their local manifestation in the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). It includes some cautions about the ambiguities present in the term "labor internationalism". The chapter identifies some of the factors that promote and constrain international labor solidarity and cooperation.
