Open the U.S.-Mexico Border : No documentation required at the Port-of-Laredo (1957-1975)

What is it about?

This article explains how federal and municipal officials, business elite, and community members based in Laredo, Texas U.S.A. and Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, Mexico rebuilt and opened their International Bridge after Hurricane Alice destroyed it in the summer of 1954. The negotiation process ultimately involved offering a free bridge pass. This meant that individuals (Mexican, American, or otherwise) did not have to show documentation when they crossed the bridge after the inauguration ceremony festivities that took place in February 1957. The annual tradition of opening the border for three days in February lasted for almost twenty years (1957-1975).

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Why is it important?

This article is important because it explains how border officials at federal and municipal levels in dialogue with civil society organizations strategically disregarded immigration restrictions to get their bridge up and running. Opening the border every year for almost twenty years reinforced that port-of-entry's friendly reputation and led to increased trade and tourism revenue. Indeed, the Port-of-Entry at Laredo, which is located at the northern end point of the Pan-American Highway and the southern end point of U.S. Interstate 35 (a NAFTA superhighway), is one of the most productive dry ports in the hemisphere and currently third in the U.S. after New York and Los Angeles. Contrary to popular narratives that emphasize how the border needs to be sealed to prevent illegal immigration and trafficking operations, this case study shows that allowing people to cross freely back and forth across the U.S.-Mexico border for a set period of time created positive economic impact.

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