In the past year, the U.S. Border Patrol has arrested tens of thousands of Chinese people at the U.S.-Mexico border, but still thousands see Mexico as their final destination. Recently, several new Chinese immigrants have shared their living conditions in Mexico with the media.
According to the report by the Associated Press, amid slowing economic growth in China, high youth unemployment, and deteriorating relations with the U.S. and its allies, a new wave of Chinese immigrants have left China to seek job opportunities, more freedom, or better economic prospects. Li Daijing is one of them.
Despite working in a high-paying technical job, when her cousin asked her to help manage a restaurant in Mexico City, Li Daijing did not hesitate to agree. Last year, with adventurous dreams, she packed her bags and embarked on a journey to Mexico.
The 30-year-old woman from Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan Province, expressed her hope to start an online business one day importing furniture from her hometown. “I want a better life,” she told an AP reporter. “I want to become a strong, independent woman.”
Last year, the Mexican government issued 5,070 temporary residence visas to Chinese immigrants, doubling from the previous year. This makes China the third largest source of immigrants to Mexico after the U.S. and Colombia.
Over the decades, the overseas Chinese community has built a strong social foundation in Mexico, forming extensive family and business networks that are attractive to new Chinese immigrants.
At the same time, Chinese multinational companies are expanding their market presence near the Americas, leading to a growing business presence in Mexico.
Running a restaurant in the trendy Roma Sur neighborhood of Mexico City, Mr. Duan Fan said, “Two years ago, many Chinese started coming here – these people need to eat.” Duan Fan’s restaurant primarily serves spicy Sichuan dishes favored by locals. “I opened a Chinese restaurant to offer people home-cooked meals from their hometown,” he said.
Unlike previous generations where most Chinese immigrants came from Guangdong Province in southern China, many new immigrants now come from various regions of China.
Data from the 2020 census by the National Institute of Statistics and Geography of Mexico shows that Chinese immigrants are primarily concentrated in Mexico City.
Ten years ago, the records showed that Chinese settlement was in the most northern state of Baja California, across from the U.S. state of California.
Andrei Guerrero, academic coordinator of the China-Baja California Research Center, said, “The arrival of Chinese multinational companies has attracted a large influx of people from eastern China, who are more educated and have a broader global background.”
In the middle-class neighborhood of Viaducto-Piedad near the historic Chinatown in Mexico City, a new Chinese community has been growing since the late 1990s. Chinese immigrants have not only established businesses here but also created community spaces for religious and children’s entertainment activities.
Monica Cinco, an expert on Chinese immigrant issues and general manager of the EDUCA Mexico Foundation, stated that Viaducto-Piedad is recognized by the Chinese community as the real “Chinatown” of Mexico City. “Because we live here. We have shops, beauty salons, and restaurants specifically for Chinese consumers,” Cinco said.
In downtown Mexico City, Chinese entrepreneurs have opened new wholesale stores and taken over several buildings. At times, their relationships with local businesses and residents have become strained. Local residents complain that with the expansion of Chinese businesses, they are being replaced by Chinese operators.
A 50-year-old man, who only gave his surname Tan out of concern for his family’s safety in China, left his home country in search of freedom. Tan arrived in Mexico from southern Guangdong this year and has been working at a Sam’s Club store for several months. He has had various jobs back home, including working at a chemical plant and writing articles for magazines during the COVID-19 pandemic.
He expressed discontent with the oppressive atmosphere in China. “It’s not just workplace oppression, it’s a mindset,” he said. “I can feel the political regression, the shrinking of freedom and democracy. This influence truly feels distorted and sickening. Therefore, life is very painful.”
In Mexico City, Tan noted the frequent gatherings of protest groups on the city’s main arteries. “This proves that this country has the freedom of speech I yearn for,” he said.
In a restaurant in the Juárez fashion district, Ms. Li told AP reporters that for her and other Chinese individuals who did not have relatives to help settle in the United States, Mexico is a land full of opportunities.
Li mentioned that part of her reason for leaving China was the fiercely competitive work culture and high housing prices. “In China, everyone saves money to buy a house, but property is really expensive,” she said.
Confident and charismatic, Li had previously worked as a promoter at the Chinese tech giant Tencent Games. She hoped her skills would help her succeed in Mexico.
In Mexico City, she found that unlike herself, most Chinese women are married and came to Mexico to reunite with their husbands. “I came here to face the unknown,” she said.
Li is unsure when she will realize her ambitious business plans, but she has her strategies. For instance, she envisions purchasing affordable chairs, tables, and other furniture from Henan. Currently, she is selling furniture imported to Mexico by a Chinese friend on the e-commerce platform Mercado Libre.
“I’m not married, I don’t have a boyfriend, I have to rely on myself…so I will work hard and strive,” she said.