Washington, DC — A delegation of US Members of Congress and staff met with government officials and civil society organizations in Mexico City this week to learn about the experiences of migrants, Mexico’s efforts to improve trade relations with the US, the Mexican labor movement, and common challenges such as gun violence.

The Members, who include Representatives Summer Lee (D-PA), Maxwell Frost (D-FL), Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), Delia Ramirez (D-IL), Ilhan Omar (D-MN), Ayanna Pressley (D-MA), and Jesús “Chuy” García (IL), as well as several staff members, traveled to Mexico as part of a delegation sponsored by the Partnership for Participatory International Policy (P-PIP) and co-coordinated with the Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR).

“US policy has real impacts across borders, and this delegation provided us an opportunity to strengthen our relationship with Mexico,” Congresswoman Summer Lee (D-PA) said. “We’re here to listen, learn, and work toward solutions on shared challenges—from arms trafficking to labor rights to tariffs. With the Trump administration’s chaotic weaponization of trade and immigration policy, we must continue to center justice, accountability, and dignity when we engage with our neighbors.”

Delegates met with representatives of the Centro de Investigación Laboral y Asesoría Sindical (CILAS; Center for Labor Research and Union Consulting), a research center dedicated to the support of the labor movement; the human rights organization Centro de Derechos Humanos Miguel Agustín Pro Juárez (Centro Prodh); Casa Tochan, an organization committed to the protection and support of migrants and asylum seekers; Desarmando el Miedo (Disarming Fear), a coalition of organizations dedicated to stopping the flow of weapons to and within Mexico; Otros Dreams en Acción (ODA), an organization by and for people that have been affected by the experiences of deportation and forced return; the Mexican Union of Electricians (ESME); the Independent Union of Automotive Industry Workers (SINTTIA); the food sovereignty organization Sin Maiz No Hay Pais; and the Movimiento por Nuestros Desaparecidos, a coalition of over 90 groups of families of missing persons. 

“Given Trump’s terrorizing of immigrant communities, weaponization of trade policy, and support for authoritarianism throughout Latin America, it is with renewed urgency that we must pursue a US-Mexico relationship rooted in collaboration and sovereign respect,” Congressman Jesús “Chuy” García (D-IL) said. “As a Mexican immigrant myself and as the representative of numerous constituents of Mexican descent, I joined this delegation to advance that relationship and focus on key issues of interest to both countries — from remittances to the defense of democracy.”

“This Congressional trip presents an important opportunity to improve our understanding of the US-Mexico relationship and the significance of strengthening this partnership to protect democracy throughout North and Latin America,” said Congressman Maxwell Frost (D-FL). “From addressing economic issues, the root cause of migration, to our collaborative efforts against violence and trafficking, I was eager to visit Mexico and learn how the US can effectively be a good-faith partner in our joint pursuits for peace, prosperity, and democracy.”

“Our destinies are tied,” said Congresswoman Pressley (D-MA). “I am grateful for the opportunity to travel to Mexico to meet with members of President Claudia Sheinbaum’s cabinet, organizers, and labor leaders committed to building a more just world. Migration, gun violence, economic exploitation, and more—are layered and interconnected bilateral issues, and our policy response must be as well. Families in the Massachusetts 7th are feeling the impacts daily — from immigrant communities navigating a broken and increasingly weaponized system in the US to families grappling with the trauma of gun violence. This delegation was deeply insightful, and it was especially powerful to learn about the innovative work happening in the areas of migration, trade, and gun violence, as well as climate justice, women’s rights, public transit and more. The visit will inform our work in Congress to advance more just, humane, and equitable at home and abroad. In the absence of US leadership under the Trump Administration and Republican Congress, I’ll keep working to confront these realities head-on.”

“Growing up in Southwest Detroit with beautiful Mexican American neighbors, I know that the well-being of our communities in the US and Mexico are inextricably linked,” Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) said. “From families extending across borders to workers in both countries fighting the same multinational corporations for a living wage. As Trump’s racist and xenophobic administration attacks and demonizes Mexico and Mexicans, we must come together in international friendship and solidarity. There is much that we can learn from Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and her Morena party’s extremely popular, progressive policies that have transformed the lives and livelihoods of the Mexican working class.”

“As the daughter of Guatemalan immigrants, I proudly carry my heritage, history, and community with me everywhere I go — I am both Chapina and American. And I believe that in order to collectively thrive, we must recognize that our futures and our stories are interconnected,” said Congresswoman Ramirez (D-IL). “That recognition must inform a different path for my country’s foreign and domestic policy: one path that is rooted in peace and partnership, strengthened through democracy and justice, and built on diplomacy and human rights.”

“The fates of people in the Americas are inextricably linked. It is crucial for progressives in Congress to be hearing from people directly impacted by US policies from immigration policies to the lack of regulation of guns to tariffs,” said Congresswoman Ilhan Omar (D-MN). “What I heard on the ground will be pivotal for me to take back to Minnesota and Washington.”

P-PIP founder and director Elise Roberts said: “At a time when US policy changes are causing increased harm and instability in Mexico, building relationships of respectful exchange are more important than ever. This delegation provided a critical opportunity to learn from our Mexican neighbors about how US policies are impacting shared concerns around gun violence, workers’ rights, and immigration.”

CEPR Co-Director Mark Weisbrot, who joined the delegation, said: “This visit comes at an important moment in US-Mexico relations, during the historic presidency of Claudia Sheinbaum. Mexico has made enormous progress in reducing poverty — by more than 25 percent since AMLO was elected president in 2018, and this is on track to continue. Inequality has been reduced dramatically. And this is in the face of enormous international challenges.”