The U.S. government took its anti-immigration message to Mexican airwaves over the weekend, prompting criticism from President Claudia Sheinbaum.
On Monday, Sheinbaum ordered television networks to remove the U.S. ad from circulation in Mexico and announced she is preparing legislation to prevent foreign governments from disseminating propaganda in the Mexican media.
During her Monday morning press conference, Sheinbaum said she sent a formal note to TV networks last week, calling on them to stop airing the ad, which announces that law enforcement officials will “hunt down” migrants who enter the United States illegally. The ad was aired during Mexican Soccer League matches over the weekend.
Critics — Sheinbaum among them — insist the ad is discriminatory, criminalizes migrants and violates the Mexican Constitution.
Sheinbaum said Noem’s ad is “an attack on human dignity and promotes acts of retaliation and violence” toward migrants. She said it contradicts her government’s objective — also embodied in the Constitution — to promote a society free of discrimination.
The reform bill will restore the clause (eliminated in 2014) that “prohibited radio and television networks from transmitting political, ideological or commercial propaganda sponsored by foreign governments and foreign agencies.” It will also reinstate the ban on “foreign” ads that attempt to influence Mexico’s domestic politics.
The ad in question is narrated by U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem:
“Thank you, President Donald J. Trump, for securing our border and putting America first. President Trump has a clear message: if you are here illegally, we will find you and deport you. You will never return. But if you leave now, you may have an opportunity to return and enjoy our freedom and live the American Dream. If you are a criminal alien considering entering America illegally: Don’t even think about it. If you come here and break our laws, we will hunt you down. Criminals are not welcome in the United States.”
The ad became a hot topic over the weekend after it was seen by millions of viewers who tuned in to the soccer matches on TV Azteca and Televisa.
The U.S. ad campaign, which features four other ads proclaiming that “criminals are not welcome in the United States,” first aired in Mexico in early April.
Shortly after, the National Council for the Prevention of Discrimination (Conapred) reportedly received a flood of complaints.
Citing violations of Article 1 of the Constitution — guaranteeing human rights and freedoms to all individuals in Mexico and prohibiting discrimination — Conapred sent a formal letter to media outlets last week, “inviting” them not to air such ads. The news that Conapred’s request was ignored prompted Sheinbaum’s follow-up response on Monday.
Dr. Ernesto Villanueva, an expert on digital rights, told the news site Animal Político that the U.S. message attacks human dignity by relying on stereotypes, victimizing migrants and violating basic human rights. Villanueva said the ad not only stigmatizes migrants but also brands the poor and dark-skinned as undesirable.
Jorge Bravo, president of the Mexican Association for the Right to Information (AMEDI), said that even though there is no law banning such ads in Mexico, domestic TV networks are “audacious” for airing them.
“Obviously, they are being paid for these ads,” Bravo said, “but the government has the right to intervene” to defend Mexico’s fundamental principles.
Noem recently met with Sheinbaum on March 28, saying Mexico still had work to do to stop the flow of drugs and migrants into the U.S. One of her requests was that Mexico share migrants’ biometric information with the United States, to which Sheinbaum has not yielded.
With reports from Animal Político, Reforma, El Economista and La Silla Rota
