http://spectrum.buffalo.edu/article.php?id=27644It began as a series of e-mails bouncing around Mexico and Central America, the kind of chain letter a lot of people think of as a nuisance.
Spreading now by word of mouth as well as in cyberspace, the campaign calls for a 24-hour boycott Monday of American businesses in Mexico and other Latin American countries. The idea is to show solidarity with the protests scheduled for the same day by immigrant-rights groups in several U.S. cities.
This week, a growing number of business, trade-union groups and political leaders in Mexico have said they will join the boycott, which will take place during the traditional May Day holiday here.
Despite the fact that the Internet remains a luxury to many in Mexico (only nine percent of households have Internet access), word is quickly reaching many ordinary working people.
Many Mexicans have closely followed the immigration debate in the United States. There is a growing sense among Mexicans that reform proposals currently being debated by the U.S. Congress could jeopardize millions of their countrymen who emigrated north, crossing the border illegally.