Mexico calls for removal of US immigration ad it calls discriminatory

The Mexican government on Monday said that they had written to television stations to ban an advertisement by US President Donald Trump’s administration that warns against undocumented migration.

In the commercial with Spanish subtitles, US Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem is shown saying: “If you are considering entering America illegally, don’t even think about it.”

If a migrant commits a crime, “we will hunt you down” because “criminals are not welcome,” she said in the video.

Reading the letter at a news conference, Sheinbaum said that the clip “contains a discriminatory message that violates human dignity” and could encourage “violence against people on the move.”

Why did the US play an ad on Mexican TV?

The video is part of a multimillion-dollar international campaign aimed at stemming the flow of migrants into the United States.

It comes as the Trump administration is stepping up efforts to tackle undocumented migration and drug trafficking, soon also positioning US army soldiers along parts of the border with Mexico.

But Mexican President Sheinbaum found the clip discriminatory and reacted by announcing reforms.

As part of the planned reforms, she proposed to ban foreign governments from paying for advertising on Mexican TV networks.