Wanting In

The number of petitions for asylum in the US from Mexicans this year increased roughly twelve-fold, from 254 in 2009 to 2,973 in 2010. This makes Mexico the second nation in terms of number of asylum requests. While this year's spike, which El Universal understandably attributes to insecurity, was significant, the number had been steadily rising for years. In 2000, for instance, just 42 Mexicans requested asylum.