NAFTA or the North American Free Trade Agreement is a treaty entered into by the United States, Canada, and Mexico which went into effect on January 1, 1994, according to Inc. The goal of NAFTA according to the Federal Register, is to eliminate all tariff and non-tariff barriers of trade and investment between the United States, Canada, and Mexico. The key people who initiated NAFTA are Prime Minister Brian Mulroney, Mexican President Carlos Salinas, and U.S. President George H.W. Bush. Since the issue of NAFTA has become so heavily politicized, the pros and cons of the trade deal have been cherry-picked to confirm a certain political view, thus this article explains the intricacies of supporting or opposing the trade deal.

One of the major negative implications that people point to in NAFTA is that according to the Economic Policy Institute, the rise in the US trade deficit has caused the displacement of production which previously supported 879,280 U.S. jobs. A majority of those jobs were in the manufacturing industry. Furthermore, NAFTA has contributed to rising income inequality, suppressed wages for production workers, and limited the ability to organize unions.

Additionally, from 1994 (which was when NAFTA was enacted) to 2000 overall unemployment dramatically fell, which led most individuals to have a positive outlook on NAFTA. However, from March of 2001 and October of 2003 over 2.4 million jobs were lost. The primary sector that was most negatively impacted was, in fact, the manufacturing industry.

Despite this, two of the primary positive arguments for NAFTA is that the trade deal has boosted trade and lowered prices for consumers. According to The Balance, 33% of the U.S.’ total exports were goods shipped to Canada and Mexico, which made them the top two export markets. Furthermore, 27% of the U.S.’ total imports were from Canada and Mexico. The trade deal also eliminated all tariffs among the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. By doing so, it ultimately boosted trade and consequently reduced the cost of commerce. Eliminating tariffs also means lowering the prices of imports. The impact of this is that the U.S. no longer has to rely on other countries for resources, like oil. NAFTA allows for the U.S. to reduce its reliance on other countries, like Venezuela and Iran.

While there are multiple arguments in favor of and against NAFTA, it's incredibly harmful to completely disregard the facts on the other side, whether or not they go against your views. More than anything, being informed about the entire issue of NAFTA is extremely prevalent.