Mexican State Issues 'How To' on Border Jumping

LOS ANGELES – Critics of illegal immigration say America's borders have always been too easy to cross, and now one Mexican state is trying to make it easier than ever.

The state of Yucatan (search) has issued a new 87-page handbook that tells people how to get across the U.S. border illegally. The guide, which has an accompanying DVD, contains a section on how to apply for a lawful visa but the remaining 50-plus pages are filled with instructions about how to safely sneak into the United States, then blend in.

"They need to cease and desist and, in fact, return to a position of being an ally of the United States instead of an adversary," said Rep. J.D. Hayworth (search), R-Ariz.

But Sara Zapata Mijares, president of the Yucatecan Club (search) of Los Angeles, called the guide a "life-preserving document."

Mijares and officials in Yucatan say illegal immigration is a reality and the guide is a necessity to save lives. But she points out that in the handbook, the dangers of crossing the border are illustrated with photographs of tombs.

"You tell me if this is an image that promotes immigration," she said.

Last year, the Mexican Foreign Ministry (search) published a similar guide, but in comic book form, that angered some U.S. lawmakers.

The newest guide also tells immigrants where to find health care, how to get their kids into U.S. schools and how to send money home — the reason some say Mexico is encouraging people to come to the United Sates illegally.

"This is really the way they keep their corrupt system afloat, by sending their excess workers to the United States and getting billions of dollars in remittances every year ... so for them this is a worthwhile investment," said Ira Mehlman of the Federation for American Immigration Reform (search).

Hayworth and several of his colleagues have written a strongly worded letter to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, encouraging her to tell Mexico to stop undermining U.S. immigration laws. If they do not, Hayworth suggests tough consequences, including sanctions.

Click on the video box above for a complete report by FOX News' Anita Vogel.