Final answer:
Option (a), During the Great Depression, Mexican Americans were initially subject to deportation and unemployment, but during World War II, the Bracero Program provided some with agricultural job opportunities as the U.S. addressed labor shortages.
Step-by-step explanation:
During the Great Depression, Mexican Americans faced a series of hardships and dilemmas. Initially, many were deported or decided to return to Mexico because of unemployment and prejudice, and jobs that they once held, particularly in agriculture, were being taken over by Anglo-Americans.
However, as the United States entered World War II and the labor shortage intensified due to military enlistment and urban migration, the Bracero Program was created in 1942 by the federal government.
This program invited Mexicans to work in the United States as farmworkers to make it possible for American men to enlist in the armed services. While this did not reverse the overall hardship faced by Mexican Americans, specific groups found increased agricultural employment opportunities as a result of the Bracero Program.