Actually it is economic profiling. They will shake down a Mexican citizen also if they think they have money. The Mexican citizen will probably pay less as he knows how "la mordita" works.
I am a white boy that speaks Spanish. My wife is from Mexico but her English is much better than mine. They insist on that when you teach at a University in Texas. We will no longer go to Mexico unless it is by plane to a tourist area where it is safe. Years ago I would travel all over Mexico by car in perfect safety. Occasionally I did pay a little "Mordita." Today I read in the papers about Mexican and American citizens being murdered on the same road I drove in the past.
It has all gone to hell South of the border.
I forgot to add, “I MISS THE OLD DAYS OF MY YOUTH ON THE BORDER.” I think they are gone forever.
I’ve heard from a friend of mine who has a Spanish speaking girlfriend with him when he goes that it helps a lot if someone in your car speaks Spanish, but he still always hides most of his cash keeping 50-100$ to pay off just in case. It may happen to Mexicans too but believe me they are looking for American license plates.
I think the economic, rather than racial, angle is far more likely. I’m also a white boy and my wife is Mexican (and we’re both bilingual)... but again, we simply haven’t had any occasion to even test the theory that that makes any difference. I believe the “mordita” part (which is the way things work in nearly every other part of the world outside of the US, not just in Mexico!), but I *don’t* believe everything I read in the papers. Having driven the drive a number of times over the last year and having had my wife and numerous friends work in the slums and garbage dumps of Tijuana, I just haven’t seen the ubiquitous violence most US media is claiming.