Introduction
Lots of migrants have started a big group trip from southern Mexico, all going to the United States border. They are hoping to get to the United States before November’s election, worried that if Donald Trump wins again, he might change the immigration rules.
They left from a city close to the border between Mexico and Guatemala on Sunday, July 21, starting a risky trip that will take months. Everyone is also keeping an eye on Vice President Kamala Harris as Democrats are all in support of her, hoping she will be the next Democratic candidate for President.
Details on the migrants’ movement
The group includes people from around 12 countries, with a few of them aiming to reach the border before the November elections. They started their journey from the southern Mexican city of Ciudad Hidalgo on Sunday.
Some of these folks had been waiting in the town for weeks to get their travel permits. They are worried that the permits they need to cross the border could get stopped.
The sad situation of migrants
In recent times, groups of migrants attempting to cross Mexico have formed to lessen the chances of facing violence from gangs or interception by Mexican border authorities during their journey. However, these groups often fragment in the southern regions of Mexico, as individuals become weary from walking for extensive distances.
Mexico has also implemented stricter measures to hinder migrants’ access to the US border via buses and trains. Approval is seldom granted to individuals entering the country without proper visas, leading to the detention of numerous migrants by immigration officials at various checkpoints in the central and northern areas of Mexico, and subsequently, their return to remote towns in the southern regions of the country.
What migrants might face in this journey?
Whether they are walking, catching a bus, or getting a ride in a truck, they will have to endure a tough journey that can last weeks and cover hundreds of miles to get to the US. In their rush to get going, there usually are a few reported cases of people falling off the vehicles they were in and getting run over.
They have also had to deal with tear gas from the police and the risk of being sent back to their home countries by the local governments, sometimes breaking international law. Some have been sent back without their consent, often breaking the rules of international law.
Staying out in the sun, not having enough water, and not having access to clean water and places to clean up are big risks they face. At a sports stadium in Mexico City, which has been a stop for thousands, many have had to go to the doctor for things like blistered feet, lung infections, diarrhea, and other health issues.
Why take the risk?
1. The fear of the incoming administration.
These people moving here are concerned that a new government led by former President Trump might shut down the CBP One app, which is how migrants get set up for an appointment at a border crossing. The US Customs and Border Protection site mentions that you need to be in the middle or north of Mexico to ask for and plan a meeting.
These migrants were upset with Trump’s latest remarks about migrants and his idea that they are trying to ‘invade’ the US. Migrants opine that they are not criminals, just hard working folks who want to move to the US to improve their lives. They left their home country because they are dealing with a lot of problems back there.
2. The Biden/Harris’ factor.
Last month, Biden made some big moves to tighten up border security by issuing an order that would stop non-citizens from entering the country if the number of people crossing the border at any given time, on average, hit 2,500 or more between the two main entry points.
The Biden team also let us know a few weeks after he stepped in that the number of people crossing the border had dropped by 40 percent. This order was introduced because the number of people crossing the southern border has hit record levels during the Biden-Harris time in the past two years.
Final thoughts
Under President Trump’s administration he often called asylum seekers ‘criminals’ or blamed them for trying to sneak into the country by taking advantage of ‘loopholes’ in the immigration system when talking about the asylum process.
He even took some harsh steps to stop them, like building a wall along the 2,000-mile border with Mexico. Now, he refers to migrants as ‘invaders.’
But the truth is, Trump’s government worked to tear down the US asylum system by doing things like pushing asylum-seekers back into Mexico illegally, breaking up thousands of families by separating kids from their parents, making it harder for people to apply for asylum in certain places, and relying more on keeping people locked up without clear reasons.
All of this is breaking international law. According to international law, anyone who shows up in the US or tries to get into the country to ask for asylum should be allowed to do so and have their case looked at by the officials.
The US can’t stop people from certain countries from seeking asylum, and it can’t send people back to places where their lives or safety could be in danger.
The US officials under the current and forthcoming administration need to relax the rules to accommodate migrants, refugees, and asylum-seekers and stop seeing the people in the caravans as a threat. It is a group of people and families who, to the last person, just want to be safe.
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