![Central America's Northern Triangle](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0e/Central_America%27s_Northern_Triangle.svg)
Central American migrant caravans, also known as the ("Migrant's
Way of the Cross
The Stations of the Cross or the Way of the Cross, also known as the Way of Sorrows or the Via Crucis, refers to a series of images depicting Jesus Christ on the day of his crucifixion and accompanying prayers. The stations grew out of imitati ...
"), are migrant caravans that travel from Central America to the
Mexico–United States border
The Mexico–United States border ( es, frontera Estados Unidos–México) is an international border separating Mexico and the United States, extending from the Pacific Ocean in the west to the Gulf of Mexico in the east. The border traver ...
. The largest and best known of these were organized by (A People Without Borders) that set off during
Holy Week
Holy Week ( la, Hebdomada Sancta or , ; grc, Ἁγία καὶ Μεγάλη Ἑβδομάς, translit=Hagia kai Megale Hebdomas, lit=Holy and Great Week) is the most sacred week in the liturgical year in Christianity. In Eastern Churches, w ...
in early 2017 and 2018 from the
Northern Triangle of Central America
The Northern Triangle of Central America (NTCA) is a term used in the United States to refer collectively to the three Central American countries of Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador. The term is used with respect to the countries' econom ...
(NTCA), but such caravans of migrants began arriving several years earlier, and other unrelated caravans continued to arrive into late 2018.
There is some disagreement as to whether the migrant caravans are primarily composed of refugees seeking asylum or are merely large concentrations of traditional economic migrants. Numerous human rights organizations document the increase in violence and abuse in recent years in Central American countries. A report by the
Geneva Declaration on Armed Violence and Development
The Geneva Declaration on Armed Violence and Development highlights the role that states and civil society must play in preventing and reducing violence associated with war, crime, and social unrest. The Declaration was adopted on 7 June 2006 and i ...
, cited by
Amnesty International
Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says it has more than ten million members and sup ...
, noted that between 2007 and 2012, several Central American countries had the highest average annual female homicide rates in the world, although the average annual male homicide rates in the world are higher. Other studies of the composition of the caravans indicated that the caravans more resemble traditional economic migrants.
[ The causes of the migration, as well as the proper way to settle or deport the migrants themselves, remains a source of political debate within the U.S.
]
Causes of the migration
Drought
A drought is defined as drier than normal conditions.Douville, H., K. Raghavan, J. Renwick, R.P. Allan, P.A. Arias, M. Barlow, R. Cerezo-Mota, A. Cherchi, T.Y. Gan, J. Gergis, D. Jiang, A. Khan, W. Pokam Mba, D. Rosenfeld, J. Tierney, an ...
and crop failure in the Central American dry corridor and climate change in Honduras have been factors in the formation of the caravans.
Honduras
Honduras, officially the Republic of Honduras, is a country in Central America. The republic of Honduras is bordered to the west by Guatemala, to the southwest by El Salvador, to the southeast by Nicaragua, to the south by the Pacific Oce ...
is one of the poorest and most violent countries in Central America. The country experienced a coup d'état in 2009 and is one of the most unequal countries in the world, while the poverty rate stood at 64.3% in 2018. Drought
A drought is defined as drier than normal conditions.Douville, H., K. Raghavan, J. Renwick, R.P. Allan, P.A. Arias, M. Barlow, R. Cerezo-Mota, A. Cherchi, T.Y. Gan, J. Gergis, D. Jiang, A. Khan, W. Pokam Mba, D. Rosenfeld, J. Tierney, an ...
and crop failure is also one of the causes of emigration.
According to the newspaper Le Monde
''Le Monde'' (; ) is a French daily afternoon newspaper. It is the main publication of Le Monde Group and reported an average circulation of 323,039 copies per issue in 2009, about 40,000 of which were sold abroad. It has had its own website si ...
, "Caught between extreme poverty and ultra-violence, more and more Hondurans are choosing to flee their country, driven by the most extreme despair". An opposition Honduran politician considers that migrants "do not run after the American dream, they flee the Honduran nightmare".
First caravans
Discussions of illegal immigration typically claim that there have been many caravans. Those that antedate 2017 were small afrairs that did not move as a group to the U.S. border.
2017 caravan
Pueblo Sin Fronteras supported its first Holy Week caravan in 2017.
On 25 March 2018, a group of about 700 migrants (80% from Honduras
Honduras, officially the Republic of Honduras, is a country in Central America. The republic of Honduras is bordered to the west by Guatemala, to the southwest by El Salvador, to the southeast by Nicaragua, to the south by the Pacific Oce ...
) began their way north from Tapachula
Tapachula de Córdova y Ordóñez, simply known as Tapachula, is a city and municipality located in the far southeast of the state of Chiapas in Mexico, near the Guatemalan border and the Pacific Ocean. It is one of the most important cities of ...
. By 1 April, the caravan had arrived in Matías Romero, Oaxaca
Matías Romero is a town and municipality in Oaxaca in south-western Mexico. It is named after Mexican politician and diplomat Matías Romero Avendaño. The municipality covers an area of 1,459.54 km².
It is part of the Juchitán Distri ...
, and grown to about 1,200 people. In mid-April, 500 migrants continued northward from Mexico City
Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...
—the caravan's last official stop—toward Tijuana
Tijuana ( ,["Tijuana"](_blank)
(US) and [< ...]
, in separate groups riding atop freight train cars. Two busloads of the migrants arrived in Tijuana on 25 April and a further four busloads were making their way from Hermosillo
Hermosillo (), formerly called Pitic (as in ''Santísima Trinidad del Pitic'' and ''Presidio del Pitic''), is a city located in the center of the northwestern Mexican state of Sonora. It is the municipal seat of the Hermosillo Municipality, Her ...
. On 29 April 2018, after traveling across Mexico, the migrants' caravan came to an end in Tijuana, at the Mexico–United States border
The Mexico–United States border ( es, frontera Estados Unidos–México) is an international border separating Mexico and the United States, extending from the Pacific Ocean in the west to the Gulf of Mexico in the east. The border traver ...
at Friendship Park.
More than 150 migrants prepared to seek asylum from United States immigration officials. United States Attorney General
The United States attorney general (AG) is the head of the United States Department of Justice, and is the chief law enforcement officer of the federal government of the United States. The attorney general serves as the principal advisor to the p ...
Jeff Sessions
Jefferson Beauregard Sessions III (born December 24, 1946) is an American politician and attorney who served as the 84th United States Attorney General from 2017 to 2018. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as United State ...
called the caravan "a deliberate attempt to undermine our laws and overwhelm our system". On 30 April, Sessions' Justice Department announced criminal charges against eleven people for crossing the border illegally.
American aid worker Scott Warren with the organization No More Deaths No More Deaths is an advocacy group based in Tucson
, "(at the) base of the black ill
, nicknames = "The Old Pueblo", "Optics Valley", "America's biggest small town"
, image_map =
, mapsize = ...
was arrested on 12 May on charges of illegally harboring people in the country, hours after releasing a report accusing the U.S. Border Patrol of tampering with water sources for migrants crossing the Arizona desert. He pleaded not guilty and was ultimately acquitted in November 2019.
Late 2018 caravan
Migrants from Honduras
Honduras, officially the Republic of Honduras, is a country in Central America. The republic of Honduras is bordered to the west by Guatemala, to the southwest by El Salvador, to the southeast by Nicaragua, to the south by the Pacific Oce ...
, Guatemala
Guatemala ( ; ), officially the Republic of Guatemala ( es, República de Guatemala, links=no), is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico; to the northeast by Belize and the Caribbean; to the east by H ...
, Nicaragua
Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Managua is the cou ...
, and El Salvador
El Salvador (; , meaning " The Saviour"), officially the Republic of El Salvador ( es, República de El Salvador), is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the south b ...
gathered on 12 October to meet at San Pedro Sula
San Pedro Sula () is the capital of Cortés Department, Honduras. It is located in the northwest corner of the country in the Sula Valley, about 50 kilometers (31 miles) south of Puerto Cortés on the Caribbean Sea. With a population of 671,460 ...
, the second largest city in Honduras. The caravan began the next day, intending to reach the United States to flee from violence, poverty, and political repression. The caravan began with about 160 migrants but quickly gathered over 500 participants as it marched through Honduras. Bartolo Fuentes, a former Honduran congressman and one of the march coordinators, stated that the goal of the caravan was to find safety in numbers as it traveled north. Though he was at first convinced that the caravan was a spontaneous movement, Fuentes has since told several news agencies that the caravan was organized and popularized through a faked social media account bearing his own name and photograph, which has since been deleted from Facebook. Fuentes says he first heard about the fake account from Irineo Mujica of the organization Pueblo Sin Fronteras. The same day it left, United States Vice President Mike Pence
Michael Richard Pence (born June 7, 1959) is an American politician who served as the 48th vice president of the United States from 2017 to 2021 under President Donald Trump. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as the 50th ...
urged the presidents of Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala to persuade their citizens to stay home. Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernández
Juan Orlando Hernández Alvarado (; born 28 October 1968), also known as JOH, is a Honduran lawyer and politician who served as President of Honduras from 2014 to 2022.
A member of the National Party, Hernández previously served as the presi ...
advised his citizens to return home and to "not let yourselves be used for political purposes". Pueblo Sin Fronteras did not organize the October caravan, but expressed its solidarity with it. Irineo Mujico, the director of Pueblo Sin Fronteras, did not himself recommend another caravan to the United States, instead advising its members to seek asylum in Mexico.
As the caravan passed through the Guatemalan city of Chiquimula
Chiquimula is a city in Guatemala. It is the capital of the department of Chiquimula and the municipal seat for the surrounding municipality of the same name.
It is located some 174 km from Guatemala City and within Guatemala known as "La p ...
, Fuentes was arrested by police and deported. Other Hondurans, traveling on buses, had their papers seized or were arrested, forcing migrants to travel on foot. On entering Tecún Umán
Tecun UmanAlternate transliterations include Tecún Umán, Tecúm Umán, Tecúm Umam, Tekun Umam, etc. (1500? – February 20, 1524) was one of the last rulers of the K'iche' Maya people, in the Highlands of what is now Guatemala. According to ...
on 18 October 2018, the caravan numbered around 5,000, but began shrinking due to the speed of parts of the caravan and its reception in shelters in Tecún Umán. The same day, U.S. President Donald Trump
Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021.
Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...
threatened to deploy the U.S. military
The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. The armed forces consists of six service branches: the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard. The president of the United States is the ...
and close the U.S.–Mexico border to keep the caravan from entering the country. Trump also threatened to cut aid to countries allowing the caravans to pass through. Also on 18 October, Mexico flew two Boeing 727s transporting Federal Police
A law enforcement agency (LEA) is any government agency responsible for the enforcement of the laws.
Jurisdiction
LEAs which have their ability to apply their powers restricted in some way are said to operate within a jurisdiction.
LEAs ...
officers to the Guatemala–Mexico border
The Guatemala–Mexico border is the international border between Guatemala and Mexico. The border measures and runs between north and west Guatemala (the Guatemalan departments of San Marcos, Huehuetenango, El Quiché and El Petén) and the ...
. The next day, 19 October, an estimated 4,000 migrants had gathered in Ciudad Tecún Umán in Guatemala. Mexican officials, including the ambassador to Guatemala, requested that migrants appear individually at the border for processing. The migrants ignored the request, and marched on the bridge, overwhelming Guatemalan police and Mexican barriers on the bridge, then entered Ciudad Hidalgo, Chiapas
Ciudad Hidalgo is a city in the Mexican state of Chiapas. It serves as the municipal seat of the surrounding municipality of Suchiate which is the southernmost in Mexico. In the 2010 INEGI Census, it reported a population of 14,606 inhabitants. ...
, and encountered Federal Police in riot gear
Riot control measures are used by law enforcement, military, paramilitary or security forces to control, disperse, and arrest people who are involved in a riot, unlawful demonstration or unlawful protest.
If a riot is spontaneous and irration ...
. After an hour-long standoff with police, whom migrants threw shoes and stones at, tear gas
Tear gas, also known as a lachrymator agent or lachrymator (), sometimes colloquially known as "mace" after the early commercial aerosol, is a chemical weapon that stimulates the nerves of the lacrimal gland in the eye to produce tears. In ad ...
was used to push the migrants back onto the bridge. Officials reported that at least six Mexican police officers had been injured. After hostilities ended, migrants formed into lines and began processing by Mexican authorities. By the mid-afternoon, migrants were allowed entry in Mexico and were taken by bus to Tapachula
Tapachula de Córdova y Ordóñez, simply known as Tapachula, is a city and municipality located in the far southeast of the state of Chiapas in Mexico, near the Guatemalan border and the Pacific Ocean. It is one of the most important cities of ...
. According to the Commissioner of the Federal Police, Manelich Castilla Craviotto, this was for processing and shelter. Migrants with valid visas and documentation were allowed immediate entrance, while asylum-seekers would be detained in a migration center for 45 days.
On 20 October, about 2,000 migrants who had crossed the Suchiate River
The Suchiate River ( es, Río Suchiate, ) is a river that marks the southwesternmost part of the border between Mexico (state of Chiapas) and Guatemala (department of San Marcos). From its sources on the southern slopes of the Tacaná volcano ...
and entered Ciudad Hidalgo decided to rebuild the caravan to continue their trek to the United States. The caravan again resumed its march early on 21 October from Tapachula. A force of 700 Federal Police officers, mostly women, formed a human barricade on the Suchiate–Tapachula highway, but withdrew as the 5,000-strong caravan of migrants came within . By the afternoon, the migrants reached Tapachula and its leaders decided to rest there, inside Mexico. Their march began again the next day, bound for Huixtla
Huixtla is a town and one of the 119 municipalities of Chiapas, in southern Mexico
Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North Am ...
, another away from Tapachula. Simultaneously, Guatemalan officials reported that another thousand migrants entered the country from Honduras, while another 1,000 migrants were reported making for Tapachula from Ciudad Hidalgo.
Irineo Mujica was arrested in Ciudad Hidalgo on 22 October while walking with a group of migrants to a church. Mujica was pulled out of a crowd of migrants by Mexican authorities and pushed into a white van. According to Pueblo Sin Fronteras, he was not involved in organizing the caravan and was conducting humanitarian work in Tapachula. Mujica has since claimed that he and Pueblo Sin Fronteras were initially opposed to the timing of this migrant caravan, because they believed it would be used to build anti-immigration sentiment during the 2018 US midterm election.
Also on 22 October, President Donald Trump
Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021.
Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...
said the U.S. would begin curtailing tens of millions of dollars in aid to three Central American nations, because they did not stop the caravan. President Trump also threatened to send the U.S. military to close the border and stop the caravan.
On 26 October, when the caravan was in the Arriaga Municipality of the state of Chiapas
Chiapas (; Tzotzil language, Tzotzil and Tzeltal language, Tzeltal: ''Chyapas'' ), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Chiapas ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Chiapas), is one of the states that make up the Political divisions of Mexico, ...
, Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto
Enrique Peña Nieto (; born 20 July 1966), commonly referred to by his initials EPN, is a Mexican politician who served as the 64th president of Mexico from 1 December 2012 to 30 November 2018. A member of the Institutional Revolutionary Party ...
unveiled his program entitled "Estás en tu casa" ("You are at home"). This initiative allows caravan migrants meeting certain criteria to receive benefits and begin to normalize their immigration status in Mexico. Migrants who follow Mexican laws and are granted refugee status will, according to the plan, be entitled to temporary work permits and IDs, medical attention, housing in local establishments, and schooling for children. In order to qualify, however, migrants must agree to settle in the states of Chiapas or Oaxaca and not continue to move north.
As the second caravan entered Mexico on 30 October, the main body of some 4,000 migrants, at Santiago Niltepec, demanded "safe and dignified" transportation to Mexico City
Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...
. Migrants still crossing into Mexico over the Suchiate river were dissuaded by Mexican helicopters and police.
Some scientists contend that the impact of climate change is causing crop failures and exacerbating poverty in Central America, thereby creating what the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is a United Nations agency mandated to aid and protect refugees, forcibly displaced communities, and stateless people, and to assist in their voluntary repatriation, local integrati ...
has called "climate refugees." According to Robert Albro, a researcher at the Center for Latin American and Latino Studies at American University
The American University (AU or American) is a private federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C. Its main campus spans 90 acres (36 ha) on Ward Circle, mostly in the Spring Valley neighborhood of Northwest D.C. AU was charte ...
, "The main reason people are moving is because they don't have anything to eat. This has a strong link to climate change – we are seeing tremendous climate instability that is radically changing food security in the region."
Table
Border actions
A week before the 2018 midterm elections, the US Government sent
Sent is a former municipality in the district of Inn in the Swiss Canton of Graubünden. On 1 January 2015 the former municipalities of Ardez, Guarda, Tarasp, Ftan and Sent merged into the municipality of Scuol. 5,200 active-duty soldiers to the US-Mexico border to "harden" it further. 2,100 National Guard troops were already present.
On November 23, mayor of Tijuana Juan Manuel Gastélum declared a "humanitarian crisis" in response to the large number of migrants in the city. By this date, over 5,000 members of the caravan were staying at the Tijuana Stadium— a structure with a capacity of 3,000.
On November 25, a group of approximately 500 migrants marched to the San Ysidro Port of Entry
__NOTOC__
The San Ysidro Port of Entry (aka San Ysidro Land Port of Entry or San Ysidro LPOE) is the largest land border crossing between San Diego and Tijuana, and the fourth- busiest land border crossing in the world (second-busiest if one exclu ...
to demand answers. Frustrated by the slow pace of asylum application processing (approximately 60 per day) and the dire living conditions in their tent cities, they attempted to bypass the Mexican Federal Police to reach the border wall when a commotion occurred. A member of the caravan was caught on video throwing rocks at border agents while at the border wall. In response, the United States Border Patrol launched tear gas over the border at the group, which included women and children, and subsequently shut down the crossing for six hours. Photographs of the incident received significant media attention and sparked extensive international commentary. 42 migrants were arrested, and a total of 4 Border agents were struck by rocks.
Political reaction in the U.S.
In the United States, the migrant caravan was a major issue for President Donald Trump
Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021.
Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...
and other Republicans and conservatives in the 2018 mid-term elections. Immigrant invasion rhetoric was used by conservative commentators on ''Fox News
The Fox News Channel, abbreviated FNC, commonly known as Fox News, and stylized in all caps, is an American multinational conservative cable news television channel based in New York City. It is owned by Fox News Media, which itself is owne ...
''. The caravan was described as an "invading horde" by Laura Ingraham
Laura Anne Ingraham (born June 19, 1963) is an American conservative television host. Gale Biography In Context. She has been the host of ''The Ingraham Angle'' on Fox News Channel since October 2017, and is the editor-in-chief of LifeZette. ...
, an "invasion" by Steve Doocy, "a full-scale invasion by a hostile force" by Michelle Malkin
Michelle Malkin (; Maglalang; born October 20, 1970) is an American conservative political commentator. She was a Fox News contributor and in May 2020 joined Newsmax TV. Malkin has written seven books and founded the conservative websites Tw ...
, "a criminal involvement on the part of these leftist mobs" and "a highly organized, very elaborate sophisticated operation" by Chris Farrell. According to closed captioning transcripts, the word "invasion" was used in relation to the caravan more than 60 times on Fox News in October 2018 and more than 75 times on Fox Business. Commentators noted that mentions of the caravan by Fox News dropped dramatically immediately following the 2018 midterm elections.
Disinformation was promoted by Trump and supporters including the claim that there were "criminals and unknown Middle Easterners" in the caravan, despite the lack of any publicized evidence for this charge. Likewise, Vice President Pence in an interview with Fox News stated:
The president of Honduras at the time, Juan Orlando Hernández
Juan Orlando Hernández Alvarado (; born 28 October 1968), also known as JOH, is a Honduran lawyer and politician who served as President of Honduras from 2014 to 2022.
A member of the National Party, Hernández previously served as the presi ...
, was a member of the right-wing
Right-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that view certain social orders and hierarchies as inevitable, natural, normal, or desirable, typically supporting this position on the basis of natural law, economics, authorit ...
National party and an opponent of the Venezuelan government led by Nicolás Maduro
Nicolás Maduro Moros (; born 23 November 1962) is a Venezuelan politician and president of Venezuela since 2013, with his presidency under dispute since 2019.
Beginning his working life as a bus driver, Maduro rose to become a trade unio ...
.
The Twitter account of the Department of Homeland Security
The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is the U.S. federal executive department responsible for public security, roughly comparable to the interior or home ministries of other countries. Its stated missions involve anti-terr ...
"confirmed" that within the caravan there were people who are "gang members or have significant criminal histories," but did not offer any evidence of ties. The National Rifle Association
The National Rifle Association of America (NRA) is a gun rights advocacy group based in the United States. Founded in 1871 to advance rifle marksmanship, the modern NRA has become a prominent Gun politics in the United States, gun rights ...
's NRATV
NRATV (National Rifle Association Television) was the online video channel of the National Rifle Association of America. It was established as an offshoot of NRA News in 2016 and ceased production in 2019 and went offline.
History
In 2004, th ...
alleged that "a bevy of left-wing groups" were working with George Soros
George Soros ( name written in eastern order), (born György Schwartz, August 12, 1930) is a Hungarian-American businessman and philanthropist. , he had a net worth of US$8.6 billion, Note that this site is updated daily. having donated mo ...
and the Venezuelan government
Venezuela is a federal presidential republic.
The chief executive is the President of Venezuela who is both head of state and head of government. Executive power is exercised by the President. Legislative power is vested in the National Asse ...
"to try to influence the 2018 midterms by sending Honduran migrants north in the thousands".
On November 2, 2018, five days before the election, the Department of Homeland Security website issued a press release, "Myth vs. Fact: Caravan", stating that "over 270 individuals along the caravan route have criminal histories, including known gang membership". It cited no sources for the specific numbers and crimes claimed, but did cite Mexican officials to back up their claim that the caravan contained criminal groups. The DHS also claimed the caravan contained migrants from Afghanistan, Somalia, India and Bangladesh, though they didn't cite any sources.
One study by the National Center for Risk and Economic Analysis of Terrorism Events (CREATE) at the University of Southern California
The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in C ...
and the Institute for Defense Analyses
The Institute for Defense Analyses (IDA) is an American non-profit corporation that administers three federally funded research and development centers (FFRDCs) – the Systems and Analyses Center (SAC), the Science and Technology Policy Institute ...
stated that the Central American immigrants the U.S. and claiming asylum had more in common with economic migrants
An economic migrant is someone who emigrates from one region to another, including crossing international borders, seeking an improved standard of living, because the conditions or job opportunities in the migrant's own region are insufficient. Th ...
than traditional refugees. Both groups receive funding or sponsorship from the US government.
Reactions in Mexico
Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador
Andrés Manuel López Obrador (; born 13 November 1953), also known by his initials AMLO, is a Mexican politician who has been serving as the 65th president of Mexico since 1 December 2018. He previously served as Head of Government of Mex ...
said: "Obviously, we have to help because Central American migrants pass through our territory and we have to bring order to this migration, make sure it's legal."
Initially positive, the Mexican public's sentiment soured rapidly. ''El Universal'' October 2018 survey found that 64.5% of the Mexican public believed that Central American migrants increased violence or unemployment; this figure increased to 73% in the following month's survey. 56% of the public believed that López Obrador needs to be "tougher" on future migrants.
The 2019 survey found that 58% of Mexican respondents oppose migration from Central America.
Late 2020 caravans
As the United States prepared for elections in 2020 unknown groups promoted messages on social media sites for another caravan.
In October 2020, migrant caravans from Honduras have been either intercepted by Guatemalan Army
The Guatemalan Armed Forces ( es, Fuerzas Armadas de Guatemala) consists of the National Army of Guatemala (''Ejercito Nacional de Guatemala'', ENG), the Guatemalan National Defense Navy (''Marina de la Defensa Nacional'', includes Marines), the ...
officers and deported back to Honduras upon reaching the border crossings, or some of them have evaded border restrictions and reached Guatemala City
Guatemala City ( es, Ciudad de Guatemala), known locally as Guatemala or Guate, is the capital and largest city of Guatemala, and the most populous urban area in Central America. The city is located in the south-central part of the country, nest ...
, with intent to continuing their journey to Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
. The Mexican military and border police have repeatedly warned that no migrant caravans will be allowed to cross into Mexico.
Early 2021 caravans
After Joe Biden won the 2020 United States presidential election
The 2020 United States presidential election was the 59th quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 3, 2020. The Democratic ticket of former vice president Joe Biden and the junior U.S. senator from California Kamala Ha ...
, there was a resurgence in migrant caravan activities. Fox News
The Fox News Channel, abbreviated FNC, commonly known as Fox News, and stylized in all caps, is an American multinational conservative cable news television channel based in New York City. It is owned by Fox News Media, which itself is owne ...
has claimed this to be related to Biden's planned amnesty for illegal immigrants within his first 100 days in office.
On January 13, just one week prior to the Joe Biden's presidential inauguration, more than 3,000 people departed Honduras
Honduras, officially the Republic of Honduras, is a country in Central America. The republic of Honduras is bordered to the west by Guatemala, to the southwest by El Salvador, to the southeast by Nicaragua, to the south by the Pacific Oce ...
and El Salvador
El Salvador (; , meaning " The Saviour"), officially the Republic of El Salvador ( es, República de El Salvador), is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the south b ...
for the United States. That number grew to approximately 7,000-8,000 one week later.
On January 16, Guatemala
Guatemala ( ; ), officially the Republic of Guatemala ( es, República de Guatemala, links=no), is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico; to the northeast by Belize and the Caribbean; to the east by H ...
and Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
deployed the military to their borders, in an attempt to stop the migrant caravan from transiting through their countries on the way to the United States. Three days later, the migrant caravans reportedly dissolved in the Guatemalan-Honduran border region, and most its participants were deported back to Honduras.
2022 caravans
From June 2022, up to 15,000 migrants, mostly from Central America and Venezuela, started to set out from the southern Mexico city of Tapachula
Tapachula de Córdova y Ordóñez, simply known as Tapachula, is a city and municipality located in the far southeast of the state of Chiapas in Mexico, near the Guatemalan border and the Pacific Ocean. It is one of the most important cities of ...
in a caravan bound to the United States. On 5 July, a caravan of almost 7,000 people departed from Tapachula. They broke up in Huixtla
Huixtla is a town and one of the 119 municipalities of Chiapas, in southern Mexico
Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North Am ...
after two days.
On 11 December 2022, a migrant caravan of over 1,000 people crossed illegally into El Paso from Ciudad Juarez.
See also
* 2014 American immigration crisis
* Asylum in the United States
The United States recognizes the right of asylum for refugees as specified by international and federal law. A specified number of legally defined refugees who are granted ''refugee status'' outside the United States are annually admitted un ...
* Brooks County, Texas
Brooks County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 7,076. Its county seat is Falfurrias. The county is named for James Abijah Brooks, a Texas Ranger and legislator. It is one of the poore ...
* European migrant crisis
The 2015 European migrant crisis, also known internationally as the Syrian refugee crisis, was a period of significantly increased movement of refugees and migrants into Europe in 2015, when 1.3 million people came to the continent to reques ...
* Illegal immigration to the United States
Illegal immigration to the United States is the process of migrating into the United States in violation of federal immigration laws. This can include foreign nationals (aliens) who have entered the United States unlawfully, as well as thos ...
* List of Mexico–United States border crossings
There are 50 places where people can legally cross the Mexico–United States border. Several large border cities have multiple crossings, often including one or more that bypass the center of the city and are designated for truck traffic. For p ...
* The Mariel boatlift
The Mariel boatlift () was a mass emigration of Cubans who traveled from Cuba's Mariel Harbor to the United States between 15 April and 31 October 1980. The term "" (plural "Marielitos") is used to refer to these refugees in both Spanish and En ...
* Mexico–United States border crisis
Migration into the United States from Mexico has been following a surging trend during the last several years. The migrants seek asylum in the US at the Mexico–US border. These include tens of thousands of unaccompanied children who arrive ...
* ''Missing in Brooks County
''Missing in Brooks County'' is a 2020 feature-length documentary (1 hr 21 m), directed and filmed by Lisa Molomot and Jeff Bemiss. Its subject is the passage of illegal migrants through Brooks County, Texas, and specifically how thousands die o ...
''
* Operation Faithful Patriot
* ''El tren de la muerte
''La Bestia'' ("The Beast"), also known as ''El Tren de la Muerte'' ("The Train of Death") and ''El Tren de los Desconocidos'' ("The Train of the Unknowns"), refers to a freight train that starts its route in Chiapas state in southern Mexico, ...
''
* Vietnamese boat people
Vietnamese boat people ( vi, Thuyền nhân Việt Nam), also known simply as boat people, refers to the refugees who fled Vietnam by boat and ship following the end of the Vietnam War in 1975. This migration and humanitarian crisis was at its h ...
References
Further reading
*
External links
Map: From Africa to Tijuana
:via: São Paulo
São Paulo (, ; Portuguese for 'Saint Paul') is the most populous city in Brazil, and is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous and wealthiest Brazilian state, located in the country's Southeast Region. Listed by the GaWC a ...
, crossing the Darién Gap
The Darién Gap (, , es, Tapón del Darién , ) is a geographic region between the North and South American continents within Central America, consisting of a large watershed, forest, and mountains in Panama's Darién Province and the norther ...
on foot, across the Rio Suchiate to Tapachula
Tapachula de Córdova y Ordóñez, simply known as Tapachula, is a city and municipality located in the far southeast of the state of Chiapas in Mexico, near the Guatemalan border and the Pacific Ocean. It is one of the most important cities of ...
, and to Tijuana
Tijuana ( ,["Tijuana"](_blank)
(US) and [< ...]
.
:at:
{{North America topic, Asylum in
Protests in Mexico
Illegal immigration to the United States
Immigration to Mexico
International volunteer organizations
2018 in international relations
2018 in Mexico
2018 in American politics
Immigration policy of Donald Trump
Mexico–United States relations
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Honduras–United States relations
Northern Triangle refugee crisis
Guatemalan emigrants to the United States
Honduran emigrants to the United States
Salvadoran emigrants to the United States
2018 in North America
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