English

Migrants await justice as the U.S. strengthens its border

VENEZUELAN MIGRANT | Carlos travels by bicycle towards Palomas. (Photo/Morgan Smith)

BORDER SECURITY AND THE CHALLENGE OF ASYLUM

Morgan Smith

A man pedals hurriedly along the narrow highway connecting Ciudad Juárez with Palomas, surrounded by massive trucks. His name is Carlos, he is from Venezuela, and he believes crossing at Palomas will be easier. I offer him water and a soda, which he gulps down eagerly, but I don’t tell him he still has fifty miles to go. Carlos is not the only one seeking a better future at the border.

At the Tierra del Oro shelter in El Modelo, a family from Michoacán has been waiting a year for an asylum appointment. Leonel and his family, from Guanajuato, have spent two months at the Punto Beta shelter in Palomas, waiting for their asylum interview. They fled violence in their home state, but will they have to return?

In Ciudad Juárez, two young men—one from Guatemala and the other from Mexico—help us load chicken, eggs, beans, and rice for the Respettrans shelter. There, about sixty people, mostly women and children, had applied for asylum through the CBP 1 app, a process that has now been suspended.

A high wall with a big gate

The debate on U.S. immigration policy has revolved around border security. Journalist Thomas Friedman has said, “We need a high wall with a big gate” on the southern border. Surprisingly, some argue that this wall already exists.

The Biden administration, through negotiations with former Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, reinforced Mexico’s southern border to limit the number of migrants heading north. Then, Biden signed an executive order further restricting asylum. Added to this are border security improvements such as the construction of autonomous surveillance towers and repairs to the wall in key areas, such as between Anapra and the Santa Teresa port of entry.

In 2023, the Biden administration deported more people than in any year of Trump’s term. During a meeting with Border Patrol agents on February 5, new security measures were discussed, including the end of the “catch and release” policy. Now, a first detention may result in severe penalties, which has reduced illegal crossing attempts.

Time to focus on asylum

Despite these improvements, problems persist. Congress must still provide more resources for asylum judges, which would reduce waiting times. A Border Patrol agent commented that it is “inhumane” for asylum seekers to wait so long for a hearing.

Additionally, arms trafficking from the U.S. to Mexico continues to empower cartels. During a recent crossing at Santa Teresa, border agents checked whether I was carrying weapons—something I had never experienced before. If this is a new policy, it is a positive step.

With a low birth rate and a need for workers in key sectors such as agriculture and construction, legal immigration could be a solution. Perhaps, with the new border conditions, it is time to focus on those seeking asylum legally. I have a glimmer of hope that this will happen.