Taking Migration Seriously: Real Solutions to Complex Challenges at the Border
Center for American ProgressOct 26, 2022
Mexico's National Immigration Institute (IMN) on Monday announced that 343 migrants and refugees, including 103 unaccompanied children, were found in an abandoned freight truck container on the side of a highway in the Gulf coast state of Veracruz.
The discovery along the side of the Cosamaloapan-La Tinaja highway is the largest one of unchaperoned minors migrating through Mexico this year. In January, authorities found nearly 60 Guatemalan children – mostly boys between the ages of 14 and 17.
The ongoing migrant crisis in the Western Hemisphere isn't limited to the US; it's also affecting Latin America, and a solution to this problem can only be found by addressing its root causes. The Biden admin. is right to engage with other countries and promote a comprehensive plan to assist refugees and stimulate private investment and aid in the region to ensure long-term stability and security.
The southern border crisis, which has been engendered by bad policy, isn't waning and simply won't go away by hurling money at it without promoting much-needed reforms. The US Congress must re-instate the Remain in Mexico policy, which proved to be effective in tackling illegal immigration and asylum fraud, and also eliminate the loophole in the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act that encourages the exploitation of unaccompanied minors.