The migrant caravan is 800 miles away from our southern border. These Central American families will literally walk for months with small children in tow. Some humanizing reports are already showing stories of burnout and fatigue among asylum-seekers.
These are families – mothers, daughters, sons, and fathers – who are walking in horrendous conditions, unlikely to reach the border.
The Trump Administration is exploiting the vulnerability of these families as part of his culture war, entirely for political gain.
The reality is, the families are:
fleeing violence and lack of economic opportunity
traveling to the U.S. to seek asylum, which is legal
in no way a national security threat
Despite articles sensationalizing “record migration,” net migration to the U.S. is on the decline and has been since 2005.
And the caravans are nothing new and in no way are a “crisis.” Humanitarian groups have been organizing similar caravans since 2010.
Like the Irish "coffin ships" of before, these caravans are made up of families escaping horrors. They are simply families trying to go through our legal application process for asylum.
This election is going to end, but the fight for the soul of America will continue. And we must continue to fight.
"Dear America" by Jose Antonio Vargas is now available at HC.com/DearAmericaand available wherever books are sold. The author will donate a portion of his proceeds to Define American.
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