Agents say many come with luggage and cash.
Tens of thousands of migrants from South America have flown into Mexico and crossed into a remote part of Arizona since late summer, as word spreads far beyond Central America that the southern border of the U.S. is penetrable.
More than 7,000 individuals from Brazil and Venezuela were encountered illegally crossing the border near Yuma in August alone, an unusually high number to come from countries outside the usual El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Mexico. Officials who work the Yuma sector said that the 7,000 number rose considerably through September and October.
A person who works with migrants in federal custody reported that “each and every single person has airline tickets to Mexico.” Unlike the migrants from Central America who typically cross the border with little more than the clothes on their backs, many of the South American migrants come with cash and ”name brand luggage” the official said.
According to Theresa Cardinal Brown, managing director for immigration and cross-border policy at the Bipartisan Policy Center in Washington, many of the migrants are middle class who have faced complex situations in their home countries where poverty, corruption in government, and effects of the coronavirus have made life difficult. She stated, “Their middle-class lifestyle is gone and with the last of the remaining money they are trying to come to the United States where they can maintain that middle-class lifestyle.”
As the Lord Leads, Pray with Us…
- For the Customs and Border Patrol agents and others as they try to keep up with the flow of illegal migration across the U.S.-Mexico border.
- For city, county, and state officials who are being faced with the influx of migrants they are not equipped to handle.
- For migrants who see the U.S. as their last hope for a decent life.
Sources: Washington Examiner, Arizona Republic
