As Migrants Strain Border Towns, Pressure Builds on Mexico to Act Kirk Semple - The New York Times
go to original January 27, 2017

Haitian migrants during an evening prayer at Iglesia Central del Nazareno, a church sheltering Haitian women and children in Tijuana (Meghan Dhaliwal/The New York Times)

Even before President Trump decided to build the wall, the Mexican border city of Tijuana was already overwhelmed.

So many Haitian migrants, traveling across the Americas, began arriving here last year with hopes of crossing into the United States that churches, community halls, after-school programs, rehabilitation centers and private citizens have opened their doors to house, feed and clothe them.

In one shelter, about 250 migrants — men, women and children — share two toilets and one shower. Four hundred are crammed into a church. A soup kitchen sleeps hundreds in hallways, a pantry and a lot out back.

Now, some officials and advocates worry that Mr. Trump’s plan could spur immigration crises in towns and cities all along the border and, indeed, throughout Mexico.

The Mexican government, they say, may not be able to handle it.

Mr. Trump is seeking to tighten the border, restrict immigration and increase deportations from the United States. In announcing his actions this week, the president said they would “help Mexico by deterring illegal immigration.”

“Going to be very, very good for Mexico,” he declared.

Yet some international officials and advocates envision a potential nightmare for the country.

Read the rest at The New York Times

Related: NGOs Worry About Fate of Migrants in Mexico (Mexico News Daily)

Related: Why Are So Many Pregnant and Parenting Teens Arriving at the U.S.–Mexico Border? (Slate)

Related: More Than 7,000 Haitians Seeking Refugee Status in Mexico (Haiti Libre)

Related: Stuck in Mexico, Cuban Immigrants Seeking Asylum in Mexico Pin Their Hopes on Trump (San Antonio Express-News)

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