There are many factors that lead to illegal immigration, especially at the southwest border of the United States. For instance, economic conditions in Central America and around the world are the biggest factor that drive people to leave their homes and risk their lives to be smuggled across the southwest border.
Unfortunately, people who live in dangerous, impoverished conditions spend all of the money that they have in an attempt to illegally enter the U.S. Often, they end up becoming the victims of human trafficking.
This victimization occurs because delays and obstacles along the human smuggling route result in migrants owing more money than they or their family can afford to pay. As a result, they are trafficked as a means of paying off the debt once they arrive at the southwest border. Trafficking may include sex slavery, drug packaging or other forms of forced labor.
Related: Human Trafficking: The Perspective of a Former Gang Member
The Northern Triangle
Globally, the “United States is the leading destination for Central American migrants,” according to the Migration Policy Institute.
Much of this illegal immigration comes from the Northern Triangle, which consists of El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras. Millions of migrants have fled from the Northern Triangle due to poverty, gangs and violence.
The Northern Triangle region of Central America is one of the poorest in the Western Hemisphere, according to the Center for Strategic & International Studies. However, migrants come from other areas, not just the Northern Triangle. Migrants have come from countries like Haiti, as well as other continents such as Asia and Africa.
There has also been a rise in the number of people on the terrorist watch list who have been apprehended along the southwest border. According to NBC News, 160 migrants whose identities match people on the terrorist watch list were apprehended of September 2023, up from the 100 that were apprehended in 2022.
Related: Guatemala: A Struggle to Maintain Unlawful Political Power
The Scope of the Illegal Immigration Problem
Transnational criminal organizations aid in illegally moving people from Latin America and around the world. According to CBS News, over two million people have been apprehended coming across the southwest border so far in 2023. In 2022, a record-breaking 2.2 million migrants were apprehended at the southwest border of the U.S.
CBS News also notes that Customs and Border Patrol processed over 200,000 migrants who crossed the southwest border in September 2022. Migrants who enter the U.S. illegally may seek asylum to remain. The legal proceedings involving asylum cases can take years, due to the sheer number of people entering illegally and the backlog of cases.
The Personal Experiences of Migrants Being Smuggled to the Southwest Border
While some migrants cross the southwest border illegally and present themselves to immigration officials, many others are smuggled across the southwest border without the intent of being detected.
Often, migrants depend on human smugglers to get them to the United States. Human smugglers commonly have the routes and connections to lead people to the U.S., including false documentation, tunnel systems, networks of safe houses on both sides of the border, and other avenues that aid in the transportation of people.
Smugglers know that people who make the trek from Central America through Mexico are typically fleeing deplorable living conditions in their home countries and are seeking a better life in the United States. They exploit the vulnerabilities of migrants and typically charge them all of the money they have.
During the passage through Mexico toward the southwest border, migrants are exposed to extremely hazardous conditions. Women and children are at risk of kidnappings and sexual exploitation, and men may be physically abused.
Illegal immigrants who I have interviewed report that during the trip to the U.S., they saw the skeletons of both adults and children. They had no idea if those people died from a lack of food or were murdered. It is especially traumatizing for children to see human remains along their escape route.
For shelter, migrants typically rest in abandoned houses or simply hunker down in bushes. This practice exposes them to the risk of violence and exploitation from smugglers and human traffickers. According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, human smuggling occurs along the southwest border on a daily basis, and smugglers commonly withhold food and water from migrants to exert more control of them.
Addressing the Problem of Illegal Immigration
A multi-faceted approach is needed to mitigate the problem of illegal border crossings. An immigration policy that discourages people from making the extremely dangerous smuggling trip to the southwest border of the U.S., coupled with a manageable asylum and legal immigration process, is essential. Involving stakeholders, such as Customs and Border Patrol officials who work on the southwest border, in the decision-making process of how to mitigate illegal immigration along this border is also important.
Providing the manpower and technology needed to effectively stop dangerous and illegal human smuggling and immigration is critical. Initiatives such as Operation Stonegarden – a grant program that promotes inter-agency collaboration among federal, state, and local partners – are equally important.
Illegal immigration does not benefit anyone. If the United States does not become more aware of who is entering our borders, that can present a threat to homeland security.
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