#Biden #Immigration #Amnesty #Americans #Jobs #Illegal #Migrant #Caravan #Honduras
A caravan of Honduran migrants is approaching the U.S. border ahead of Joe Biden's inauguration, creating the first major test of Biden's plan to reverse many of Donald Trump's immigration policies.
The group of migrants was originally anywhere between 2,000 and 4,000 strong, although their numbers have dwindled as the march towards the United States has continued.
'We recognize the importance of the incoming Government of the United States having shown a strong commitment to migrants and asylum seekers, which presents an opportunity for the governments of Mexico and Central America to develop policies and a migration management that respect and promote the human rights of the population in mobility,' said a statement from Pueblo Sin Fronteras, a migrants right group.
'We will advocate that the Biden government honors its commitments.'
The Associated Press reports the migrants crossed into Guatemala on Friday night without registering after departing from San Pedro Sula in Honduras earlier in the day.
It's not clear what the intended final destination of the caravan is, or if they'll be able to make it there without being further fractured.
'There’s no choice,' Oscar Zaldivar, 25, said about leaving his country. 'You have to leave here, this country because we’re going to die here.'
The Immigration Institute in Guatemala claimed that around 600 people returned to Honduras voluntarily after entering the country.
Last month, a caravan forming reportedly failed to even make it to the Guatemalan border. Other caravans recently have managed to make it that far, only to fail to cross into Mexico.
The National Immigration Institute in Mexico has been posting videos and images showing what awaits migrants when they try to cross into the country: various agents and National Guard members, ready to protect the border.
The potential arrive of a migrant caravan to the United States harkens back to the midterm elections in 2018, when Trump made it a central issue.
Tear gas was used against those trying to gain entry to the United States at the San Ysidro port of entry and many others were simply turned away and forced to apply for asylum while waiting in Mexico.
Trump used the caravans as justification for the border wall he wanted to build between Mexico and the United States, as well as a 'zero tolerance' policy that resulted in the separation of children and parents at the border.
Trump referred to the caravans as an 'invasion' of the United States.
The Migration Protection Protocols (MPP) are another byproduct of the narrative surrounding the caravans. It required some migrants to remain in Mexico before they could have an immigration court hearing in America.
Many of these policies are likely to be altered or reversed altogether by the incoming Biden administration, though.
Biden has promised to create 'a clear roadmap to citizenship' on his first day in office for 11 million living in the United States unlawfully.
He also promised to find a way to permanently protect DACA, which Trump has tried to end through the courts.
