Confronting the Reality of Child Migration

I had a tough start to my day today, when I came face-to-face with the "unaccompanied minors crisis" firsthand at the breakfast table. But maybe I should preface my story by telling you a little about where I'm staying.

The Casa de los Amigos is a Quaker guesthouse that funds various peace and social justice projects in Mexico City. There is space for about 50 people here, with rooms ranging from 12-bed dormitories to a private apartment. Because of the nature of the organization, it's generally full of students, volunteers, researchers, and human rights workers. The Casa also provides shelter for migrants and refugees who pass through Mexico City, often on their way to the United States. Which brings me to this morning...

'La Bestia'

Breakfasts at the Casa are always a highlight of the day, when different guests and neighbors get together to share a meal. This morning I arrived early to breakfast, finding one of the volunteers sitting at the table with a boy who appeared to be about 12 years old. The boy was very quiet and timid, and after a few minutes it became clear to me that he was a migrant, probably making his way north. I asked him where he was from and he told me that he was from the Petén, Guatemala's large jungle region. He spoke into his plate and clearly didn't want to talk. I got the distinct impression that he was traumatized, so I let him be. I later asked one of the volunteers about the boy and was told that he arrived late last night, after already having been on the road for 3 months. He's 14 years old and has been traveling on the notorious train - known as 'The Beast' -  that carries migrants from Central America north, to the U.S. border. And as I suspected, he has been badly traumatized by what he's seen and experienced along the way. I asked what the Casa's policy is for giving money to such guests, concerned that the boy will have nothing to eat once he leaves us. They informed me that another organization called Sin Fronteras was coming to pick him up and that if I made a donation, they would make sure it went towards taking care of our young friend.

If he makes it, this boy will be just another one of the over 50,000 children who have already arrived, unaccompanied, at the U.S. border this year. While Congress scrambles to find the fastest way to ship them back where they came from - mainly Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador - their home countries continue to be plagued by poverty, gang violence, and a drug war that is sponsored and fueled mainly by the United States. (Canada may not be at the forefront of the drug war, but the demand for cocaine certainly isn't helping the situation). If the U.S. government wants to solve this latest immigration crisis, perhaps it is time to take a long, hard look at the many reasons why parents would risk their children's lives to send them on such a dangerous journey, thousands of miles across Mexico and into the United States.

If you want some further reading on the current immigration crisis, check out this article by the L.A. Times and this one, courtesy of Latino Rebels.

And a follow up: http://www.motherjones.com/mojo/2014/07/mexico-central-american-migrants-train-beast

Update: Our young Guatemalan friend is looking distinctly more upbeat today. He even gave me a little smile. It's amazing what a couple nights in a real bed, three square meals a day, and being in the company of people who care about you will do for a person. I don't know how long he's going to stay, but I hope it's long enough to fortify him for what promises to be a difficult road ahead.