A massive new migrant caravan, comprising approximately 1,000 individuals from various countries, departed from Tapachula, Chiapas, on Sunday with a clear goal: Get to the U.S. border before the Biden administration leaves office.
This marks the second large caravan of migrants to form in Mexico since President Claudia Sheinbaum took office on October 1.
The caravan, officially named “God is Guiding Us,” includes people from Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Haiti, Panama, Costa Rica, as well as some from Afghanistan and Nepal. On their first day, the group walked about 16 miles from Tapachula to Huehuetán.
Jonathan Rojas, a Colombian migrant, explained the urgency behind their movement: Trump’s second term.
“There is real concern that if he (Trump) gets elected, they will close the border. We can’t keep waiting for them to give us an appointment,” he reportedly said. “Conditions here in Chiapas are not healthy, there are too many of us and not enough supplies and space.”
Many migrants cited frustration with the long wait times for appointments through the Biden-Harris administration’s CBP One application, which allows them to schedule meetings with U.S. immigration authorities. They said they plan to travel north together before breaking up and crossing the U.S. border in smaller groups.
Álvaro Batista, another Colombian migrant traveling with his family, defended their actions, telling EFE news agency, “What we’re doing is not at all illegal.”
A small contingent of National Guard troops and highway patrolmen is escorting the caravan. Some migrants have demanded additional support from the National Guard and health workers as they move through Mexico.
Bob Price, speaking to Texas radio station KTRH, offered a different perspective on the caravan: “This group is mostly from Central and South America, which could mean more Venezuelan migrants. Possibly Tren de Aragua members.”
Price suggested that as the U.S. election approaches, more large groups of migrants might start heading towards the border.