Photo from the Washington Post(Rebecca Blackwell/Associated Press)
The caravan of Central American immigrants recently started leaving Mexico City making it's way north to cross the border into the United States. With the immigrants carrying Mexican and Honduran flags this does seem to be more of an invasion than a caravan of refugees. Why are these people carrying flags of countries they feel are persecuting them, why wouldn't they be carrying an American flag? Given the success, so far, of this caravan more caravans are starting to form further to the south heading north. The number of immigrants collectively now appears to be in excess of 5000. With the reporting being around the caravan consisting mostly of refugees seeking asylum, I started wondering how people obtained asylum in the United States.
There are actually two methods of seeking asylum in the U.S. both requiring the person seeking asylum be physically in the United States. According to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) these methods are the Affirmative Asylum Processing through the USCIS and the Defensive Asylum Processing through the EOIR (Executive Office for Immigration Review).
Under the Affirmative Asylum Process, individuals in the United States have up to one year to apply for asylum. The system is applicable regardless of how the alien arrived in the United States, legally or illegally, and the time frame may be extended under certain circumstances. The process is started by simply filing a form with the USCIS.
The Defensive Asylum Process is for those in the process of being deported by the immigration system. This includes those having unsuccessfully attempted the Affirmative Asylum Process, those failing to have proper documentation at a port of entry, and those that have been apprehended in the United States illegally.
Keep in mind that seeking asylum is completely different from seeking legal residency or citizenship. An immigrant can seek legal residency or citizenship based on the desire to obtain a better job and make a better life for themselves and their family, but asylum cannot be granted based on the desire to obtain a better job. Asylum is protection, pure and simple.
To obtain asylum one must prove status as a refugee. 8 U.S. Code § 1101 - Definitions defines a refugee as someone that cannot remain in their country of residence "because of persecution or a well-founded fear of persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion". Under 8 U.S. Code § 1158 - Asylum the burden of proof for establishing refugee status is on the person seeking asylum.
Proof of persecution may be through evidence but it can also be based simply on the testimony of the individual. If there is no evidence, the decision comes down to evaluating the credibility of the individual. The testimony is evaluated for consistency, if the story keeps changing maybe it should be written down and sold as a work of fiction. It should also be evaluated against activities going on in the country from which the individual is seeking asylum. If the asylum seeker is claiming religious persecution, but it's known there is no widespread religious persecution by the government in the country maybe the story isn't true. Using this criteria, I couldn't go to Canada or Mexico seeking political asylum because I am a conservative because there is no widespread persecution by the government of conservatives in the United States.
Many in the liberal press, which is most of the press, say our immigration system is broken and needs to be replaced. I would propose that possibly the immigration system is not broken but the execution of the system is failing. I'm sure there are aspects of the system that could be improved but before we deem the immigration system as completely broken shouldn't we try applying the current laws. This includes better security of our borders as well as adequate resources to quickly deal with those breaking our immigration laws. Other countries may have better immigration laws than we do and probably they are better enforced than ours.
Asylum is a world wide issue allowing those that cannot live in their resident country, with the expectation the government of that country will protect them, to relocate to a different country. But all of these countries being sought as asylum countries are providing protection for those who are in danger or have a reasonable fear of being in danger. The concept of someone seeking asylum to make a better life for themselves has limitations. That better life has to include the removal of persecution when the government of the country they are leaving cannot or will not provide protection.
Excellent article. I don't classify this caravan as "asylum seekers". They were offered work permits in Mexico and chose not to take them because they know they will have an easier life in the US of A. These are economic migrants who have no desire to assimilate, hence the waving and carrying of the Honduran flag. If the liberal media had it's way, all of Central America would be in the USA.
Thank you. You're right, all of Central America would be in the US and we would still be sending hundreds of millions of dollars to Central America every year to help make a better life for them.
Not to mention paying for the inevitable crime rate increase and their welfare.
I actually have a house in a small fishing village in Mexico. Most of the people here have three, four, maybe five jobs none of which are full time. They do this to make ends meet just as many Americans work just to make ends meet. At times their lives get very hectic trying to juggle so many different jobs, but they somehow make it work. Mexican restaurant owners in this little village don't take a day off a week, and certainly not two. They sit in their restaurants most of the day looking at empty tables to be open when enough people come in for them to make a little money beyond their expenses. These people could be models for conservatism. They own their restaurant property, they own the houses they live in, they have no debt, and they simply want the government of Mexico out of their way.
What most in the US don't realize is that many of the people illegally entering our country are not these hard working, honest Mexicans, but rather we get the ones that want an easy go at life. And you're right, for many of the illegals that easy go means higher crime and a larger welfare bill in the states.
You're first hand experience is spot on. While some illegals coming here may be hard workers the vast majority are coming here simply because they can live an easy life off of welfare and illicit activities.
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