A caravan of close to 3,000 people headed towards the U.S. was shrunk in half after the announcement that Donald Trump had won the presidency of the United States in the early hours of Wednesday morning. The news comes as migrants express heightened concerns over potential policy borders during the Republican's new administration, policies which he himself anticipated during the campaign trail.
Advocacy groups are already getting ready for the consequences, calling on migrants already in the country to seek legal aid before Donald Trump takes office in January. However, besides those that were yet to reach the border and those already in the U.S., there's another group that seems poised to suffer consequences if Trump's policies are realized: asylum seekers at the U.S.-Mexico border.
A new piece by Border Report sheds a light on this population, revealing that many migrants currently await in shelters in Juarez, fearing that these policies could impact their chances to enter the United States legally, even as they await already-scheduled appointments for asylum interviews through the CBP One app.
The app, which became a primary method for migrants to schedule legal entry appointments under the Biden administration's June executive order, is still operational. However, Trump promised to put an end to it back in September, claiming the App is only used "for smuggling illegals":
As President I will immediately end the migrant invasion of America. We will stop all migrant flights, end all illegal entries, terminate the Kamala phone app for smuggling illegals (CBP One App), revoke deportation immunity, suspend refugee resettlement, and return Kamala’s…
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 15, 2024
Border Report interviewed several migrants at the border, including Milagro Gonzalez Gamboa, who traveled with her husband and her young son from Trujillo, Peru, and is currently awaiting her asylum appointment in Juarez. The currently hope to pass a credible fear interview, get a notice to appear in immigration court and be free to travel to Houston but she believes her goals are now in jeopardy:
"If things go wrong [...] we will go to another country that will take us in. We are not looking for economic assistance, we are coming to work, to earn money. We cannot stay in Mexico. It is too dangerous."
Similarly concerned is Escarlet Rodriguez, an asylum-seeker from Venezuela who left her home to escape violence and economic instability:
"We already have our appointment, but it will be disappointing for those who are still in other countries or crossing the jungles. They are already asking themselves what will happen to them with the rumors (the U.S.) will cancel CBP One. You are coming with the idea of a better future, and they decide to close (the border) overnight. If they close the app, it will be a shock to those families."
The CBP One app since last year has been used by hundreds of thousands of asylum-seekers to enter the U.S. through a port of entry and even expanded the area from where migrants can access its CBP One app, allowing non-Mexicans to request asylum appointments from the states of Tabasco and Chiapas in addition to Northern and Central Mexico.
The App, however, has faced criticism besides the one offered by the president-elect. Humanitarian groups have reported that the App has been used by cartels to target migrants and a report by an internal watchdog within the Department of Homeland Security accused the App of inadequately vetting migrants.
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