EL PASO — Here in Segundo Barrio, the city’s historic neighborhood, migrants flock to Sacred Heart Catholic Church with the hope of finding protection, perhaps even salvation.
From their perspective, U.S. immigration policy is murky and in constant flux, and even President Joe Biden’s visit to El Paso on Sunday, on his way to a North American leaders’ summit in Mexico, won’t necessarily create greater certainty.
Biden is due to spend a few hours in El Paso, currently the biggest corridor for illegal crossings, due in large part to Nicaraguans fleeing repression, crime and poverty in their country. They are among migrants from four countries who are now subject to quick expulsion under new rules enacted by the Biden administration in the past week.
The president is expected to meet with border officials to discuss migration as well as the increased trafficking of fentanyl and other synthetic opioids, which are driving skyrocketing numbers of overdoses in the U.S., according to the Associated Press.
Biden will visit the El Paso County Migrant Services Center and meet with nonprofits and religious groups that support migrants arriving to the U.S. It is not clear whether Biden will talk to any migrants.
Border patrol agents have stepped up security before Biden’s visit, immigrant advocates said. “I think they’re trying to send a message that they’re going to more consistently check people’s documented status, and if you have not been processed, they are going to pick you up,” said Ruben Garcia of the Annunciation House aid group in El Paso.
The migrants near Sacred Heart Catholic Church try to avoid U.S. immigration authorities who in recent days have rounded up migrants, mostly Venezuelans.
It’s not the first time, nor probably the last. For this is the corner of the forgotten. For those in limbo. Like Alejandro Infante, a 20-year-old who made the dangerous trek from Venezuela.
“We’re stuck here,” he said. “No way to go back, at least not voluntarily. No way to go forward. We’re somewhere in between.”
Infante is one of dozens, if not hundreds, of migrants who roam this area daily. They wait “for that Christmas miracle,” he said, “that came and went with December.”
As expectations over the possible lifting of a pandemic-era health order known as Title 42 on Dec. 21 grew, many migrants, mostly from Venezuela, crossed the border without being processed by federal immigration authorities. They came too early.
Title 42 has allowed U.S. border agents to expel migrants more than 2 million times without giving them a chance to apply for asylum under the justification that it was for pandemic safety.
But the public health rule remains in legal limbo. In February, the Supreme Court will consider a bid by leaders of conservative-leaning states, including Texas, to keep the rule in place. A ruling may take weeks, even months, legal experts say.
Since then, the number of migrants coming to El Paso has fluctuated. City and county authorities say numbers have fallen dramatically in recent weeks, so much that makeshift shelters, including two former schools and the convention center, have closed.
On Saturday, ahead of the Biden visit, dozens of El Pasoans marched a few blocks from the Chihuahuita neighborhood to Sacred Heart Catholic Church to show solidarity with the migrants. “You’re not alone,” they chanted. Many of the migrants got teary-eyed and responded, “Gracias.”
Venezuelan migrants shouted “gracias” as supporters marched to Sacred Heart Catholic Church #elpaso Segundo Barrio to show solidarity, as they wait in limbo, ahead of Biden’s visit, “You are not alone. No están solos.” @dallasnews pic.twitter.com/K5zMN1AJYa
— Alfredo Corchado (@ajcorchado) January 7, 2023
Among them was Infante. He and other migrants, mostly from Venezuela, mill around Sacred Heart Catholic Church, hoping to find protection from Border Patrol agents. “Most of them are nice, cordial, but we know we’re running out of time,” Infante said. “We’re all running out of patience.”
He left Venezuela in June and headed for Colombia. By the time he got to Mexico City in October, he received the news that Venezuelans, who had been crossing in massive droves, had suddenly been blocked under Title 42.
He stayed in Mexico and waited some more. In November, he learned that a federal judge had ordered the lifting of Title 42 by Dec. 21.
Infante made a beeline for the border and planned to arrive by that date. He arrived on Christmas Eve and stayed in Ciudad Juárez. Again, he waited. He and other Venezuelans crossed the border Christmas Day, and have waited since.
Last week, the Biden administration said it will expand humanitarian passage monthly for as many as 30,000 people from Cuba, Nicaragua, Haiti and Venezuela. But people from those four countries who cross the U.S.-Mexico border illegally will be turned away in a major expansion of an existing effort to stop Venezuelans trying to enter the U.S. Migrants can schedule appointments to seek asylum at official border crossings via a mobile app called “CBP One.”
After learning of Biden’s plan Thursday, Infante and another migrant, Darwin Hernandez, chatted and tried to process the news. They seemed befuddled. “There’s no going back to Venezuela to apply via my phone,” Hernandez said. “I have four young ones waiting for me to help them financially. Somehow I need to find a job, find a future.”
Infante agreed. He’s spent more than $3,000 during his journey.
He sat silently as the bells of Sacred Heart rang. He wanted to “see if there is some divine intervention” and reflected on his journey: “All we have to go on, rely on, is luck, and some days it’s better than others.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
