Analyzing the case of a Mexican immigrant seeking asylum at the Rio Grande in El Paso, Texas, following an executive action by Biden

EL PASO, Texas – Diana, her two 5 and 8-year-old children, her father and her teenage brother David arrived at Ciudad Juarez on Tuesday but their eyes were on El Paso, Texas, just across from the Rio Grande border, where they were planning to petition for asylum.

They were exhausted after traveling for three months from Venezuela. The family didn’t want NPR to use their last name because they were worried it would jeopardize their claim.

The family is feeling the effects of the executive actions taken by the president last week on the Southern border.

When unauthorized crossings exceed an average of 2,500 for seven consecutive days restrictions are imposed according to the president. This rule makes it harder for someone to say they fear for their life if they are handed back to their home country.

Like this family, migrants hoping to get into the United States now wrestle with a difficult decision– Attempt to cross into the U.S. illegally and face deportation or staying indefinitely in the Mexican side for if restrictions are lifted.

Diana was not expecting to be told she couldn’t stay. Some people assume that all they have to do is show up at the border and get in with a pending court date, thanks to false information on popular messaging platforms.

As soon as the family got off the bus the family walked straight to the border and filed for asylum.

Diana was 29 years old that day and she did not celebrate. The family got some food and water, and a place to sleep. People from other countries were there too, so close to their intended destination, yet their hopes of crossing were slashed by the newer asylum policy.

Nearly nine months ago, he petitioned asylum through this same border area and got in with a pendant court date to hear his claim, but that was before the new restrictions were in place.

“We made the mistake of crossing illegally,” he says. “But that’s the desperation of a person who fears for the safety of his loved ones, and because of the need for food.”

An analysis done by the Washington Office on Latin America shows that number goes up after a few months. That is because the root causes of mass migration — like poverty and violence — continue to be there.

President Biden implemented an executive action that deported thousands of migrants, instead of giving them an opportunity to claim asylum.

According to the rule by the Department of Homeland Security, migrants will have to wait at least five years before they can be deported.

The ban would be in effect until the seven-day average of illegal crossings goes under 1,500. It can be reinstated once the number goes over 2,500.

The Last Supper and a Miracle of a Mexican Migrant in Oaxaca: Paty’s Journey to the U.S.

That miracle she’s searching for is being able to afford a costly medical treatment for one of her daughters with a rare blood disorder who stayed in her home state. Her only option, Paty says, was to migrate to the U.S. to work and save the money needed to help her daughter.

There is a mural at the back of the dining room that looks like The Last Supper. The painting shows Jesus eating and giving food to the migrants.

At one of the picnic tables, sitting by herself, is 32-year-old Paty. She and her young daughter recently arrived here from Oaxaca, Mexico. Paty asked not to be identified by her full name because she worries about the safety of her family back home.