The caravan making its way through various parts of Central America to the U.S. border has already swelled to around 14,000 people, according to a major Mexican newspaper. This staggering statistic, and even more conservative estimates, would render the mass of migrants larger than many American towns and communities, according to a review of U.S. census data.
El Universal claims to have received the 14,000 number from “municipal authorities, [southwestern Mexican city] Tapachula’s diocese, and the National Migration Institute.” According to The Daily Mail, the number includes up to 10,000 in the main Mexican caravan, 1,500-2,000 more in a second Guatemalan caravan, and an additional 2,500 “planning to mobilize” in Honduras and El Salvador. The Mexican National Migration Institute cited by El Universal did not respond to The Daily Caller’s request for comment in time for publishing.
Reports conflict regarding the exact number of people who comprise what the Associated Press has described as “the biggest [migrant caravan] ever.” A U.N. spokesperson gave a more conservative estimate last week, claiming that there were 7,200 individuals in the caravan. The Mexican government claimed last Tuesday it was even smaller, at around 4,500 people.
Some Mexican sources claim that the caravan is dwindling, but other sources say it is growing as it moves through Guatemala and Mexico toward the U.S. border. (RELATED: Mexico Says It Will Deport Any Migrant Caravan Members Who Enter Without Papers)
But even if the smaller estimates are more accurate, the caravan could still rival many American small towns in size. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, there were 16,570 incorporated places in the U.S. with a population of under 10,000 people.
In a May 2018 press release, the U.S. Census Bureau wrote that “the United States is a nation of small towns,” and that “of the nation’s 325.7 million people, an estimated 205.0 million (62.9 percent) live within an incorporated place as of July 1, 2017.”
A caravan of thousands of migrants from Central America, en route to the United States, makes its way to San Pedro Tapanatepec from Arriaga, Mexico October 27, 2018. REUTERS/Ueslei Marcelino
“Of approximately 19,500 incorporated places,” the release continued, “about 76 percent had fewer than 5,000 people and nearly 50 percent had fewer than 1,000 people.”
As the caravan pushes its way through Mexico, controversy surrounds its origins and how best to deal with it. Last week, Vice President Mike Pence claimed that Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernández told him that the caravan is being funded by the government of Venezuela.
The L.A. Times reported that “Denis Omar Contera, an organizer with Pueblo Sin Fronteras [People Without Borders], which is helping the group,” reportedly “laughed off claims made by some Republicans that the caravan is being organized by Democrats or political opponents of the right-wing president of Honduras, Juan Orlando Hernandez.”
The “dream” of Pueblo Sin Fronteras, according to the group’s website, is “to build solidarity bridges among peoples and turndown [sic] border walls imposed by greed.”
USA Today reported that there are some Pueblo Sin Fronteras activists embedded in the caravan. Activist Rodrigo Abeja, who was also involved in the caravan that assembled last April, told USA Today that “it’s more important to accompany the caravan … than worry about white voters, sitting in front of their TV’s drinking beer.” The Washington Post reported that Abeja is “one of the caravan’s leaders.”
Abeja claimed that the latest caravan was an organic response to the violence and poverty of Honduras. (RELATED: Where Will The Migrants In The Caravan Stay If They Seek Asylum In The US?)
Central American migrants walk through the Suchiate river, the natural border between Guatemala and Mexico, in their bid to reach the U.S., as seen from Tecun Uman, Guatemala October 29, 2018. REUTERS/Carlos Garcia Rawlins
Last week, President Donald Trump said “I am watching the Democrat Party-led (because they want Open Borders and existing weak laws) assault on our country by Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador, whose leaders are doing little to stop this large flow of people, INCLUDING MANY CRIMINALS, from entering Mexico to U.S…..”
I am watching the Democrat Party led (because they want Open Borders and existing weak laws) assault on our country by Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador, whose leaders are doing little to stop this large flow of people, INCLUDING MANY CRIMINALS, from entering Mexico to U.S…..
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 18, 2018
In a follow-up tweet, the president continued, “….In addition to stopping all payments to these countries, which seem to have almost no control over their population, I must, in the strongest of terms, ask Mexico to stop this onslaught – and if unable to do so I will call up the U.S. Military and CLOSE OUR SOUTHERN BORDER!..”
….In addition to stopping all payments to these countries, which seem to have almost no control over their population, I must, in the strongest of terms, ask Mexico to stop this onslaught – and if unable to do so I will call up the U.S. Military and CLOSE OUR SOUTHERN BORDER!..
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 18, 2018
