The border city of Matamoros has become a window of hope for Mexican citizens trying to escape the country’s raging violence. The city is one of the few still able to host those seeking asylum claims in the U.S.
According to statistics kept by human rights and religious organizations, the number of Mexican citizens seeking to leave has increased, with citizens from Guerrero, Oaxaca, and Chiapas rushing most to the northern exits.
Breitbart Texas spoke with individuals who crossed through Gateway International Bridge into Brownsville, Texas, to speak with officials regarding humanitarian parole or asylum claims. Between meetings, they wait back in Matamoros.
After the murder of her husband at the hands of organized crime in July, Maria de Los Angeles took her four children from Nayarit to Matamoros. There, she was able to qualify to cross into Texas with her children.
“Sadly, they murdered my husband, and the lives of my children and I are in danger,” Maria said. “We got here on July 30, after a cousin from Guerrero who went through a similar ordeal was able to cross into the United States into this city.”
In her quest for asylum, Maria sold belongings to fund the relocation to Matamoros.
“I left in Nayarit my whole life, my family, and the family of my husband,” she said.
Ricardo, who asked to not reveal his last name, similarly fled the state of Guerrero after gunmen killed his father.
“I witnessed my father’s murder and since they knew I could recognize them, they are looking for me,” Ricardo said. “When we went to the burial, they tried to get me there, but I left before because I had been warned.”
Today, Ricardo is looking for a new opportunity that will allow him to provide for his wife and children in safety.
“At this time the number of cases and requests are from Mexicans in vulnerable conditions from Guerrero, Oaxaca, and Chiapas, followed by Haitians and Central Americans,” said Danilo Pedraza from the Matamoros Resource Center a few yards from a Texas border bridge.
In the last two weeks, they have been accompanying approximately 40 people who arrive daily with CBP paperwork.
It is estimated that there are approximately 1,000 people, including Mexicans, currently living in Matamoros in makeshift shelters, rental homes, and on the streets as wait for U.S. permits to enter.
As other cities along the U.S.-Mexico Border stop taking new asylum requests at the ports of entry, it is estimated that Matamoros will once again become the main hub for migrants trying to legally enter the U.S.
The U.S. Department of State continues to list 11 border cities between Tamaulipas, Nuevo Leon, and Coahuila in travel warnings due to violence.
Editor’s Note: Breitbart Texas traveled to Mexico City and the states of Tamaulipas, Coahuila, and Nuevo León to recruit citizen journalists willing to risk their lives and expose the cartels silencing their communities. The writers would face certain death at the hands of the various cartels that operate in those areas including the Gulf Cartel and Los Zetas if a pseudonym were not used. Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles are published in both English and in their original Spanish. This article was written by “J.A. Espinoza” from Tamaulipas.
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