Episode 36: Drivers of the Perilous Northern Migration

Global in the Granite State

It seems that everyday a story about the crisis at the border bubbles to the surface, either eliciting sympathy or stoking fears. However, what drives people to make the journey north for an opportunity to enter the United States, where there are so many perils along the way. Dehydration, starvation, exposure, rape, kidnapping, and even murder occurs as people traverse various terrains, lead by unscrupulous criminals. In this episode, we explore the push and pull factors that lead people down this path, with no guarantee of success. We also look at the dangers that these migrants face on their journey, further highlighting the dire situations they are coming from.

Speaking with Mariana Campero of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, we get the the heart of the challenges facing these people and the countries involved, looking for solutions to help end the need for this migration.
Refugee: Any person who is outside any country of such person's nationality or, in the case of a person having no nationality, is outside any country in which such person last habitually resided, and who is unable or unwilling to return to, and is unable or unwilling to avail himself or herself of the protection of, that country because of persecution or a well-founded fear of persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion...
Asylum Seeker: Asylum is a protection granted to foreign nationals already in the United States or arriving at the border who meet the international law definition of a “refugee.”
Migrant: Migrants are people who move from their home countries willingly for many different reasons, like pursuing education or a job in a new country.
Immigrant: Immigrants also move from their countries willingly to settle in another country with the help of a green card, but their reasoning is different. They are moving to the new country legally to settle permanently and work without any restrictions