Cuban-led caravan aims for Mexico City as Trump policies deter migrants from US

A 1,200-person caravan of largely Cuban migrants is heading north from Mexico's southern city of Tapachula in a weeks-long pursuit of better economic opportunities. But the destination is not the U.S. border, it's Mexico City. 

The destination of the caravan signals a stark shift in regional trends as President Donald Trump's strict immigration policies take hold.  

The caravan, which departed earlier this month, is expected to take weeks to reach its destination, where migrants hope to find higher-paying jobs in Mexico's capital city, rather than its impoverished south. 

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Tapachula, located in Mexico's poorest state of Chiapas, has been struggling for years to cope with the migrant crisis as it sits near the border with Guatemala, which has long seen significant outflows of migrants fleeing gang violence and poverty stemming from the Northern Triangle. 

According to the Washington Office on Latin America, the group of migrants is using social media to petition the Mexican government to assist with asylum cases and proper documentation for people looking to officially reside in Mexico City. 

El Pais reported last week that corruption and extortion remain a top concern for migrants looking for relocation assistance. The report said the issue remains one of the chief obstacles plaguing the Mexican Commission for Refugee Assistance.

Despite concerns over financial abuse in attempting to relocate in Mexico, the Spain-based outlet reported that many migrants still consider staying there preferable to heading to the U.S. under Trump. 

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"Why would I want to go to the United States? They hate us there," one Cuban woman traveling with her 2-year-old daughter and 18-year-old son told the news outlet. 

While immigration to the U.S. under Trump, particularly amid his second term, has drastically dropped, the decision by Cuban migrants not to pursue life in the U.S. where there are already large communities with deep U.S. ties in places like Florida and New York, is significant. 

But it is too soon to tell if this will be a lasting trend, Elaine Dezenski, senior director and head of the Center on Economic and Financial Power (CEFP) at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies told Fox News Digital. 

"According to the International Organization for Migration, about 50% of migrants surveyed across Mexico in mid-2025 said they considered Mexico their destination - up from less than 25% at the end of 2024," she said. "This suggests that increased U.S. border enforcement and deportations are influencing migrants' choices, with more seeking asylum and work authorization in Mexico instead of continuing to the U.S."

In the months since Trump returned to the top job, encounters on the southern border reported by Customs and Border Protection have drastically fallen compared to rates seen in years past. 

Earlier this year, the Migration Policy Institute noted that monthly southern border encounters were on par with rates not seen since the 1960s. 

Dezenski warned that even though the control of undocumented migration into the U.S. will be championed by some as a positive adjustment when it comes to border security, there are "serious conversations" that need to be had about the role immigration plays in maintaining a healthy economy.  

"Both Mexico and the U.S. are experiencing labor shortages in key sectors. While uncontrolled, undocumented immigration is not a solution, the lack of comprehensive immigration reform in the U.S. risks leaving many jobs unfilled - particularly in industries that rely heavily on migrant labor, such as agriculture," she said. "Today, immigration reform is often equated with border security. 

"However, we also need a serious conversation about the essential skills and labor our economies require and the role immigration plays in sustaining long-term economic health," Dezenski said.