Immigrants in Texas face harsh reality, not American dream.

Immigrants in El Paso Discover a Different Reality

Immigrants who journeyed thousands of miles and crossed the border illegally with the expectation they would be welcomed into the United States with open arms instead discovered a very different reality upon walking onto the streets of El Paso.

Throughout central downtown, immigrants have set up tentlike structures on the sidewalks. Garbage and feces filled alleyways and lined the streets and have turned a very small section of the town of 800,000 residents into a filthy area.

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Twenty immigrants who surrendered to Border Patrol this week after days to weeks living on the street shared in interviews with the Washington Examiner they thought coming to the U.S. would set them up for life.

• “They will feed you, clothe you, help you with your studies, and get a job,” one Venezuelan man said.
• The same man said he came to the U.S. on the belief that “you will receive what you need to make it.”
• Back in Venezuela, the man heard it’s easy to come into the U.S., as you can just “walk in.”
• “But don’t get caught by police or I will be arrested and they will take me back to Venezuela,” he added.

The men had congregated around the Sacred Heart Church, where American Red Cross blankets were stacked up and down sidewalks and trucks regularly passed through to hand out free food three times a day. One immigrant approached the Washington Examiner team and asked where he could find clothes because he needed new ones.

Border Patrol agents descended on the church early Tuesday morning and handed out flyers instructing immigrants to turn themselves in at a Border Patrol station, including the Paso Del Norte Station three blocks from the church. The border wall is just a hundred feet away, acting as a backdrop for this Border Patrol station. Over a hundred immigrants were standing in line, ready and willing to be processed by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

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The line was full of mostly young men in their 20s. Only a handful waiting were women or children. People were sitting along the fence, trying to hide from the beating sun as the afternoon reached 90 degrees.

A group of men said they came to this port because they received the paper at 5 a.m. Tuesday telling them they must turn themselves in or they could be arrested, jailed, or sent back to their country or Mexico. They said it is the first time they are speaking with the police because the paper told them it could be a chance for asylum.

• The group speaking to Washington Examiner was Venezuelan men except for two men from Honduras. They were told in their country if they made the journey to the U.S., they would receive everything they needed to start a new life.
• One man said he escaped Venezuela because there is no money and it is dangerous. Many have left family and friends in their country and sought work in the U.S. to send money home. One told the Washington Examiner his mother encouraged him to make the trip to the U.S. for a better life.
• The men all raised their hands and cheered when asked by the Washington Examiner if they plan to seek asylum. One, who came from Honduras, said it took him 50 days to walk to the U.S. But when asked why they didn’t stay in Mexico, the entire group erupted.
• “Mexico, also, there is delinquency,” an immigrant from Venezuela said. “Mexico is too dangerous, there is terrorism, and we will be shot or punished. There is danger every day.”

One man explained how much it costs to have someone guide them on their trip to the U.S.

“I paid $320,” he said. “But some pay $350; some pay $300 depending how many are in their group and what deal they have struck.”

Many showed the injuries they received from climbing over the wall — scratches on their hands, long cuts on their arms — with one lifting up his jeans to reveal a massive gash in his leg that has been stitched and bandaged with gauze. They seemed to be aware crossing the border was illegal. When they climbed over the wall, they said they ran as fast as they could because they knew if they were caught by police, they would be arrested and sent back.

Many said they heard in their home countries that Title 42 is ending and that it will be easier to enter the U.S. When asked if they like President Joe Biden, the crowd was enthusiastic to hear his name.

“Si!” they cheered.