HONDURAS – In October, 160 Hondurans left the town of San Pedro Sula to gain asylum in Mexico or the United States. As they walked north, their numbers grew: 1000 in the first two days, 1,600 by day three, over 4,000 by October 15. Migrant movements have happened before, but this one is attracting global attention and debate about the rights of people seeking asylum.

As they walked north, their numbers grew: 1000 in the first two days, 1,600 by day three, over 4,000 by October 15. Migrant movements have happened before, but this one is attracting worldwide attention and debate about the rights of people seeking asylum.

Everyone around the world needs a safe place to live.

All parents want their children to have opportunities.

More than 4000 people have left their homeland in search of these things, looking for security they cannot find in their own land and seeking safety and better living conditions in countries like the United States.

Having been excluded from the benefits of their own country’s economy, these 4000 human beings look for a way to provide food and other basic necessities to their families.

These 4000 men, women, and children seek security to avoid being victims of the violence that ravages thousands of homes and poor communities.

These 4000 people seek security in the face of natural disasters to which they are especially vulnerable, disasters that destroy livelihoods and even lives.

These 4000 human beings are mothers, they are fathers. They are daughters, they are sons. They are poor.

When governments lose their ability to meet the enormous needs of their inhabitants and when corruption destroys trust and hope, the entire region is shaken, left in a struggle for survival that seems to escalate
every day.

How can we make the world a safer place? How can we create a world in which all human beings have the food, tranquility, and resilience they need to live fully and reach their highest goals?

Honduras and Latin America need to find the answer to that question urgently.

We must adopt a shared solidarity to face the growing needs of the most vulnerable people around us.

We must recognize that those who migrate are human beings who seek a safe place for themselves and their families.

World Renew’s community development work in Honduras helps to stabilize communities. Please support these programs at worldrenew.net/honduras.

Grace + Peace,

Juan Carlos Carcamo

Country Consultant
World Renew Honduras

 

PHOTO TOP: Migrants walking before dawn from Huixtla to Pijijiapan
PHOTO CREDIT: Sean Hawkey