On Latin American trip, NYC Mayor Seeks Perspective From Catholics Working With Migrants
On Latin American trip, NYC Mayor Seeks Perspective From Catholics Working With Migrants
''So long as the benefits of migration outweigh the costs, people will attempt it,'' said AS/COA's Eric Farnsworth to OSV News.
As New York City Mayor Eric Adams finalized his Latin American trip Oct. 8, Catholics in the region noted it started with an Oct. 5 visit to the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City, a shrine to the patroness of the Americas and the source of inspiration for many of the migrants undertaking arduous journeys toward the United States. [...]
But the mayor’s message for migrants to avoid New York City and eschew the “false hopes” spread by smugglers is unlikely to dissuade many migrants, according to analysts, who point to push and pull factors such as despair in their home countries and the attraction of the United States.
“So long as the benefits of migration outweigh the costs, people will attempt it,” Eric Farnsworth, vice president of the Council of the Americas, told OSV News. “The U.S. economy is strong and unemployment is low, and the perception has grown that enforcement of U.S. laws is lax. … The flows can be managed but not ‘solved’ and current conditions have made them worse.”
