Migrants in Mexico City share their suffering and the Catholic Church assists them

In Mexico City, a recently opened Catholic Church shelter has become a temporary home for migrants who have suffered in their search for a better future. This shelter, the San Juan Bautista Scalabrini Community Center—of the Congregation of the Missionaries of San Carlos (Scalabrinians)—today hosts countless stories of courage and perseverance.

“God is the only one who has helped us”

Óscar, a Venezuelan father, along with his wife, his daughter and his sister’s family, began a trip to the United States six months ago, driven by the hope of leaving the crisis in his country behind.

In an interview with ACI Prensa, the father of the family, who prefers to be identified only by his name, shared that they have crossed Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica, Honduras and Guatemala, until reaching Mexico. It is in this country where adversity reached its highest point, especially in Tuxtla Gutiérrez, the state of Chiapas. There, the lack of safe accommodation left them vulnerable, forcing them to spend nights on the street near the local bus terminal.

“Once, a man drove his car over us, leaving my sister’s children trapped underneath. He grazed my legs,” said the Venezuelan. Despite the danger, official help was limited due to his immigration status.

After a long wait, Óscar already has an appointment at one of the ports of entry (Ports of Entry, POE, in English) from the United States. There, US authorities will review your case to determine if you have legal grounds to remain in the country.

This is a crucial step in their dream of obtaining humanitarian parole that allows them to live and work in the United States.

“It’s all thanks to God, (who) is the only one who has helped us, who calms the anxiety, the despair,” said Óscar.

The Catholic Church in Mexico helped a total of 499,995 migrants throughout 2023 through its 54 houses and shelters, thus marking “the year with the highest records” that they have reported.

The Migration Policy Unit of the Ministry of the Interior of the Government of Mexico (SEGOB) record 782,176 “events of people in an irregular migratory situation in Mexico” in 2023, nearly 340,000 more cases than those registered in 2022.

The main country of origin of irregular migrants was Venezuela, with 222,994 people. They are followed by Honduras (119,402), Guatemala (81,535), Ecuador (70,790) and Haiti (45,091).

Stories of struggle and hope

Another moving testimony is that of Ariana Figueroa, a 23-year-old Venezuelan woman, who is also in the shelter with her two children. She related that since she left Venezuela she was the victim of three robberies: “They robbed us in the river (in Mexico) after we crossed Guatemala, they robbed us in Nicaragua and in the jungle (of the Darién, between Colombia and Panama).”

She tells ACI Prensa that the most traumatic moment she experienced was in Mexico, when she and her group were kidnapped while walking towards Tapachula.

“We were walking and motorcycles and trucks stopped and offered us a ride for free. One didn’t want to, but they end up begging and they force you to go up. We thought they would take us to Tapachula, but they took us to a chicken coop. We were there for a day until we paid the money they asked us for and they let us go,” Ariana shared.

In addition to taking all their things, except for their telephone, their captors demanded that they pay them, per person, 1,100 pesos (around 60 US dollars) to be released.

Upon arriving in Mexico City, after spending a day sleeping on the street, Ariana and her children found help in one of the migrant houses run by the Catholic Church.

Among the current residents of the San Juan Bautista Scalabrini Community Center is also Nathali Alessandra, a five-year-old girl who has a paralyzed right hand and a brain problem, which makes it difficult for her to speak. She travels with her mother, her stepfather, and her half-brother.

Nathali Alessandra is an example of bravery. “I’m not afraid of anything,” she says with a smile. She explains that she is excited to come to the United States to reunite with her biological father and her grandmother.

The San Juan Bautista Scalabrini Community Center in Mexico City

Both Óscar’s family, Ariana’s family, and Nathali Alessandra’s family are housed in the San Juan Bautista Scalabrini Community Center, located in the Iztapalapa mayor’s office, southeast of Mexico City.

This center, officially inaugurated on June 1 – although it began operating almost three months earlier – was opened in the facilities of a former Catholic school, in response to the serious crisis and overcrowding faced by migrant shelters in the Mexican capital.

Ramiro, a young Catholic who has volunteered at other shelters and has been present since the center’s inception, noted that at the community center “we usually have between 60 and 70 migrants, and sometimes, when we are very full, we reach 80 or 85”.

The main goal of the center is to provide a safe and welcoming place for migrants.

“We offer a place to rest, a place where they can feel protected regarding their immigration status, where they can feel welcomed here in Mexico (…), at least they have that peace of mind,” Ramiro explained.

In addition to accommodation, the center offers three meals a day, legal assistance, donated clothing, psychological support and workshops taught by volunteers.

Another peculiarity is that those who are housed do not have a maximum length of stay.

Ramiro highlighted that many migrants, upon leaving the shelter, show deep gratitude towards the Catholic Church. He assured that, despite the tragic stories they have experienced, migrants are people of great faith, who “tend to become more rooted in it, to rely more on their religiosity to be able to continue on this path. Many told me that they become more believers on the trip.”

In addition to the San Juan Bautista Scalabrini Community Center, the missionaries opened a house in the municipality of Ecatepec, in the State of Mexico.

Initiatives like these add to the Church’s efforts to care for migrants in various facilities, including archdiocesan Cáritas. This is the case of the Shelter, Training and Empowerment House for Migrant and Refugee Women and Families (CAFEMIN), of the Congregation of the Josephine Sisters; from the Santa Cruz and Nuestra Señora de la Soledad parish; the Casa Mamréof the Scalabrinian Sisters, and the Archangel Raphael Housealso from the Scalabrinian Missionaries.