Think Creative - Issue 6

why migrants risk it all

25% of survey respondents who have considered migrating receive remittances

He fears crossing into the turf of a gang that rivals the one running his neighborhood; simply living in a certain part of town can put him at risk of being attacked or killed, swept up in the ongoing gang feuds. In Apopa, 14 percent of those interviewed for Creative’s survey said they have had a relative or close friend murdered. Eleven percent said they have been extorted for money or know family or someone close to themwho has been, while 11 percent said the same for having been bribed by police, and 40 percent reported the same for robbery. Against this backdrop of pervasive victim- ization, Alberto feels that for himself and his young family, a second attempt to reach the U.S. is the best option. “The truth is that I want to emigrate to the U.S. again, even though I suffered on the journey. But with the situation here in this country, it’s almost as if being a young person were a crime because of the gangs,” Alberto says. “God willing, my family will be able to get out of the violence in which we’re living.” Alberto, like 63 percent of survey respondents across the Northern Triangle who intend to migrate, has a family member living abroad. Both of Alberto’s brothers previously migrated to the U.S. on separate trips. In addition to the economic and victimization factors pushing Al- berto toward migrating, he also is experiencing an important pull factor of ties to the U.S.

Eugenia, a single mother living near Quetzaltenango, Guatemala, tried to reach the United States so she could provide her young daughter with a better childhood than she had.

The pull of transnational ties Creative’s six-month study examined the influence of transnational ties (family in the United States, receipt of remittances and prior migration) on the likelihood of migration. Creative found that these factors were an important part of migration patterns but less of a motivator than economics or victimization. Only 3 percent of those who intend to migrate cite family reunification as their primary rea- son for migration. The research looked closely at remittances and found that receiving money from a family

After being deported from the U.S. back to Honduras, Dayra returned to school and started a career in community-focused nutrition and health work. She is currently a basic sanitation supervisor with the ACS-PROSASUR program (see pg. 8).

Transnational Ties at a glance

“While economics and victimization provide the push, transnational ties are the pull that open the door a little wider.”

Only 3% of those who intend to migrate cite family reunification as their primary reason for migration

– Salvador Stadthagen, Director Latin America and Caribbean Strategy

20 | Think Creative | Fall 2019