QUITO, Ecuador – The street outside a migrant shelter was lined with people who New York City Mayor Eric Adams said wanted to stop him from making the dangerous journey to the US.
But on the third day of his trip last week to Central and South America — where Hizzoner peddled the message that the Big Apple is running out of housing and money to handle any more asylum seekers — his warning did not reach the desperate bloc. in the capital of the South American country.
No one interviewed by The Post said they were aware of City Hall’s attempt to stop them from heading north.
It seems that Adams’ push was ineffective even when word reached them.
When Adams met with Ecuadorian officials to spread his message, the migrants spoke of fleeing life-threatening things like Venezuela’s death squads and the economic boom there and in Colombia, luring them to neighboring countries like Ecuador with promises of jobs that ultimately didn’t. t exists.
Samuel, 28, left, and Tony, 27, right, after being turned away from the Albergue San Juan de Dios de Quito, a local shelter that takes in migrants. Samuel and Tony, who met on the road, are both from Venezuela and trying to immigrate to Chile. Stephen Yang for the NY Post
For many, that made America a likely next stop, despite the long and dangerous journey that required crossing the Darien Gap — a line of steep mountains and ravines, covered in rainforest and guarded by brutal gangs.
Tony, a 27-year-old chef, said he fled Venezuela nearly a decade ago after the country’s dictator, Nicholas Maduro, moved to crush political opposition and send the economy into freefall. The United Nations says death squads have killed thousands there, while millions like Tony chose to flee.
He said he went to Chile before going to Ecuador a week ago in a truck and trailer — with a friend he met along the way, Samuel — in an effort to find work so he could send money back to his wife and daughter.
“The situation in Venezuela is so bad we have an obligation to leave,” the couple said through a translator. “If we stay, they will die.”
Samuel and Tony, who met on the road, are both from Venezuela and trying to immigrate to Chile. Samuel wants to go to Los Angeles while Tony wants to go back to Venezuela to reunite with his family. Stephen Yang for the NY Post
Samuel says he dreams of America and becomes a mechanic, even if there are mortal risks to get there.
“It’s really dangerous but it’s worth it,” he said.
Tony disagrees and says he believes the United States is too far.
He becomes visibly distraught when he talks about those he left behind: a daughter he hasn’t seen in eight years, his wife and his cancer-stricken mother.
“It was almost impossible,” Tony said of making it across the Darien Gap safely.
Another refugee from Venezuela, Brayan Pena, said he had only been in Quito for a week and had no luck so far looking for work. He is considering making the perilous journey to America – but still has hopes of finding work in Ecuador.
Beibis Roman with her sons, Jeison, 18, and Jender, 14, after being turned away from the Albergue San Juan de Dios de Quito, a local shelter that accommodates migrants. Stephen Yang for the NY Post
“I have friends who cross the Darien Gorge, and they are good, he said. “I don’t know where they are in the US, but friends have told me to come and stay with them.
“I could die, but it was worth it,” he added.
Mother of three, Beibis Roman, sat on a bench across from the shelter with two of her three teenage children, aged 14 and 18, behind her. The family has been struggling to find work since arriving from Bogota, Colombia, a few days ago and is now thinking of traveling north as well.
Her children, she said, had been selling candy boxes to try to earn some money while a third child, her 15-year-old daughter, worked cleaning the oven.
“If we’re looking for a job, we’ll stay here,” Roman said.
Teenagers Jeison, 18, and Jender, 14, sit behind their mother as she discusses the possibility of heading to the United States, a journey fraught with dangers they don’t understand. Stephen Yang for the NY Post
If not, they will try to travel to the US together.
“I will go with them, I will not leave them alone,” he said. “No matter the danger.”
Roman said he had heard through the local rumor mill that the US government was deporting more people but insisted that his children were looking for a better life.
Like other migrants, he said he had left so many behind, including his father, who feared he would have a heart attack if he knew they might try to cross the Darien Gap.
The two children sitting behind him continued to laugh and talk during the conversation, unable to understand the terrible risks that would come along with the trip.
Johan Rodriguez, Sebastian, 25, Rodriguez, 45, from Bogota, after being turned away from the Albergue San Juan de Dios de Quito, a local shelter that takes in migrants. Stephen Yang for the NY Post
Juan Sebastian Acosta and Manuel Antonio Poloia, both in their early 20s, were also lured to Quito from Bogota — another stop on the mayor’s journey — with promises of work, only to be left sleeping on the streets and unable to survive. beds in shelters.
They arrived about five days ago with Joaquin Rodriguez, 45, and his son Johan Rodriguez, 25.
“We just want to work,” Antonio Poloia said through a translator.
And if that means coming to America, they say they might as well head north.
“Anywhere,” the couple said with a laugh. “Wherever there is work.”
Craig McCarthy, The Post’s City Hall bureau chief, traveled to Central and South America as part of a press corps covering the Adams delegation.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
