SAN DIEGO (Border Report) — The recent maritime accident that killed three migrants when the boat they were on hit a reef and broke apart off the coast of San Diego served as another example of how undocumented migrants continue to die while trying to enter the U.S. illegally, according American Friends Service Committee, an immigration advocacy group.
“We had the instance of the tragic death of 13 people who attempted to cross the border in a vehicle and that vehicle collided with a semi-truck,” said Pedro Rios, director of the American Friends Service Committee in San Diego. “There have been at least two individuals that have fallen from border wall and died as a result of that.”
Rios blames policies that remain in place making it harder for migrants to gain access to the U.S. forcing them to seek alternative and more dangerous to cross the border.
“It pushes migrants to try and cross through much more dangerous areas such as the ocean, desert or trying to scale a 30-foot border wall,” he said. “Every human life has value and meaning, but even beyond the economic factor that we might use as an argument as to why we should open up the border, it’s our inherent duty that we have to ensure that people who are seeking safety are able to do so without being placed in harm,”
According to the International Organization for Migration, 149 people died in 2020 while trying to cross the U.S.-Mexico border. It is reporting that so far this year, 100 migrants have become victims.