Two weeks after the end of Title 42, the U.S. has reported a decrease in arrivals. But in Mexico reality is different. Shelters are holding as much as six times their capacity and makeshift migrant camps keep emerging, reports Stef W. Kight of Axios. 

Mass migration continues south of Mexico. People from around the world are making their way north through dangerous journeys to end up at the border with the hope they will be admitted in the U.S., Kight writes. 

Amna Nawaz of PBS reports that conditions at the camps are "appalling" with unsanitary conditions and many risks. "We're seeing there's not a crisis that we expected at the U.S. border necessarily, but there's definitely one unfolding just a few hundred yards away," Nawaz says. 

There is suffering at the border. And as Pedro Rios says in an op-ed for The San Diego Union-Tribune: "What should change in a post-Title 42 world is for our governments to recommit to respecting asylum laws, to protecting those seeking safe harbor, and to increasing accountability."   

Enjoy the long weekend and chance to reflect on the sacrifices so many have made for the United States this Memorial Day. We’ll be taking an extra day and will be back with our next edition on Wednesday.  

Welcome to Friday’s edition of The Forum Daily. I’m Becka Wall, the Forum’s digital communications VP, and the great Forum Daily team also includes Clara Villatoro, Keylla Ortega and Katie Lutz. If you have a story to share from your own community, please send it to us at [email protected]. 

NEW FRAMING — Elected director general of the International Organization for Migration Amy Pope wants to "frame the [migration] conversation differently", reports Steve Inskeep of NPR. "[W]e know as Americans that migration has actually led to tremendous benefits in our own country. We know even recent evidence shows that migration has revitalized communities that have been dying," Pope said. In a similar tone, in an op-ed for The Washington Post, Charles Lane analyzes the recent World Development Report on migration and how its framing aims "to encourage coolheaded thinking about this hot topic." 

BLANK CHECK — Hortencia Rodríguez Sandoval and Adriana Quiroga analyze the danger of Texas House Bill 7 in an op-ed for The Austin Chronicle. "[It’s] a blank check for some of the most harmful immigration policies ever considered," they write. The legislation would establish a Border Protection Unit, granting expansive power to a state police force. Sandoval and Quiroga warn that the bill could have "ripple effects that threaten a return to the incredibly harmful practice of family separation." 

‘A WIN-WIN SITUATION’ — After 8 months with half of its lab positions open and zero applicants, York General Hospital in Nebraska decided to recruit for their positions beyond U.S. borders. Now four Filipino lab technicians are filling these jobs, reports Joey Safchik of KETV. "We love what we do. So, I think it's a win-win situation," said Julian Dumadaug, one of the new employees. The shortage of healthcare workers has had an outsized impact in rural areas. 

‘FEELINGS OF BELONGING’ — Nearly 30 Afghan women have found community through sewing projects in Bloomington, Minnesota, reports Heidi Wigdahl of KARE 11. The group is called ‘Sewing Social’ and it is hosted by the nonprofit Alight, which has been helping Afghan refugees through their transition. In addition to socializing, participants can access a mental health facilitator that is available for one-on-one sessions when they attend the group. "Now I have the feelings of belonging and I see my community here," said Mawluda, one of the participants. 

Meanwhile, in local welcome this week: 

Thanks for reading, 

Becka