The Forum Daily | Friday, June 21, 2024 ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????

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**THE FORUM DAILY**

Fewer legal pathways and more security along the U.S.-Mexico border are benefiting criminal enterprises in Mexico, costing lives in the summer heat and leading migrants from farther away to pay eye-popping amounts of money.??

An investigation by the Mexican and U.S. governments shows that La Linea, a cartel in Jua??rez, Mexico, is smuggling around 1,000 migrants through tunnels in El Paso every month, Steve Fisher and Alfredo Corchado report in USA Today [link removed]. Cartels have shifted from smuggling drugs to smuggling people, experts say.??

"A kilo of cocaine might bring in $1,500, but the risk is very high. The cost-benefit of trafficking a person is $10,000, $12,000, $15,000," said Arturo Velasco of the anti-kidnapping unit at the state of Chihuahua attorney general's office.??

Meanwhile, six migrants were found abandoned by smugglers and suffering from dehydration on Wednesday, reports Julian Resendiz of Border Report [link removed]. A seventh migrant in the group, a man in his 20s, died.??

And for some migrants from India and Africa, trying to get to the U.S. can involve paying up to $96,000 per person for a journey that might start with a charter flight to Central America, reports a team at Reuters [link removed] and Columbia Journalism Investigations [link removed]. ??

The Biden administration is "revoking U.S. visas for owners and executives of charter airlines and other companies thought to be facilitating smuggling" and warning commercial airlines to be on the lookout for passengers who may want to migrate unlawfully, the team notes. And it has taken measures against officials from Nicaragua, which has emerged as a transit hub.??

Take in the whole story, as well as the photos.??

Welcome to Friday's edition of The Forum Daily. I'm Dan Gordon, the Forum's strategic communications VP, and the great Forum Daily team also includes Jillian Clark, Samantha Siedow, Ally Villarreal and Clara Villatoro. If you have a story to share from your own community, please send it to me at [email protected] mailto:[email protected].??

**CONCERNS** - Shelter leaders and officials in El Paso, Texas, and Ju??rez, Mexico,??range from as yet uncertain to skeptical regarding the Biden administration's order this month that limits access to asylum, Ariana Figueroa of States Newsroom [link removed] reports.??"I don't think anybody really knows how this is going to play out," said Michael DeBruhl, director of the shelter at Sacred Heart Church in El Paso.??"We think that this might exacerbate the situation," said Aim??e Santill??n, a policy analyst at Hope Border Institute. ??

**CHALLENGES** - Concerns about the temporary nature of humanitarian parole for Afghan evacuees continue, reports Munaza Shaheed of Voice of America [link removed]. Without a certain future, employment, housing and education remain volatile. Evacuees and advocates alike continue to call on Congress to take legislative action [link removed]. ??

This week in local welcome:??

* A former member of the Afghan Special Forces, Laiq Lackenwall, has found support in Lincoln, Nebraska, through local programs. (Sam Cobb, KOLN [link removed])??

* Two Afghan immigrant students in Fairfax County, Virginia, launched a club for newly arriving Afghans that now has expanded to welcome other new arrivals. (Scott Gelman, WTOP News [link removed])??

**NEW HOPE** - Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients in Florida are optimistic about President Biden's new immigration action, reports Mitch Perry of the Florida Phoenix [link removed]. "[DACA] has already provided me with so many opportunities to not only live here but give back to my community, and to study and work here,"??said Ahtziry Barrera. Meanwhile, Wisconsin families are also among those who could benefit from this week's actions, Andrew Bahl and Danielle DuClos of The Cap Times [link removed]. report.??

**HONORING REFUGEES** - "We can't forget where we come from even as we all join hands as Americans," Margot Habiby of the George W. Bush Institute [link removed] writes in a personal World Refugee Day reflection. Separately,??people of faith are sponsoring refugees through Welcome.US and in partnership with relief organizations, reports Dale Chamberlain of Church Leaders [link removed]. And a new Law Enforcement Immigration Task Force blog post [link removed] highlights stories from members' communities. Elsewhere locally:??

* Harrisburg celebrates its tradition of welcome on World Refugee Day (op-ed by Becca Raley, PennLive [link removed]) ??

* Wichita refugees speak out on World Refugee Day (Malley Jones, KSNW [link removed])??

* Boise honors refugees and their contributions to American communities for World Refugee Day (Savannah Hankard, CBS2 [link removed])??

Thanks for reading, ??

Dan??

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