Rising Number of Chinese Brave Perilous Southern Border Crossings to Reach U.S.

A growing number of Chinese migrants are risking dangerous journeys through the Darién Gap in Panama to reach the United States, driven by bleak economic prospects and political oppression in China. Educated and affluent Chinese are migrating through legal channels, while others are following a playbook circulating on social media: crossing the Darién Gap, surrendering to U.S. border control officers, and applying for asylum. The surge of desperate Chinese migrants is a reversal of a longtime pattern, as millions of Chinese migrated to developed countries in the past for higher living standards. However, the current migrants fear falling into poverty and see no future for themselves or their children in China under the rule of Xi Jinping.