A Caravan in Mexico

In a bid to escape poverty and violence, thousands of Central American migrants began walking north toward the U.S. border around October 13. In response, U.S. President Donald Trump declared the caravan an invasion and sent U.S. troops to the border with Mexico, sparking international outrage and concerns. 

Instructors, click the link below to download this week’s lecture for use in your classroom. The deck contains a writing prompt and a debate question as well as other assessment questions.

Download the PowerPoint Lecture Spark for A Caravan in Mexico

Links

“Migrant caravan splits after leaving Mexico City; some have reached Sinaloa”
https://mexiconewsdaily.com/news/migrant-caravan-splits-after-leaving-mexico-city/

“‘We come in peace’: migrants start asylum journey as caravan reaches U.S. border”
hhttps://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/nov/15/migrant-caravan-tijuana-lgbt-group-locals-reaction

“Migrants in caravans are arriving in their hundreds at the Mexico-U.S. Border”
http://time.com/5455364/migrant-caravan-mexico-tijuana-border-security/

“Migrant caravan: Hundreds reach Tijuana on U.S. border”
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-46207034

“First refugees of ‘Central American exodus’ arrive at U.S. border”
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2018/11/central-american-exodus-arrives-mexico-border-181114191104226.html

“Don’t be fooled by Trump’s caravan misinformation campaign”
https://www.cnn.com/2018/10/28/opinions/trump-caravan-misinformation-opinion-reyes/index.html

“Editorial: Trump’s losing border war”
https://www.sfchronicle.com/opinion/editorials/article/Editorial-Trump-s-losing-border-war-13322103.php

“Rename Trump’s border mission ‘Operation Goose Chase’ | Editorial”
https://www.nj.com/opinion/index.ssf/2018/11/rename_trumps_border_mission_operation_goose_chase.html

“Robin Beres column: What is the next step when the Central American caravan arrives?”
https://www.richmond.com/opinion/our-opinion/robin-beres/robin-beres-column-what-is-the-next-step-when-the/article_bf4a678a-ceb7-5128-94f5-2cf41991dfb5.html

“Editorial: A migrant caravan heads for the border just in time for Trump to exploit it for the midterms”
https://www.themonitor.com/opinion/editorials/article_4026476c-d64d-11e8-848f-530c21cc85fa.html

Assessment

• Writing: List the reasons why many migrants are fleeing Central American nations.
• Debate: The United States should not use the military to defend the border against migrants.
• Poll: Do you believe that the migrant caravan will overtax U.S. immigration authorities and should rightfully be turned away at the border?
• Short Answer: What is the obligation of states like Mexico and the United States toward migrants from other countries?

Current events quiz:

1) The asylum seekers are from _________.

a. Mexico
b. Honduras
c. El Salvador
d. All of these

2) The U.S. military is spending about _________ to send troops to the Mexican border.

a. $500,000
b. $1 million
c. $200 million
d. $2 billion

3) In order to be considered for asylum eligibility, one must fear persecution on account of their _______.

a. nationality
b. religion
c. political opinion
d. All of these

4) Thousands of active-duty U.S. troops have been deployed along the southern border of Mexico. (T/F)

5) Hundreds of asylum seekers arrives at San Ysidro prior to the collective exodus faced an estimated one-month wait time. (T/F)

6) All of the asylum seekers are Mexican. (T/F)

Answers:

1) D

2) C

3) D

4) T

5) T

6) F

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