SAN ANTONIO — The Department of Homeland Security is reporting a 70% decrease in unlawful border crossings since Title 42 ended one month ago.
The impacts are being felt in San Antonio, which has served as a pit-stop for thousands of migrants.
On June 6, 443 asylum seekers arrived in San Antonio, according to the city’s online dashboard.
The data indicates 1,300 migrants came to the Alamo City on May 11. Ever since, there’s been a significant decline.
A majority of the asylum seekers are still coming to the Migrant Resource Center, a facility run by Catholic Charities. The dashboard also shows declines in airport and downtown bus station arrivals.
Immigration attorney Gerardo Menchaca believes the number one driver for the decrease in crossings is due to the heavy presence of the Mexican military manning inspection stations.
“They are making it impossible to reach the U.S.-Mexico border unless you have the proper documentation and this is the first time that you’ve ever had to show your U.S. immigration papers in Mexico in order to reach the border,” Menchaca said.
Menchaca also attributes a combination of the U-S-implemented asylum transit ban and the required use of the CBP app for the decline in unlawful entries.
“Instead of just showing up whenever they feel like it, they wait for their appointment time and right now CBP can book up to 1,250 people, which is a significant improvement to where we were just a month ago,” Menchaca said.
KENS 5 did not hear back from city officials for comment on the story. Meanwhile, Menchaca is continuing to work with families looking for a more prosperous future.
“They come with an incredible work ethic, they know how to save their money and they succeed and they really come searching for the American dream.”
In May, 22,138 migrants arrived in San Antonio. As of June 6, almost 3,000 asylum seekers have come to the Alamo City.