I don't like illegal immigration, but a lot of the Central American countries have problems with drug cartels due to a result of our dumbass policies. That's right. I'll come out and say it. Our drug policy, like our own failed 18th Amendment gave rise to criminal groups, the "War on Drugs" gave rise to the same types of organizations, just ones out of our reach. None of this disagrees with capitalism either. Vacuum shows up, someone comes in to fill the void.
I was considering this after reading the article. Certainly there are innocent people in the crime ridden areas (which are geographically not all of the countries in question). I completely understand wanting to escape that. However, for both escaping crime and looking for a better existence, why is the US their only option? $12K will get you much, much farther in much of Central America and surrounding countries than it will in the US.
From the article, it seems these people have to come up with around $12K just to pay the smuggler to get them out. $12K can support you a long time in parts of Central America. Whether they made that money themselves or were given it by others, it
shouldopen up opportunities for them in other parts of their own country, or in nearby countries, where they have the advantage of similar cultures and language. Except of course, most of the countries between them and the US have strict immigration policies -- stricter than ours and enforced. Yet the US has to take all the "anti-immigration" hate.