Venezuelan migrants share details of journey to Denver with young children
Denver continues to manage a large number of arrivals of migrants who came into this country from the southern border. Just this week, the city has sheltered another 500 people, mostly from Venezuela. Multiple buses arrive from Texas daily, and Denver is now sheltering almost 3,000 migrants.
As the surge of arrivals continues, many migrants are congregating in Denver's Globeville neighborhood. Some have made the long and dangerous journey with children as young as one.
"Over there we have economic problems with the government of Maduro. There are criminal groups that threaten us. It was not safe for our family there," Venezuelan migrant Osmar Emilio Mata said in Spanish. Mata made the journey with his partner and two young daughters.
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"The kids get hungry and we sleep on the streets. The journey is very dangerous. It's complicated because everything is uncertain," a Venezuelan woman said in Spanish. She declined to share her name but says she made the journey with her family and close friends.
The migrants describe walking through rivers, train hopping, and encountering criminal groups.
"It was hard in the river. There were animals and dead people," Mata said.
At the end of a long journey, their struggles aren't over.
"We spent the last dollars of our savings on this food here," Mata said as he handed an Oreo to his daughter.
These two families have been in Colorado for less than a week. But food truck vendor Anthony Flores says migrants like them have been gathering in a Globeville parking lot for months.
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"You can see how many more people have come over and been asking for help," said Flores, "they just tell us they are coming to find a better home for them and their families."
Flores and his family often feed the migrants from their food truck, but there are too many people in need to feed everyone for free. Flores tries to help as many as he can. After all, his parents once made a similar journey from Mexico.
"They were migrants. They are migrants. I hope there was people like us who would help them like we are helping them," said Flores.
These migrants say they're being put up by the city in a nearby hotel. Families with children can stay 37 days, while adults are given shelter for two weeks.
The families say they're grateful for the help, as they now search for work and stability.
"To come here you need to think a lot, because the journey is so dangerous ad complicated and you can't just come and easily find work," the Venezuelan woman said.
Denver says they're calling on communities, nonprofits, and faith-based groups around the state to help with the influx of migrants by volunteering and donating.