Trump’s Shutdown Increased Illegal Crossings at This Slice of the Border
BIG BEND NATIONAL PARK, Texas—While President Donald Trump refuses to reopen part of the federal government unless he gets his border wall, the shutdown has, in a twist of irony, contributed to an increase in illegal crossings.
In Big Bend National Park, which includes a roughly 100-mile stretch of the Rio Grande, the closure of a popular border crossing into a small Mexican village where many residents depend on American visitors for income, has prompted some Mexicans to cross illegally to sell crafts to the tourists on the U.S. side of the river.
“Right now there are no tourists but I still have a family that needs to eat,” said Boquillas del Carmen resident Felipe Gonzalez, who typically sells embroidered bracelets and bags on the Mexican side of the border and works as a guide.