Shelters in Mexico Helps Many Cubans Policy Change
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REYNOSA, Mex. - Respite centers in Mexico are assisting Cuban nationals left in limbo after the recent change in immigration policy. They want help from governments on both sides of the border.
Senda de Vida in Reynosa is a place that usually helps people from countries other than Mexico who were deported from the U.S. These days they're seeing a lot of Cubans.
The center opens its doors to people and offers basic humanitarian needs.
"What we do here is to bring support to all people who need a place to spend the night, eat, clothes, all that. And we need to understand, that if we don't do that, nobody is going to," Hector Silva said.
Silva runs the shelter that is located walking distance from the Rio Grande and the Hidalgo-Reynosa Bridge. He said the past few days he's seen a lot more Cubans coming through his shelter.
Roberto Gutierrez is one of them seeking assistance from the Reynosa center.
"All Cubans thought that this new law was going to come under Donald Trump, not Obama. This was so sudden, it caught us by surprise. Nobody thought Obama was going to do this with only a couple days left," he said.
Gutierrez arrived in Reynosa over the weekend. He hoped to cross into the U.S. easily, like so many Cubans have before him.
As of last Thursday, the "wet foot, dry foot policy" was dissolved.
Gutierrez said returning to Cuba is not an option, even if it means crossing the border illegally.
"That's what I'm thinking. If I need to jump in the river, whatever I need to do to get into the United States," he said.
Silva said humanitarian relief has nothing do with immigration policy. He wants help taking care of displaced people along the border.
"We've been having a lot of people who are arriving at all the shelters. That's something we need to think about and I'd like for the governments of the United States and Mexico to do an agreement," he emphasized.
The center's doors will remain open for Cubans or anyone else searching for a home.
Senda de Vida has been around 16 years and operates almost entirely off donations.
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