Aug 4, 2023

Barriers to entry: The cost of crossing the southern border

A Border Patrol agent walks along the border wall in Yuma, Arizona. Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images

A "Marketplace Morning Report" special on how economic forces are shaping immigration.

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Barriers to Entry

WhatsApp has streamlined business communication for human smuggling

by Elizabeth Trovall

Aug 1, 2023

Social media has transformed global communication, benefiting those who are in the business of guiding and transporting migrants seeking better lives.

Social media and direct messaging apps, like WhatsApp, have become a major asset in the lucrative business of human smuggling.

AFP via Getty Images

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Barriers to Entry

Why is Latin America's economy lagging in its pandemic recovery?

by David Brancaccio and Ariana Rosas

Aug 1, 2023

William Maloney, chief economist for Latin America and the Caribbean at the World Bank, says inflation is only part of the puzzle.

The World Bank's main purpose is to provide assistance to countries with high poverty rates and improve economic growth worldwide.

Getty Images

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Barriers to Entry

How young people are being recruited on social media to drive migrants beyond the border

by David Brancaccio and Ariana Rosas

Aug 2, 2023

Historically, recruitment has been local. Now, social media expands that ability to recruit, said Homeland Security agent Craig Larrabee.

A Border Patrol agent walks along the border wall in Yuma, Arizona.

Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images

Barriers to Entry

The growing business of immigrant surveillance

by Elizabeth Trovall

Aug 2, 2023

Under the Biden administration, there’s been a rapid expansion of the electronic monitoring of immigrant families and individuals waiting for their immigration cases to move through the courts over several years. This investment in surveillance and case management tech is throwing private prison companies a lifeline.

A migrant charges his ankle monitor battery at an immigration facility in Texas. The use of ankle bracelets and GPS monitoring for recent border crossers with pending cases has ballooned under the Biden administration.

Joe Raedle/Getty Images

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Barriers to Entry

New online platform helps immigrant workers recover stolen wages

by Elizabeth Trovall

Aug 3, 2023

The process of getting back stolen wages is complicated, time-intensive and often unsuccessful. Now, a new online platform is empowering immigrant advocates by making it easier to file wage theft claims.

The U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division found that workers were owed $213 million in back wages in 2022, though that amount could be higher due to underreporting.

Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

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Barriers to Entry

The economic cost of waiting at the border in limbo

by David Brancaccio and Ariana Rosas

Aug 3, 2023

Those waiting on an asylum request often can't move forward with a job, housing or education.

Asylum seekers wait at the pedestrian crossing at the U.S.-Mexico border in Tijuana. Some spend weeks, months or longer at or near the border, hoping to be granted asylum.

Guillermo Arias/AFP via Getty Images

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The team

David Brancaccio Host

Leanna Byrne Host, BBC

Kelly Silvera Executive Producer

Meredith Garretson Morbey Senior Producer

Erika Soderstrom Producer

Alex Schroeder Producer

Ariana Rosas Producer

Jordan Mangi Digital Producer

Jesson Duller Media Producer

Nick Esposito Media Producer

James Graham Producer, BBC

Jo Critcher Producer, BBC

Olie D'Albertanson Producer, BBC

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