Each day in May, on average, 165 Brazilians were barred from trying to enter the US irregularly via Mexico, maintaining an uptrend that has gained strength since March. The total number of seizures last month, 5,118, was almost four times higher than in March (1,346) but down from the 10,471 recorded in September last year, according to the Department of Border Control.
"The reason most people hear in interviews with Brazilian immigrants who arrive in the US is the Brazilian economy is high inflation and stagnant wages," says Gabrielle Oliveira, an immigration researcher and a professor at Harvard University.
The increase in Brazilians detained is part of a record number of immigrants trying to enter the US. The number of people barred at the border has been above 200,000 a month since March. In May, it reached 239,000, the highest monthly figure ever recorded.
This rise has several reasons: while many Latin American countries face economic crises, the US has job vacancies; another reason is the perception that Joe Biden would be more tolerant of immigration than Donald Trump.
Translated by Kiratiana Freelon