Photos of the Migrant Caravan - The Atlantic

Photos of the Central American Immigrant Caravan

On October 13, a group of hundreds of people gathered together to flee their impoverished home country of Honduras in a caravan headed toward the United States, seeking a better life for themselves and their families. That caravan quickly swelled to approximately 7,000 Central American immigrants as it passed north through Guatemala. As of today, most of these men, women, and children have just entered Mexico, yet they remain more than a thousand miles south of the U.S. border. President Donald Trump has called the approaching group a “national emergency,” vowed to cut tens of millions of dollars in aid to three Central American countries, and will possibly cancel a recent trade deal with Mexico if the caravan isn’t stopped before it reaches the U.S. Below, photographs of the caravan from its first 10 days and some of the difficult paths taken by those involved.

Read more
Hints: View this page full screen. Skip to the next and previous photo by typing j/k or ←/→.
  • Central American immigrants take part in a caravan heading to the United States on the road linking Ciudad Hidalgo and Tapachula, Mexico, on October 21, 2018.

    Pedro Pardo / AFP / Getty
    Read more
  • On October 13, 2018, a large group of Hondurans fleeing poverty and violence move in a caravan toward the United States in San Pedro Sula, Honduras.

    Jorge Cabrera / Reuters
    Read more
  • On October 16, 2018, Honduran immigrants, some of more than 1,500 people in a caravan, travel north near Quezaltepeque, Guatemala.

    John Moore / Getty
    Read more
  • Honduran immigrants heading to the United States take a rest at a gas station in Zacapa, Guatemala, on October 16, 2018.

    Orlando Estrada / AFP / Getty
    Read more
  • Honduran immigrants pray in an improvised shelter in Chiquimula, Guatemala, on October 16, 2018.

    Moises Castillo / AP
    Read more
  • On October 17, 2018, a Honduran child, traveling with a caravan of Central American immigrants trying to reach the U.S., stands in front of Honduran police officers blocking the street in Agua Caliente, Honduras.

    Jorge Cabrera / Reuters
    Read more
  • Honduran immigrants cross the Lempa River on the border between Honduras and Guatemala, near Caliente, to enter Guatemala and join a caravan trying to reach the U.S on October 17, 2018.

    Jorge Cabrera / Reuters
    Read more
  • Honduran immigrants hike in the forest after crossing the Lempa River in Guatemala on October 17, 2018.

    Jorge Cabrera / Reuters
    Read more
  • Honduran immigrants walking to the U.S. start their day departing Chiquimula, Guatemala, on October 17, 2018.

    Moises Castillo / AP
    Read more
  • A Honduran immigrant girl and her family, part of the caravan, travel in a pickup truck in Guatemala City on October 17, 2018.

    Orlando Sierra / AFP / Getty
    Read more
  • Central American immigrants headed toward the United States get a free ride on the back of a trailer-truck flatbed as they make their way through Teculután, Guatemala, on October 17, 2018.

    Moises Castillo / AP
    Read more
  • Honduran immigrants attempt to cross the Goascorán River and illegally enter El Salvador in Goascorán, Honduras, on October 18, 2018.

    Marvin Recinos / AFP / Getty
    Read more
  • A Honduran boy cries after his mother decided that he would not accompany her across the Goascorán River to illegally enter El Salvador from Honduras on October 18, 2018, since the river's current was too strong.

    Marvin Recinos / AFP / Getty
    Read more
  • People in an immigrant caravan make their way through Guatemala toward the border with Mexico on October 18, 2018, in Siquinalá, Guatemala.

    John Moore / Getty
    Read more
  • Honduran immigrants headed for the United States gesture at the El Amatillo border in Pasaquina, El Salvador, on October 18, 2018.

    Marvin Recinos / AFP / Getty
    Read more
  • A Honduran immigrant headed for the U.S. rests at the El Amatillo frontier in Pasaquina, El Salvador, on October 18, 2018.

    Marvin Recinos / AFP / Getty
    Read more
  • Honduran immigrants ride on top of a truck headed toward Tecún Umán on the border with Mexico in Coatepeque, Guatemala, on October 19, 2018.

    Orlando Sierra / AFP / Getty
    Read more
  • Thousands of Honduran immigrants gathered at the border with Mexico in Tecún Umán, Guatemala, rush toward and over fences on October 19, 2018. Immigrants broke down the gates at the border crossing and began streaming toward a bridge into Mexico. After arriving at the tall, yellow metal fence, some clambered atop it and on U.S.-donated military jeeps. Young men began violently tugging on the barrier and finally succeeded in tearing it down.

    Oliver de Ros / AP
    Read more
  • Honduran immigrants rush through the Guatemala-Mexico international-border bridge after tearing down its gate in Ciudad Hidalgo, Chiapas state, Mexico, on October 19, 2018.

    Pedro Pardo / AFP / Getty
    Read more
  • Honduran immigrants storm a border checkpoint to cross into Mexico in Tecún Umán, Guatemala, on October 19, 2018.

    Ueslei Marcelino / Reuters
    Read more
  • Central American immigrants storm a border checkpoint in Guatemala in Ciudad Hidalgo, Mexico, on October 19, 2018.

    Edgard Garrido / Reuters
    Read more
  • Mexican federal police officers try to prevent Honduran immigrants from passing through the Guatemala-Mexico international-border bridge in Ciudad Hidalgo on October 19, 2018.

    Pedro Pardo / AFP / Getty
    Read more
  • Honduran immigrants climb the gate of the Guatemala-Mexico international-border bridge in Ciudad Hidalgo on October 19, 2018.

    Pedro Pardo / AFP / Getty
    Read more
  • A Honduran immigrant protects his child after others, part of a caravan trying to reach the U.S., stormed a border checkpoint in Ciudad Hidalgo on October 19, 2018.

    Ueslei Marcelino / Reuters
    Read more
  • An aerial view of a Honduran immigrant caravan heading to the U.S. as it is stopped at a border barrier on the Guatemala-Mexico international bridge in Ciudad Hidalgo on October 19, 2018.

    Pedro Pardo / AFP / Getty
    Read more
  • Immigrants bound for the U.S.-Mexico border wait on a bridge that stretches over the Suchiate River, connecting Guatemala and Mexico, on October 19, 2018.

    Oliver de Ros / AP
    Read more
  • A Mexican federal police officer is pictured after being injured as Honduran immigrants rushed through the Guatemala-Mexico international-border bridge in Ciudad Hidalgo on October 19, 2018.

    Pedro Pardo / AFP / Getty
    Read more
  • A Honduran immigrant jumps from the bridge that connects Mexico and Guatemala to avoid the border checkpoint in Ciudad Hidalgo on October 19, 2018.

    Ueslei Marcelino / Reuters
    Read more
  • Honduran immigrants cross the Suchiate River, the border between Guatemala and Mexico, in makeshift rafts in Ciudad Tecún Umán, Guatemala, on October 20, 2018.

    Orlando Sierra / AFP / Getty
    Read more
  • A Honduran immigrant waits with thousands of others stopped for more than a day on the bridge that connects Mexico and Guatemala in Tecún Umán, Guatemala, on October 20, 2018.

    Ueslei Marcelino / Reuters
    Read more
  • Honduran immigrants help a man holding a child get down to the Suchiate River from the Guatemala-Mexico international-border bridge on October 20, 2018.

    Pedro Pardo / AFP / Getty
    Read more
  • A Honduran immigrant prepares to jump to the Suchiate River from the Guatemala-Mexico international-border bridge near Mexican federal police officers in Ciudad Hidalgo, Mexico, on October 20, 2018.

    Pedro Pardo / AFP / Getty
    Read more
  • Central American immigrants care for a woman on a raft after she climbed down from a bridge that connects Mexico and Guatemala to avoid the border checkpoint on October 20, 2018.

    Ueslei Marcelino / Reuters
    Read more
  • A Honduran immigrant waits to cross the border from Ciudad Tecún Umán, Guatemala, to Ciudad Hidalgo, Mexico, on October 21, 2018. Around 3,000 people were marching in the caravan on the Mexican side, according to an estimate from a federal police commander, but about a thousand migrants, including women and children, were still stranded on the border bridge hoping to enter Mexico legally via Guatemala.

    Orlando Sierra / AFP / Getty
    Read more
  • A Honduran boy, part of a caravan of thousands of immigrants from Central America en route to the United States, plays with water fountains along the sidewalks of the Tapachula city center in Mexico on October 21, 2018.

    Ueslei Marcelino / Reuters
    Read more
  • A Honduran immigrant rests in a tent at the International Mesoamerican Fair's venue in Tapachula, Mexico, on October 22, 2018.

    Pedro Pardo / AFP / Getty
    Read more
  • Honduran immigrants walk in Metapa on their way to Tapachula, Mexico, on October 22, 2018.

    Pedro Pardo / AFP / Getty
    Read more
  • An aerial view of Honduran immigrants heading in a caravan toward the United States in Tapachula, Mexico, on October 22, 2018.

    Pedro Pardo / AFP / Getty
    Read more
  • We want to hear what you think about this article. Submit a letter to the editor or write to letters@theatlantic.com.

Most Recent

  • David Gray / AFP / Getty

    Photos of the Week: Beer Toss, Pike Battle, Sea Pods

    Warrior horse racing in Japan, a new volcanic eruption in Iceland, a Memorial Day display in Boston, an anti-drone-technology display in Ukraine, a performance by AC/DC in Italy, and much more

  • Adri Salido / Getty

    An Island Community Displaced by Climate Change

    Residents of a tiny Panamanian island threatened by rising sea levels begin to relocate to a new development.

  • Jacob King / PA Images / Getty

    The 2024 Cooper’s Hill Cheese-Rolling Race

    Images of racers running and tumbling down a very steep hill—pursuing a large wheel of cheese

  • Anselmo Cunha / AFP / Getty

    Photos of the Week: Victorian Picnic, Flamingo Flight, Shadow Puppets

    An airline for dogs in New York, horse racing in Baltimore, the Olympic torch relay in southwestern France, a tornado’s path of destruction in Iowa, and much more