Every morning at sunrise Sister Norma crosses the bridge over the Río Grande to Mexico.
Her daily mission is to help refugees to get to "the other side," as immigrants refer to the US.
On this side people already know her and are constantly asking for her help.
"Now there is a possibility to offer a person who
is being persecuted and who has a live threat to apply for asylum."
After 4 years the border is finally opening again for immigrants qualifying for asylum.
Many of them have been waiting in Mexico for years, under inhumane circumstances.
"This is our role as people
that care about the circumstances , care about the fact that they are human beings
and people that have families and they need that presence of the fact that they are not alone."
This is why sister Norma is here to guide them and assist them in the process.
These immigrants came together 2 years ago and created the informal refugee camp of Matamoros.
Ever since they refused to move, insisting to stay as close as possible to the US.
They came from Haiti, Central America and also from parts in Mexico where criminality is high.
Around 4000 refugees have been living in this camp for up to 2 years.
Now there are only around 200 people living there. Every day small groups are crossing over to
the US. The procedure is long and it ends with a coronavirus test before they go to the other side.
A total of 25,000 immigrants seeking asylum have been stuck in Mexico for years.
President Biden’s administration has now
allowed them to wait for their hearings in the United States.
For them, this is the culmination of years of waiting.
And for sister Norma it’s an honor to be part of it.
"Finally! This is so beautiful. I’m tired. It has been a day full of emotions and very exhausting.
These families have suffered a lot and now the US opens its doors for them."
Once on US soil NGO’s are taking care of them. Around 99 percent of them have family
members or friends living in the US. But this is not the end of their trip.
"This long journey is just starting. The goal is not here yet."
Meanwhile on the Mexican side of the border more families, who were forced to flee,
are arriving. Hoping that the new Biden administration will let them in.
"We are under threat. My family and I we had to escape, because they said they want to kill us."
As long as the root of the problem is not addressed, the increase of criminal
activity in Mexico and Central America is still going to force families to abandon their homes.