Harris: U.S. and allies need to give migrants 'a sense of hope that help is on the way'


The U.S. will continue to "prioritize what's happening at the border and why people are going to the border," Vice President Kamala Harris said Tuesday evening during a press conference in Mexico City, adding that it is "short-sighted for any of us who are in the business of problem-solving to suggest we're only going to respond to the reaction as opposed to addressing the cause."
Harris is on her first foreign trip as vice president, and Mexico is her second stop, after Guatemala. "There's no question we are entering a new era around the globe, and this new era has made it quite clear that we are interconnected and interdependent, and what affects one country affects the globe," Harris said. "The president and I feel very strongly that what happens abroad matters to the people of the United States."
Migration is a "complicated issue, complex, and many factors are at play when we look at migration historically and currently," Harris said. While in Guatemala, Harris said the U.S. must address the root causes of migration from Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador, and she reiterated this during her Tuesday remarks.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
"I want to be very clear that the problem at the border, in large part if not entirely, stems from the problems in these countries," she said. "I cannot say it enough — most people don't want to leave home, and when they do it is usually for one of two reasons: Either they are fleeing harm, or to stay home means they cannot satisfy the basic needs to sustain and take care of their families."
The U.S. and its allies know that if potential migrants have "a sense of hope that help is on the way," they "will follow their first preference, which is to stay at home," Harris said. That's where they want to be, she argued, "in the town, in the neighborhood, in the place where they grew up, where they speak the language, they know the culture, they go to that church every Sunday, the place where their grandmother lives."
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
Scientists invent a solid carbon-negative building material
Under the radar Building CO2 into the buildings
By Devika Rao, The Week US Published
-
Scottish hospitality shines at these 7 hotels
The Week Recommends Sleep well at these lovely inns across Scotland
By Catherine Garcia, The Week US Published
-
Crossword: April 1, 2025
The Week's daily crossword
By The Week Staff Published
-
Trump 'not joking' about unconstitutional 3rd term
Speed Read The president seems to be serious about seeking a third term in 2028
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
The JFK files: the truth at last?
In The Spotlight More than 64,000 previously classified documents relating the 1963 assassination of John F. Kennedy have been released by the Trump administration
By The Week Staff Published
-
Supreme Court upholds 'ghost gun' restrictions
Speed Read Ghost guns can be regulated like other firearms
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Trump sets 25% tariffs on auto imports
Speed Read The White House says the move will increase domestic manufacturing. But the steep import taxes could also harm the US auto industry.
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Trump allies urge White House to admit chat blunder
Speed Read Even pro-Trump figures are criticizing The White House's handling of the Signal scandal
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Waltz takes blame for texts amid calls for Hegseth ouster
Speed Read Democrats are calling for Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and national security adviser Michael Waltz to step down
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Judge: Nazis treated better than Trump deportees
speed read U.S. District Judge James Boasberg reaffirmed his order barring President Donald Trump from deporting alleged Venezuelan gang members
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
US officials share war plans with journalist in group chat
Speed Read Atlantic editor Jeffrey Goldberg was accidentally added to a Signal conversation about striking Yemen
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published