TOW #2 -- "Honduras's Desperate Voyagers" by Ioan Grillo

TIME Magazine recently published an article in their August 18th, 2014 issue concerning the recent spike in refugees from Honduras fleeing to the United States. In "Honduras's Desperate Voyages," Ioan Grillo explains that the social infrastructure in Honduras has collapsed under the pressure of a corrupt government and street gangs patrolling the cities. For the 170,000 people that live in Chemelecón, one of the most violent suburbs of San Pedro Sula, the police only have access to 4 patrol cars. Needless to say, those who are supposed to protect the security of the people are rendered helpless.

All across Honduras, violence is nearly inescapable. Following the introduction of Latin American drug cartels in the country after having been forced from their positions in Mexico and Columbia, crime rates rose exponentially. In 2012 alone, the country -- which is only home to 8.6 million people -- saw the deaths of 7,172 people -- the highest in the world outside of a declared war-zone.

To add onto the pressure, citizens are forced by the street gangs to pay a "war tax," which has greatly corrupted the country's economy. In addition, the country's youth join street gangs to avoid the extortion and in the hopes of finding more security than that provided by their government.

However, the many Honduran citizens have now begun to flee to the United States with the help of illegal organizations that run routes similar to trade routes through the Rio Grande into the United States. For $6,500 a piece, one is promised a safe journey to freedom and at their destination, it is said that Obama will be waiting for them with legal permits allowing them to enter the country. Though false in reality, those willing to pay the hefty fee truly believe that they have no other options left than to believe in the smugglers.

Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernández called upon the United States to help Honduras stop the flow of the Honduran youth to the United States by cracking down on those who have taken refuge in the country. It is his hope that with a system put in place similar to Plan Columbia, a campaign run in Columbia during the 1990's which effectively lowered crime rates, that Honduras will be able to return to a stable country.

Grillo relays all of this information with established logos -- including a wealth of statistics backing the claims of Honduras's corruption and how that has created the flow of Honduran citizens to the United States. It is through this tactic that Grillo is able to bring to light the serious problems that the immigration poses to both countries as well as what needs to be done to stop the immigration.