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https://www.wsj.com/articles/surging-numbers-of-young-migrants-try-to-reach-u-s-ce2bfc3e

Surging Numbers of Young Migrants Try to Reach U.S.

Tens of thousands of children, many traveling alone, trudge from South America to seek asylum

Lajas Blancas Migration Reception Station in Panama provides medical assistance, water and food.

By Kejal Vyas

| Photographs by Tarina Rodriguez for The Wall Street Journal

May 24, 2023 10:00 am ET

BAJO CHIQUITO, Panama—Violent gangs in her native Ecuador had killed her cousin and extorted her family’s liquor shop until it went out of business. So in April, the 17-year-old packed up and, with two small children, embarked on a 3,000-mile journey to seek asylum in the U.S., as have a growing number of underage migrants.

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