The state of Texas gave a free bus ride to Lever Alejos when he arrived penniless at the southern border. He spent a night in the plaza across from Union Station because he didn't have a family or friends to greet him. He moved into a shelter.
On his third day in the city, Alejos said that he had the will to succeed.
Alejos is making between $600 to $700 a week and saving up to buy a used car and leave the shelter.
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He said at the end of the day that there was a lot of opportunity. You just have to use it.
After enduring a perilous journey over land from their broken country to make a fresh start, thousands of migrants, most of them from Venezuela, have been persuaded onto buses and planes heading to Washington, New York, Chicago and Martha's Vineyard.
The governors of Texas, Florida and Arizona are trying to draw attention to a record surge in the number of people crossing the border by organizing transportation to the Democratic strongholds.
The governor of Texas dropped off two busloads of migrants near the residence of the vice president. Ron DeSantis, the governor of Florida, flew 50 migrants to Martha's Vineyard, an upscale vacation island off Massachusetts, which he has derided as a liberal bastion.
Many migrants have been left homeless as their host cities scramble to help them, and Democrats have called the stunts cruel.
Alejos calls the free transportation a blessing. Some measure of stability is achieved by them. In an economy still recovering from the impact of the Pandemic, they have found jobs in construction, retail, trucking, and other sectors that are in need of workers.
Employers are scrambling to find workers in big cities where governors are shipping migrants. There is a need.
A group of young people from Venezuela who were determined to get a job in New York were recalled by a hospital administrator.
She said that they were exhausted and traumatised after seeing young girls being raped, trudging past dead fellow migrants and being robbed on their journey to the US.
They were able to buy one-way flights to New York from San Antonio because of the work clearing trees.
Alejos is a symbol of a humanitarian crisis, a pawn in a partisan debate, and a person who follows the economics of supply and demand.
Most asylum cases are difficult to win. Those who lose their cases tend to live the rest of their lives in the shadows, trying to stay employed and out of the reach of immigration officers tasked with deporting them.
They are straining the resources of cities trying to provide them social services and also filling a gap in the labor market.
As many as 8 million immigrants are working in the United States without authorization, but asylum applicants get employment permits while their cases are pending.
People fleeing hardship from Venezuela have poured into South America. Almost 7 million people have left the country in that time, more than half of them from Venezuela.
Venezuela began to leave South American host countries for the United States as the economy was hurt by the coronaviruses. As word spread, others began to migrate directly from Venezuela.
They are the fastest growing group of migrants.
Migrants said they have fallen prey to bandits, drug traffickers and human traffickers during their trek to the border. Doctors Without Borders had attended to 100 victims of rape in the first five months of the year.
Alejos decided he had to go.
Despite the country's economic collapse, he was struggling to keep his machine repair shop afloat. Many people in Venezuela make a small amount of money.
Alejos sold his repair shop in his hometown of Barquisimeto in northern Venezuela for $750 to help pay for his journey. He said it was his down payment on a new life.
He described his trek through the Gap as a nightmare. The Mexican officials and the drug traffickers were threatening.
He turned himself in to the U.S. border authorities after crossing the Rio Grande and they gave him immigration papers.
They were offered a bus ride to Washington or a bus ride to San Antonio.
They arrived in Washington at the end of July.
Alejos was able to find work in construction. He was saving to buy a cellphone and sending money home to support his son. He will be moving out of the shelter in the fall.
He quit his construction job after an allergic reaction to the chemicals he was using. Football and soccer games, conferences and private parties were some of the events the company was looking for people to work at.
He started stocking concession stands with food and other supplies the day before the games so he could serve spectators. He has worked at a number of venues in the area, including FedEx Field in Maryland.
He has worked as a bartender, server or dishwasher before.
He said that it is a good start and that he is giving it his all.
He said that he always shows initiative and performs extra tasks that his supervisor notices. I'm gaining experience and this could lead to something larger.
He wants to achieve financial stability. Professional growth will follow.
Twice a month, he sends his son money.
He said that Christopher's quality of life has improved since he came to this country.
Alejos got a new cellphone, earbuds, shirts and trousers. He tries to keep his priorities straight. I'm not spending money. I want to create an emergency fund.
He wants to purchase a 2012 Honda Civic in three weeks.
His schedule precludes him from attending in-person English classes. He found a way to teach himself and then he tried to practice with his customers.
According to Alejos, he followed instructions from the authorities to check in at the immigration office and apply for asylum.
He will have to argue his case before an immigration judge, but he didn't know about his first court date. Over a number of years, the process unfolds. If applicants lose, they are ordered to leave the US. Many migrants stay by the time a decision is made.
The United States does not have diplomatic ties with Venezuela and Mexico will not accept Venezuela's migrants, so they are not subject to the policy of expelling migrants to Mexico or returning them to their countries.
The Natural History Museum, the Zoo, Chinatown and the Capitol are some of the places Alejos explores in his free time.
He said he tries to see something new on his days off and often posts selfies on Facebook.
He doesn't miss his family. He is pragmatic about his situation.
He said that sometimes you have to suffer to be compensated.
He said that each person has a locker, the sheets are clean, the showers have hot water, and there is wi-fi.
Alejos was put on a bus to go to Washington. It allowed me to open doors.
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