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Ramirez has pinned his hopes for asylum on an appointment through the CBP One app, a free digital platform established under the first Trump administration in 2020.
Outgoing US President Joe Biden has since expanded the app’s use, making it a requirement for the majority of asylum applicants arriving at the US border.
But critics have noted that the app can be glitchy, and not all asylum seekers have access to the technology needed to use it.
Wait times for an appointment have been as long as four months, according to a report from the advocacy group Human Rights Watch.
That can leave some asylum seekers vulnerable to attack or exploitation, as they wait in Mexico’s border regions for their appointment to arrive.
However, as Trump prepares for his second term in the White House, asylum seekers fear that even access to CBP One may be restricted.
On September 15, during his campaign for re-election, Trump promised on social media that he would “terminate the Kamala phone app”, using the name of his rival in the race, Kamala Harris, to describe CBP One.
He also accused the app of being used for “smuggling illegals”, an allegation made without proof. CBP One is run through the US Customs and Border Protection agency in the federal government.
Omar Ramirez shows off his heavily blistered feet after reaching Santiago Niltepec [Mirja Vogel/Al Jazeera]The focus on CBP One is expected to be part of a larger push by the Trump administration to restrict asylum access, a right protected under both international and US law.
For Ramirez, that means getting to the US border sooner rather than later is vital.
He left his family at home in Venezuela, fearing what would happen on his trek north. In 2023, the International Organization for Migration even named the path to the US-Mexico border the "deadliest land route for migrants worldwide".
Ramirez said he would not have been able to live with himself if his "wife and children joined him on this terrible path".
If he manages to successfully claim asylum, Ramirez said he hopes to earn enough money to bring them safely to the US in the next year.
English (US) · 