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1983 In Today’s Headlines, Echoes of Central America’s Proxy Wars of the 1980s
1media/Indigenous civil defense patrol, Todos Santos, Guatemala, 1983_thumb.jpeg2022-03-01T22:43:51+00:00Gina Leonf0ac362b4453e23ee8a94b1a49fbeeafde2a0a4913deadly conflicts in crowded Central American cities and dusty hamlets during the 1980s. Their effects are still felt today. Over the decades, several million Central America migrants have sought opportunity, refuge, and stability in the United States, driven by a mix of factors including battered economies, violence, corrupt governments, and the desire to reunite with relatives who emigrated earlier or to find a family-sustaining job. While media attention in recent years has focused on the arrival of unaccompanied minors and families, primarily from El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras, the lion’s share of the 3.8 million Central American immigrants in the United States as of 2019 have been in the country for at least a decade. Displacement and economic instability caused by regional civil wars, in which the U.S. government had involvement, led many Central Americans to migrate in the 1980s. The wars ended, but economic instability remained—as did migration. The Central American immigrant population in the United States more than tripled between 1980 and 1990. Hurricane Mitch in 1998 and two earthquakes in 2001 were among the factors further driving migration from El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua. Similar factors have remained at work in recent years. In November 2020, Hurricanes Eta and Iota devasted the region, affecting as many as 11 million people throughout Central America. Drought also has plagued parts of El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras in what is known as the “Dry Corridor.” Further, government corruption, gang activity, and high homicide rates continue to affect parts of the region, driving emigration. The total Central American-born population in the United States has grown more than tenfold since 1980, and by 24 percent since 2010. The 3.8 million Central American immigrants present in 2019 accounted for 8 percent of the U.S. foreign-born population of 44.9 million.plain2022-03-01T22:47:49+00:001983Gina Leonf0ac362b4453e23ee8a94b1a49fbeeafde2a0a49
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12023-08-26T00:23:31+00:00Gina Leonf0ac362b4453e23ee8a94b1a49fbeeafde2a0a49Central American MigrationGina Leon31980s Focused Researchgallery2023-08-26T00:59:10+00:00Gina Leonf0ac362b4453e23ee8a94b1a49fbeeafde2a0a49