Editing Openai/695b05bd-59e8-800d-8dfe-c4a0e7708b02 (section)

=== Assistant: Short answer: yes—Venezuela is a major source of recent migrants, but not the only one, and not all migrants are Venezu… ===
Short answer: yes—Venezuela is a ''major'' source of recent migrants, but not the only one, and not all migrants are Venezuelan.

==== Venezuela has produced one of the largest migration crises in the world over the past decade. ====

4
Why people left Venezuela (starting ~2014–2016):
* Economic collapse (hyperinflation, wages worth almost nothing)
* Food & medicine shortages
* Power outages, infrastructure failure
* Political repression under Maduro
* Crime and insecurity

Scale (rough, widely cited figures):
* ~7–8 million Venezuelans have left the country
* Most went first to Colombia, Peru, Ecuador, Brazil
* In the last few years, many continued north toward the U.S.

==== Very often, yes — but they’re part of a larger mix. ====

In the last 3–4 years, Venezuelans became:
* One of the top nationalities encountered at the U.S. southern border
* Especially visible because many arrived with families, not alone
* More likely to request asylum or temporary protection

But they are not “all” migrants.

==== You’re also seeing large numbers from: ====
* Honduras
* Guatemala
* El Salvador
* Haiti
* Ecuador
* Cuba

Each has different push factors:
* Central America → gangs, poverty, climate shocks
* Haiti → political collapse, violence, natural disasters
* Cuba → repression + economic crisis
* Ecuador → crime surge + economic instability

==== They became especially noticeable because: ====
* Venezuela’s collapse was fast and severe
* Many migrants traveled extremely long routes (including the Darién Gap)
* U.S. policy toward Venezuelans has shifted repeatedly (TPS, parole programs, expulsions), making them a political flashpoint
* Cities like NYC, Chicago, and Denver received large numbers at once

==== - ✅ Yes, a large share of recent migrants are Venezuelan ====
* ❌ No, they are not the only group
* 📈 Venezuela is one of the biggest single contributors, but today’s migration is multi-country and multi-cause

If you want, I can also explain:
* why this surged specifically after COVID
* how U.S. policy shaped who came and when
* or why cities (not border states) felt overwhelmed

Just tell me what angle you want.