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The migrants say they want a better life for themselves and their children, safe from violence and poverty in their home countries. The caravan is both a humanitarian and an activist mission, as organizers created the event to draw greater attention to the migrants' plight.
CNN.com

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JACOB
"The migrants had made their way north by foot, freight train and bus over the past month, many saying they feared for their lives in their home countries."
-Time.com

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"caravan organizers escorted some 50 participants along the long, elevated pedestrian walkway at El Chaparral that leads from Tijuana to the entrance to the United States in San Diego"

www.nytimes.com

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Devin
More than 150 migrants part of a caravan that numbered about 1,200 and headed towards America in March from Mexico's border from Guatemala, seeking asylum from the U.S. immigration officials. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/29/world/americas/mexico-caravan-trump.html

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At end of migrant caravan on U.S. border, families fear what comes next

"Wearing white armbands to identify themselves, the first few dozen people, mostly women and children, tried to come through the San Ysidro port of entry in the late afternoon, at the end of an expedition that started more than a month ago and 2,500 miles south of here. But as the sun set in Tijuana, none from the group had been allowed on the U.S. side or processed by border officials, according to organizers accompanying the migrants.

If they eventually succeed in entering U.S. custody, the migrants will be at the beginning of a perhaps longer and more complicated journey through the immigration court system, where the odds will be stacked against them. "
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/the_americas/at-end-of-migrant-caravan-families-fear-what-lies-next/2018/04/29/4f2f9094-4b31-11e8-8082-105a446d19b8_story.html?noredirect=on&utm_term=.ec52d929c9b3

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Sarae Carrillo, 24, feared gang violence in El Salvador, Honduras so she left with her daughter, Daryelen, 2.

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Live TV A few migrants start asylum requests, but most of the caravan is still in tents -Blake 

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Live TV A few migrants start asylum requests, but most of the caravan is still in tents -Blake 

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“The group was predominately made up of mothers and their children.” www.cnn.com

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Migrant Caravan of Asylum Seekers Reaches U.S. Border

"He said his family were fleeing a gang that had attacked him and killed a close relative. “In the name of God, everything is possible,” he said."
They are from El Salvador.
www.nytimes.com

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Payton, Central Americans From Migrant Caravan Arrive At U.S. Border To Find Crossing At Capacity

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Payton, Central Americans From Migrant Caravan Arrive At U.S. Border To Find Crossing At Capacity

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Trump administration of playing hardball with this group of asylum-seekers. And they point to how the migrants were told even before they attempted to reach the border crossing that U.S. officials were full up and wouldn't even see them. That was a bit unusual, especially since, you know, as you said, the Trump administration has been following this group for weeks.
www.npr.org

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Migrant Caravan of Asylum Seekers Reaches U.S. Border by Kirk Semple and Miriam Jordan https://www.nytimes.com- A family from El Salvador wanted to apply for asylum but didn't go through with it because they knew they would be split up.

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Migrant caravans, Trump’s latest immigration obsession, explained

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Migrant caravans, Trump’s latest immigration obsession, explained

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haley   "the point of the organized caravan is to protect immigrants from rape and other dangers that face immigrants traveling to the US on their own or in small, smuggler-led groups." - https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/4/6/17206042/caravan-mexico-trump-rape

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A trans woman walked from tapachula mostly in heels, she did so out of necessity along with many others. Honduras is one of the most dangerous countries in the world for transgender people

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The group travelled by bus, train and on foot during its 2,000-mile (3,200km) trek to the US border, with many saying they were fleeing persecution and violence in their home countries.

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Dozens of migrants travelling in a caravan to seek asylum in the US have been stopped at the border.

US border officials told some 150 people, many travelling with children, that the Mexico-US border crossing near San Diego was already full.

It was not immediately known whether the migrants from Central America would be allowed in later or turned back but the group appears to be staying put.

President Donald Trump says the caravan is a threat to the safety of the US.

The group has been a frequent target for the US president, who has argued in his tweets that it showed the need to tighten immigration laws.

He has asked states bordering Mexico to send troops to shore up security until his proposed border wall is built.

The US has a legal obligation to hear asylum claims but the majority of claimants from Central America lose their cases.

The caravan set off for the US on 25 March in southern Mexico, near the Guatemala border and at one point numbered more than 1,000 people.

Migrants' route

The group travelled by bus, train and on foot during its 2,000-mile (3,200km) trek to the US border, with many saying they were fleeing persecution and violence in their home countries.

What happened at the crossing?

One of the group's organisers, Alex Mensing, told the BBC that no-one in the group had been processed by the US Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) at the San Ysidro crossing.

Some of the members were allowed to cross a long bridge that led to US processing buildings but had to stop outside.

In a statement, CBP Commissioner Kevin McAleenan said that "we have reached capacity at the San Ysidro port of entry".

"Those individuals may need to wait in Mexico as CBP officers work to process those already within our facilities."

A lawyer for the group was aghast that inspectors at the border were not ready for them.

"We can build a base in Iraq in under a week. We can't process 200 refugees. I don't believe it," Nicole Ramos told the Associated Press news agency.

What happens next?

Despite the setback, the migrants, who mostly come from Honduras, decided to camp out overnight near the processing centre.

"We've been waiting so long that it doesn't really matter whether it's today, tomorrow or when they let us in," said Irineo Mujica, director of Pueblo Sin Fronteras, the campaign group that organised the caravan.

Under US immigration law, inspectors have the power to quickly deport individuals who do not have the proper travel or visa documents at the time that they request entry or if the inspector believes that the person requesting entry has committed fraud or misrepresented the truth.

However, if an individual expresses a fear of return to his or her home country, they will not be immediately deported but instead be detained until they undergo a "credible fear interview".

The aim of the interview is for the asylum officer to try to establish if the asylum request is based on a fear of persecution based on race, religion, nationality, political beliefs or membership of a particular group.

If the officer finds that the individual has a chance of proving fear of persecution, the applicant is referred to a judge.

Ms Ramos said the caravan organisers were only sending people who they thought would pass the credible-fear interviews.

Fate uncertain
At the scene: The BBC's James Cook
The patience of the many children among the migrants' number was striking, although perhaps weariness was the real explanation.

One little girl stood quietly as a woman fixed the child's hair for an interview at the border which could determine the direction of her life.

A small boy in an oversized checked coat sucked his fingers and gazed around at the crowd as he sat on a man's shoulders.

President Trump says these families are putting the United States in peril. The migrants insist they are fleeing danger, not bringing it with them.
Read more from James
When is Trump going to build his wall?

Constructing a "big, beautiful wall" along the Mexican border was a signature campaign promise for Mr Trump, but so far the plan to erect a new physical barrier has been thwarted by lawmakers and appears to have stalled.

A major government spending bill which he signed last month included $1.2bn for the border wall - far short of the $25bn the White House sought.

And there were strings attached to the funding Congress did approve. Most of it can only be used to repair stretches of the border where there already is a wall, not to build new segments.

Last month, the Pentagon confirmed Mr Trump had held "initial" talks with Defence Secretary James Mattis about using some of the Pentagon's budget for constructing a wall.

But Democratic Senators Dick Durbin and Jack Reed wrote to the defence secretary on Monday saying his department had "no legal authority" to use its funds for such a purpose.

In December, US Border Patrol announced arrests at the southern border had fallen to their lowest level since 1971, apparently indicating that fewer people were attempting the crossing.

More on Trump and immigration

WATCH: Can US border agents lawfully search you?

Surge in illegal US-Canada crossings

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Migrant caravan stuck at US-Mexico border

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Dozens of migrants travelling in a caravan to seek asylum in the US have been stopped at the border. US border officials told some 150 people, many travelling with children, that the Mexico-US border crossing near San Diego was already full.

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Nicholas C                           WHY ASYLUM-SEEKERS COMING                                     

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Nicholas C                           WHY ASYLUM-SEEKERS COMING                                     

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Fox News
"they felt there was safety in numbers while they traveled along the route from Mexico to the U.S. border"  Honduras and El Salvador

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Logan~ "Many of the migrants fled violence and poverty in their home countries including Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala. Hundreds of them traveled north through Mexico in the past month, as part of a caravan organized each year for the past decade by the immigrant advocacy group Pueblo Sin Fronteras." -ABC news

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A caravan of 150 immigrants coming from Mexico to the Border between Mexico and the US, " were prepared to seek asylum from United States immigration officials." This is to escape from the lives they are coming from.
www.nytimes.com

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Trevor m Honduras The migrant caravan at the us border

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Trevor m Honduras The migrant caravan at the us border

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"At least 17 people died as police cracked down on protesters, and some caravan members are opponents of the president."

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Breaking News, Latest News and Current News from FOXNews.com. Breaking news and video. Latest Current News: U.S., World, Entertainment, Health, Business, Technology, Politics, Sports.

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President Juan Hernandez accused of fraud during an election and 17 killed during protests in HoNDurAS
www.foxnews.com

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Migrant Caravan of Asylum Seekers Reaches U.S. Border
"He said his family were fleeing a gang that had attacked him and killed a close relative"

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"But I'm going with the feeling that it's going to be worth the effort," said Mr. Quintanillo. He said his family were fleeing a gang that had attacked him and killed a close relative. "In the name of God, everything is possible," he said.

Overlaying the personal struggles was a dense tangle of politics and policy - the ill will between Mr. Trump and Mexico that began the day he announced his candidacy; the acrimony between Mr. Trump and Gov. Jerry Brown of California over immigration; the politics of sanctuary cities; and the political logjam in Congress over funding Mr. Trump's proposed border wall.
[Inside an Immigrant Caravan: Women and Children, Fleeing Violence]
It all plays out in the context of Mr. Trump's goal of making immigration a galvanizing issue in the midterm elections with Republicans worried about losing control of the House and perhaps the Senate.

Heather Cronk, co-director of Showing Up for Racial Justice, one of several American advocacy groups that have been helping the caravan and its participants, traveled to Tijuana to support the migrants in the final stretch.

"For us, this is all about who we are as a country," she said. She added: "This is an existential moment. This is a spiritual moment. I want it to be true that when we say, 'Liberty and justice for all,' we mean it."

It is a debate Mr. Trump apparently relishes.

With the migrants on the doorstep of the United States, Mr. Trump, in a tweet last week, ratcheted up his rhetoric, vowing "not to let these large Caravans of people into our Country."

Mr. Trump repeatedly came back to immigration issues at a rally in Michigan on Saturday night, saying at one point: "If we don't get border security, we'll close down the country," apparently referring to a government shutdown when a funding deadline is reached in September.

Other administration officials have also been vocal.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions called the caravan "a deliberate attempt to undermine our laws and overwhelm our system."

Joined by supporters and dozens of members of the news media, the migrants gathered in a park on the Pacific Ocean about 10 a.m. local time and then later on a pedestrian plaza in front of a community center in downtown Tijuana. Scores of supporters, some of whom had walked from as far as Los Angeles, rallied Sunday morning just north of the fence separating the United States from Mexico on the American side of the oceanfront park.

[Migrant Caravan Arrives at U.S. Border, But Long Road Awaits]

What was supposed to be the final act of the caravan began about 3:30 p.m., when more than 150 of the participants, accompanied by relatives, supporters and the press, marched several blocks to a border crossing in Tijuana called El Chaparral. As they walked, they chanted and waved Honduran flags.

To qualify for asylum, applicants must prove they have been persecuted or fear persecution based on their race, religion, nationality, political beliefs or membership in a particular group.

People who request protection at a United States entry point must be referred to an asylum officer for a screening, known as a credible-fear interview. If the officer finds that an applicant has a chance of proving fear of persecution, the person must then present his or her case before a judge. More than three quarters of applicants pass that initial review.

"We're only sending people who we think will pass the credible-fear interview," said Nicole Ramos, a volunteer immigration lawyer helping the caravan.

But Customs and Border Protection, whose officers are stationed at ports of entry, announced late Sunday that it had exhausted its capacity to handle people traveling without documents.

Still, caravan organizers escorted some 50 participants along the long, elevated pedestrian walkway at El Chaparral that leads from Tijuana to the entrance to the United States in San Diego. At the gate leading into the American immigration checkpoint, American border authorities reaffirmed that they would not be able to process any more asylum-seekers on Sunday.

Alex Mensing, project coordinator for Pueblo Sin Fronteras, a transnational group that organized the caravan, told reporters gathered at El Chaparral that the migrants would remain at the gate, overnight if necessary, until border officials once again had the capacity to process them.

"We wish that the United States government were capable of accepting more than a few hundred asylum seekers at any given time, since we can certainly pick up more than a 1,000 people in an ICE raid on any given day," he said, referring to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, an arm of the Homeland Security Department.

Meanwhile, the rest of the asylum seekers, their relatives and supporters laid out blankets on a plaza outside the entrance to El Chaparral and prepared for a long, chilly night.

When they get a chance to make their case, migrant families that request asylum at the port of entry are likely to be placed on buses to Texas, where they will remain in detention centers for mothers and children. Adult men are likely to be detained in any number of facilities across the country that hold undocumented immigrants.
['You Hate America!': How the Caravan Story Exploded on the Right]
It is in these facilities that the migrants would be screened by United States immigration officials over the next several days. If they pass the credible-fear interview, the migrants will be allowed to make their case for asylum before an immigration judge, a process that unfolds over several months or longer.

Migrants, typically fitted with ankle monitors, often are allowed to travel to the interior of the country, where they stay with relatives or friends while their cases run their course.

Mr. Trump, however, has denounced that practice because some migrants have skipped their court hearings; he dismissed it as "catch and release." In recent months, migrant advocates say, the Trump administration has kept many migrants seeking asylum in detention.

For all the high political stakes, the human stakes for the individual migrants planning to seek asylum Sunday were at least as high.

Byron Claros, a Salvadoran immigrant, joined the caravan with his 18-year-old brother, Luis Alexander Rodriguez, and their stepfather, Andres Rodríguez.

Mr. Claros and Mr. Rodriguez planned to petition for asylum Sunday afternoon; their stepfather, after consultation with volunteer lawyers in Tijuana, decided that his case for sanctuary was not strong enough and that he would remain behind in Mexico.

"The hour I've waited for my entire life has finally arrived," Mr. Claros said early Sunday afternoon as he, hundreds of migrants, scores of their supporters, reporters and cameramen gathered in and in front of a community center and cafe in the downtown district of Tijuana, blocks from the border crossing.

Mr. Rodriguez said he was nervous, "because the United States can support our rights but can also deny us our rights."

Still, he said, there was only one way to push: north.

"We've fought too much to get here," he said. "And we're here."

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Migrant Caravan of Asylum Seekers Reaches U.S. Border

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"But I'm going with the feeling that it's going to be worth the effort," said Mr. Quintanillo. He said his family were fleeing a gang that had attacked him and killed a close relative. "In the name of God, everything is possible," he said.

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Migrant Caravan of Asylum Seekers Reaches U.S. Border

"Trump, in a tweet last week, ratcheted up his rhetoric, vowing “not to let these large Caravans of people into our Country.”"
nytimes.com

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Honduras and El Salvador are some of the most violent countries in the world, despite falling homicide rates
-https://www.cbsnews.com

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"Several members of the Latin American migrant caravan that has enraged President Trump were allowed to step onto United States territory to apply for asylum late Monday"
New York Times