Title: Is it legal to cross the U.S. border to seek asylum? | International Rescue Committee (IRC)
Headings: Is it legal to cross the U.S. border to seek asylum?
Is it legal to cross the U.S. border to seek asylum?
What is asylum?
Who is an asylum seeker?
Are asylum seekers refugees?
Is seeking asylum legal?
How do people seek asylum at the border?
Where do asylum seekers in the U.S. come from?
How did seeking asylum change under the Trump Administration?
What can President Joe Biden do to help asylum seekers?
How can I help asylum seekers?
How does the IRC help asylum seekers?
Tell U.S. leaders to keep asylum seekers safe

Content: In those circumstances, the process for asylum varies. Where do asylum seekers in the U.S. come from? In late 2019, Venezuelans and Central Americans were among the largest groups of people to apply for asylum in the U.S.
Three million Venezuelans have left the country since 2015 due to growing insecurity, instability and violence. People living in northern Central American countries such as Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador are enduring violence akin to a war zone. “The hardest part about living in El Salvador is the violence,” says 23-year-old Valentina, who fled to the U.S. after her family was threatened by gangs. “ This is what makes life hard, because you leave your house and you don’t know if you’ll return. So yes, this is a war.” Women and girls seeking safety are stuck in shelters filled beyond capacity with families who lost their homes to hurricanes Eta and Iota, which struck the region in November 2020. Privacy is limited in these shelters and reports of sexual violence are on the rise. The two storms left 3.4 million people in need of urgent assistance.