Migrants find tips on Chinese version of TikTok for long trek to US-Mexico border

Reuters followed a group of migrants from China as during their trek to the U.S.-Mexico border.

Lihua Wu's journey to the United States started when she scrolled past the words "The Route," one of several common hashtags on Douyin, the Chinese counterpart of TikTok, advising migrants on the irregular overland trek across Latin America to the United States, also known online as "the Big Beautiful."

By the time the single mother and her five-year-old daughter were apprehended by U.S. Border Patrol on a dirt road near the U.S.-Mexico border just before midnight on April 2, Wu said she had relied on social media for detailed instructions for her trip, including footwear (Crocs as well as hiking boots) and how to find and pay for a reliable local guide.

PHOTO: Migrants from China disembark from the motorized boat they used to cross the Rio Grande river into the U.S. from Mexico and are pointed towards the town cemetery in Fronton, Texas, on April 10, 2023. — Migrants from China disembark from the motorized boat they used to cross the Rio Grande river into the U.S. from Mexico and are pointed towards the town cemetery in Fronton, Texas, on April 10, 2023.
Staff/Reuters

PHOTO: Migrants from China navigate thick brush and rugged terrain while searching for law enforcement in order to surrender, after being smuggled across the Rio Grande river into the United States from Mexico, in Fronton, Texas, on April 5, 2023. — Migrants from China navigate thick brush and rugged terrain while searching for law enforcement in order to surrender, after being smuggled across the Rio Grande river into the United States from Mexico, in Fronton, Texas, on April 5, 2023.
Staff/Reuters

The difficulty of obtaining U.S. visas and the economic after-shocks of China's COVID lockdowns have led to a sharp increase in Chinese nationals presenting at the U.S.-Mexico border – and some of those arrivals, like Wu, learned about how to come online, migrants, immigration experts, attorneys, and current and former U.S. officials, told Reuters.

Over the course of three weeks photographing and reporting from a remote border stretch in southeastern Texas, Reuters witnessed hundreds of Chinese migrants crossing into the United States and interviewed more than two dozen in Mandarin.

PHOTO: A five-year-old migrant boy from China chases his brother down a trail after he and his family crossed the Rio Grande river into the United States from Mexico, in Fronton, Texas, on April 5, 2023. — A five-year-old migrant boy from China chases his brother down a trail after he and his family crossed the Rio Grande river into the United States from Mexico, in Fronton, Texas, on April 5, 2023.
Staff/Reuters

PHOTO: A migrant man from China asks to keep his Bible after being directed to place his valuables in a plastic bag by Border Patrol agents, after crossing the Rio Grande river into the United States from Mexico, in Fronton, Texas, on April 10, 2023. — A migrant man from China asks to keep his Bible after being directed to place his valuables in a plastic bag by Border Patrol agents, after crossing the Rio Grande river into the United States from Mexico, in Fronton, Texas, on April 10, 2023.
Staff/Reuters

All of those interviewed said they got the idea to take the land route to the United States on social media and drew on influencers, private groups and comments to plan their trips.

About half said they had been small business owners in China: running online stores, a sheep farm, a movie production company.

Some wore crosses and carried Chinese-language bibles, saying they were Christians who felt they could not freely practice their religion at home. China's constitution guarantees religious freedom, but in recent years critics including the U.S. government say Beijing has tightened restrictions on religions seen as a challenge to the authority of the ruling Communist party.

The Chinese Embassy in Washington said in an email that the government opposes illegal migration, which "is an international issue that requires cooperation between countries." It did not respond to a request for comment on the issue of religious freedom.

Short video app Douyin, owned by TikTok owner ByteDance, is one of the main sources of the Chinese tech giant's revenue overall, Reuters previously reported. ByteDance, which also owns Xigua Video, did not respond to requests for comments.

PHOTO: A Border Patrol agent searches a migrant man from China as he surrenders after crossing the Rio Grande river into the United States from Mexico in Fronton, Texas, on April 10, 2023. — A Border Patrol agent searches a migrant man from China as he surrenders after crossing the Rio Grande river into the United States from Mexico in Fronton, Texas, on April 10, 2023.
Staff/Reuters

Apprehensions of Chinese nationals at the U.S.-Mexico border reached more than 6,500 in the six months since October 2022, the highest on record and a more than 15-fold increase over the same period a year ago, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) data.

While just a sliver of the hundreds of thousands of migrants arriving at the southwest border, Chinese people were the fastest growing demographic in those six months, CBP data show.

PHOTO: A migrant man from China identifies himself to a Border Patrol agent after surrendering with a group which was smuggled across the Rio Grande river into the United States from Mexico, in Fronton, Texas, on April 4, 2023. — A migrant man from China identifies himself to a Border Patrol agent after surrendering with a group which was smuggled across the Rio Grande river into the United States from Mexico, in Fronton, Texas, on April 4, 2023.
Staff/Reuters

In a March 16 tweet, CBP Chief Border Patrol Agent Gloria Chavez in the Rio Grande Valley sector that includes Fronton said the increase was "creating a strain on our workforce due to the complexities of the language barrier & lengthens the processing."

CBP said in a statement that it works with inter-agency task forces to track increasing migration and target "transnational criminal organizations who are smuggling Chinese migrants, specifically." The Department of Homeland Security, which oversees CBP, has said that social media and other online platforms have increased smugglers' access to potential migrants, creating an environment ripe for manipulation , which the agency has tried to combat with social media campaigns.

PHOTO: A boat carrying migrants from China crosses the Rio Grande river into the U.S. from Mexico, in Fronton, Texas, on April 6, 2023. — A boat carrying migrants from China crosses the Rio Grande river into the U.S. from Mexico, in Fronton, Texas, on April 6, 2023.
Staff/Reuters

Even before her Business collapsed, Wu said she had considered emigration as an escape from the discrimination she said she experienced as an unmarried single mother. Her decision to leave China solidified during a COVID-related lockdown in October, November and December, which devastated the online makeup wholesaler she ran from the eastern city of Yiwu.

When COVID controls curbed package deliveries in China, Wu said her sales slumped from around six million yuan ($871,000) to one million yuan ($145,000).

Wu initially thought about getting a U.S. tourist visa and overstaying, but a travel agent advised she was unlikely to get a visa as a single mother.

Refusal rates among Chinese nationals for the most common U.S. visitor visas reached 80% in fiscal year 2021 and more than 30% in 2022, the two highest years on record, according to State Department data. While U.S. visa issuance globally has mostly recovered to pre-pandemic levels, the number of U.S. visas issued from China last year remained 90% below 2019's pre-pandemic levels.

PHOTO: Mexico is visible on the far side of the Rio Grande river as migrants from China walk along a dirt road on the U.S. side looking to surrender to Border Patrol agents, in Fronton, Texas, on April 4, 2023. — Mexico is visible on the far side of the Rio Grande river as migrants from China walk along a dirt road on the U.S. side looking to surrender to Border Patrol agents, in Fronton, Texas, on April 4, 2023.
Staff/Reuters

PHOTO: A member of the Texas Army National Guard asks a migrant from China to come out of his hiding place after the man and others were smuggled across the Rio Grande river into the United States from Mexico, in Fronton, Texas, on April 5, 2023. — A member of the Texas Army National Guard asks a migrant from China to come out of his hiding place after the man and others were smuggled across the Rio Grande river into the United States from Mexico, in Fronton, Texas, on April 5, 2023.
Staff/Reuters

Visa holders and border crossers can request U.S. asylum on arrival if they fear persecution at home. Asylum seekers from China won in U.S. immigration court 58% of the time, according to U.S. Justice Department data.

The State Department in an emailed statement said 2021 and 2022 "were not standard years." It said visa issuances were expected to increase as China "catches up on its passport backlog and air Travel resumes after the end of the zero-COVID policy."

Other Chinese nationals, like Wu, didn't wait.

PHOTO: A member of the Texas Army National Guard helps a migrant mother and daughter from China cross over a fence after the group was smuggled across the Rio Grande river into the United States from Mexico, in Fronton, Texas, on April 5, 2023. — A member of the Texas Army National Guard helps a migrant mother and daughter from China cross over a fence after the group was smuggled across the Rio Grande river into the United States from Mexico, in Fronton, Texas, on April 5, 2023.
Staff/Reuters

PHOTO: Migrants from Central America and China are escorted by members of the Texas Army National Guard after the group was smuggled across the Rio Grande river into the United States from Mexico, in Fronton, Texas, on April 5, 2023. — Migrants from Central America and China are escorted by members of the Texas Army National Guard after the group was smuggled across the Rio Grande river into the United States from Mexico, in Fronton, Texas, on April 5, 2023.
Staff/Reuters

PHOTO: A resident directs a Border Patrol agent towards the general direction where she saw a group of migrants from China who were smuggled across the Rio Grande river into the United States from Mexico, in Fronton, Texas, on April 2, 2023. — A resident directs a Border Patrol agent towards the general direction where she saw a group of migrants from China who were smuggled across the Rio Grande river into the United States from Mexico, in Fronton, Texas, on April 2, 2023.
Staff/Reuters

Scrolling through her social media feeds, Wu came across "Baozai," an internet personality who gained tens of thousands of followers on Douyin, Xigua Video, YouTube and Twitter by posting videos about his migration to the United States.

Reuters was not able to independently confirm Baozai's identity and in messages to Reuters, he denied being an influencer and said he was just a migrant.

Baozai's original account "Baozai adventure the world alone" is shown as "blocked" on Douyin for violating "community self-discipline regulations."

He is now posting under a new account with the same name on Douyin, sticking to content about his life in the United States.

Douyin did not respond to a request for comment on Baozai.

PHOTO: A group of migrants from China walks past residences while looking to surrender to Border Patrol agents in Fronton, Texas, on April 4, 2023. — A group of migrants from China walks past residences while looking to surrender to Border Patrol agents in Fronton, Texas, on April 4, 2023.
Staff/Reuters

Wu said she sold her secondhand BMW and borrowed about 10,000 yuan ($1,450) from family and friends. She and her daughter flew to Ecuador - where Chinese nationals can enter visa free - and, acting on advice she found on Douyin, sought out a vaccination for yellow fever.

It was a good idea before heading into the treacherous jungle region on the border of Colombia and Panama known as the Darien Gap, she had learned.

At the clinic in Quito Wu found a group of Chinese migrants who had contacted a local Colombian guide known only by his first name, "Carlos."

"He is an internet celebrity in China," Wu said.

Wu and several other migrants said Carlos and his associates charged around $1,230 per adult and $700 per child to arrange travel and hotels from Ecuador to Panama including a guided trek through the Darien.

Jungle tents and horses were also available for part of the trip for an extra fee, Wu and the other migrants said.

PHOTO: Migrants from China, who were smuggled across the Rio Grande river from Mexico, sit outside a residence after surrendering to a Starr County police officer and a Border Patrol agent, in Fronton, Texas, on April 4, 2023. — Migrants from China, who were smuggled across the Rio Grande river from Mexico, sit outside a residence after surrendering to a Starr County police officer and a Border Patrol agent, in Fronton, Texas, on April 4, 2023.
Staff/Reuters

A Reuters reporter contacted a Colombian man through a number shared on Douyin who answered when addressed as Carlos. Carlos, who declined to give his full name and said he did not illegally smuggle anyone across borders or take money from migrants. But he said he did help some Chinese people looking for bus and ferry tickets.

"Last year I did a favor for a Chinese man who was lost. I helped him find a ride, and then through that, my number was shared," he said.

He said he refers callers to a friend in Ecuador who is a bus driver, whom he did not identify.

"I don't accompany anyone, I don't want any problems with my country or with the law," he said.

Reuters was unable to independently confirm his account.

PHOTO: A Border Patrol agent holds a hand-made sign reading "Democracy, Freedom" in Chinese as migrants from China surrender to agents after crossing the Rio Grande river into the United States from Mexico, in Fronton, Texas, on April 2, 2023. — A Border Patrol agent holds a hand-made sign reading "Democracy, Freedom" in Chinese as migrants from China surrender to agents after crossing the Rio Grande river into the United States from Mexico, in Fronton, Texas, on April 2, 2023.
Staff/Reuters

PHOTO: A migrant man from China holds his and his wife's possessions in plastic bags following his surrender to Border Patrol agents after crossing the Rio Grande river into the United States from Mexico, in Fronton, Texas, on April 10, 2023. — A migrant man from China holds his and his wife's possessions in plastic bags following his surrender to Border Patrol agents after crossing the Rio Grande river into the United States from Mexico, in Fronton, Texas, on April 10, 2023.
Staff/Reuters

Reuters found other social media accounts giving advice in Mandarin on crossing the U.S.-Mexico border.

An April 7 Twitter post from an account called Lee Gaga said smugglers mark the location of U.S. Border Patrol agents on maps and advise migrants on how to surrender to them. In posts and messages exchanged with Reuters, the Twitter user identified as Lee Gaga said he was now in the New York City area after a 37-day journey.

"Of course you can try and run, but that's not recommended," the post said. Twitter is blocked in China, but users may be able to access the platform through VPNs, or virtual private networks, that allow internet users to access overseas sites barred by authorities.

The Twitter poster went on: "I was released only after three days and three nights. I got lucky because the border policy has been good lately."