The Significance of the Darien Gap

I've had Costa Rican friends tell me that it got much worse under Joe Biden and have heard some horror stories. Of course, we already knew that, but my point is that if liberals truly cared about Latin Americans or "people with brown skin" as they like to say, they'd care about the majority who stay put in their home countries and how illegal immigration affects them, as well. Unfortunately, it seems like they only like the criminals (I couldn't resist using this X post from the Babylon Bee).  

Democrats Show Solidarity With MS-13 By Getting New Face Tattoos https://t.co/WnPb2SjYa0 pic.twitter.com/IXWM9PE9tQ

— The Babylon Bee (@TheBabylonBee) April 30, 2025

And if liberals truly cared about any of these people, they'd shut the border so that they're no longer putting themselves in danger to get here. If someone is truly well-intentioned, has been vetted, and wants to come here and start a new life, that's great. I'm all for it. I'm all for making the process easier. Closing the border and promoting legal immigration would go a lot further and save a lot of lives in a variety of ways. A true humanitarian would recognize that, but I've met very few liberals who are true humanitarians.

Related: The Left Doesn't Care About Latin American Children. Here's Actual Proof.

For example, people who want to come to this country from South America wouldn't have to pass through the Darien Gap. 

(Side note: I don't want to turn this into a geography lesson, but I've had an alarming number of people tell me that El Salvador is part of South America in recent weeks, and I want to start by stating that El Salvador — and Costa Rica, Panama, Honduras, Belize, Guatemala, and Nicaragua — are in Central America, which is actually a part of North America. Migrants from South America must pass through at least five of these countries before they hit Mexico and, eventually, the United States. Just throwing that out there just in case....)

Panama is the southern-most country in North America, and it connects to Colombia in South America. The World Atlas defines the Isthmus of Panama as the official border between the two continents, but more specifically the Darien Gap is typically considered the place of division. And the Darien Gap has no roads, which makes passing from one continent to the other practically impossible unless you are on a plane or boat. Some people seem to think that the Pan-American Highway actually runs from Alaska to Argentina, but technically it does not. Size-wise, the Darien Gap is officially around 100 miles long and 30 miles wide, but it creates about a 60-mile break in the Pan-American Highway. 

Europeans attempted to settle the area for centuries — I could write an entire article on that and the area's history —but nothing stuck. It's believed that only people considered native to the area live there today, though no one really knows for sure, nor can they tell you how many. I've seen estimates ranging from 1,000 to 25,000. Some "adventure travelers" have attempted to cross on their own. Some have made it. Some have not. "Steep mountains, muddy swamplands, dense forests, turbulent rivers, dangerous wildlife, and high levels of humidity and precipitation make the landscape too hostile for infrastructure and immensely difficult to police," according to the Center for Strategic International Studies (CSIS). Crime is also an issue. 

Here's more from Doctors of the World: 

The environment presents a massive challenge. This is one of the wettest regions in the world and there is thick, deep mud everywhere, making the hike ever more hazardous. Frequent rainfall can trigger landslides in the mountainous terrain.  The jungle is massive and disorienting: it’s easy to get lost and many make the trek with no map and few resources. Temperatures can reach 95°F with high humidity, exacerbating dehydration and hunger. There are poisonous snakes and other creatures that can cause serious bodily harm. Mosquitoes and lack of clean water also increases exposure to disease. 

However, the environment is only a small portion of the dangers that migrants face in the region. The most violent threats come from the gangs, cartels and smugglers that transverse the area. The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and the Gulf Clan, a paramilitary group and Colombia’s largest drug cartel, both make their presence known. They are frequently reported for extorting and sexually assaulting migrants. Some migrants that can afford to pay guides or ‘coyotes’ may end up in the hands of human traffickers that take advantage of their desperation. Robbery, rape and human trafficking are frequently reported in the crossing, however the exact number is difficult to track. Rape, in particular, is used as a weapon by the cartels to humiliate migrant women and establish their dominance. 

But in the twenty-first century, and in the 2010s, in particular, it became a hotspot for people who wanted to come to the United States illegally, especially Venezuelans, Haitians, and even the Chinese, whether they were seeking asylum from their home countries and truly looking for a fresh start or they were people like Venezuelan gang members and cartel members coming to the United States for nefarious purposes. 

But what happened under Joe Biden is unbelievable. In 2019, around 22,000 people crossed the Dairen Gap. In 2020, that number fell to just under 6,500. In 2021, it jumped to nearly 134,000; it hit nearly 249,000 in 2022; and reached a record-breaking 520,000 in 2023. And those are only estimates because it's entirely impossible to know exact numbers. "Between January 2021 and March 2023, Panamanian authorities found a reported 124 bodies on the route," but the actual number of deaths is likely much, much higher, while just impossible to confirm. 

The legacy media likes to cite several pitiful little factors as to why that number got so high over the last few years, but the fact of the matter is that Joe Biden's reckless administration was mostly to blame. 

Under Donald Trump it has changed significantly. Because the president and his team have closed our border and are upholding U.S. immigration laws, the number of people crossing into the United States is down 99%, but so is the number of people crossing the Darien Gap.

Here's another number to consider: in February 2024, over 37,000 people tried to cross that treacherous terrain. In February 2025, 408 did. And that number keeps getting smaller. 

Thank God that this is NO MORE inside the Darien Gap!

The secure borders of the Trump administration has decreased to a 99% the flow through this hell hole.

This is what you Democrats, progressive activist, NGOs, United Nations, organized, crime, were promoting and making… pic.twitter.com/EvKo3uQve9

— Oscar Ramirez - Real America’s Voice correspondent (@OscarRamirezTJ) April 30, 2025

I know I'm just scratching the surface here on a huge issue, but I just wanted to point out that having an open border in the U.S. can often be even harder on immigrants coming here illegally than shutting it down. 

And I know not everyone will care about that, but I do. I'm not afraid to admit that I do have a soft spot for people who want a better life and people who are born in countries where it's impossible to find, and I don't care what they look like or about the color of their skin. We are pretty darn lucky to be born in the United States, and that is not lost on me. And I get sick and tired of liberals calling me racist or heartless or xenophobic because I don't think the way to help them is to turn our country into a free-for-all. 

If anything, it's quite the opposite. But, as I said, the left doesn't care about any of this — they only care about power and growing their voter base and spreading their loony agenda around the world. They only care about tearing down the first president in my lifetime who is actually trying to make this country better and opposing his supporters.  

If they truly cared about the "people with brown skin," they'd be finding other ways to help them through private charities and organizations or by getting their hands dirty and actually going to these countries and learning the truth. And no, sipping margaritas with an alleged MS-13 member in El Salvador doesn't count. Sending taxpayer dollars to fund drag queen puppet shows doesn't either.   

They'd be like Oscar Blue Ramirez (@OscarRamirezTJ on X), who actually went to the Darien Gap and saw the truth. Here's an image he posted on X just this evening (I highly recommend checking out his page — he's got some great information and pictures if you're interested in learning more about all of this). The next time a liberal says that shutting down the border is "racist" or "heartless," show them this. Show them how grateful they should be to live in a country where they don't have to nearly drown with their children just to find a better life, whether they like the president or not. Tell them that there are ways they could help these people if they truly wanted to, but opposing border security in the United States isn't it.  

Darien Gap Photo: By Oscar Blue Ramirez.

A migrant risks the life of his child, almost drowning, trying to cross the river by holding on a rope!

I took this picture inside of the Darien gap, this was one of the hundreds of cases of migrants risking the life of their children… pic.twitter.com/TYtyn2PZzS

— Oscar Ramirez - Real America’s Voice correspondent (@OscarRamirezTJ) April 30, 2025