Number of attempted crossings at southern U.S. border hits 21-year high

U.S. border agents stopped more than 188,000 immigrants trying to cross the southern U.S. border in June, marking a 21-year high in monthly border crossings, as the Biden administration considers lifting Covid-19 restrictions and allowing more immigrants to claim asylum in the U.S.

The numbers were the highest since March 2000, when more than 223,000 immigrants were stopped by the Border Patrol at the southern border.

Of the 188,829 border crossers in June, nearly 105,000 were expelled back into Mexico without being given the chance to claim asylum in the U.S. due to the government’s use of Title 42, a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention authority used to prevent the spread of Covid-19.