This is part three of a five-part series.
CHOLOMA, Honduras – The clothing made in factories here in Honduras, and in Guatemala and El Salvador, is the epitome of the American Midwest.
It’s practical, affordable apparel sold in stores such as Target, Walmart and Kohl’s. It’s also work uniforms for technicians, mechanics and restaurant workers.
Moreover, the jobs created in the apparel factories and textile mills are a partial solution to the migration crisis at the U.S. southern border.
Some items produced in this region, known as the Northern Triangle of Central America, were previously made in China. Now, they’re examples of manufacturing that’s moved closer to the U.S. consumer in what’s called “nearshoring.” The strategy comes with political and economic benefits, the first of which is keeping in place workers who might otherwise attempt to migrate to the United States in an often perilous and unsuccessful journey from South and Central America through Mexico.
The U.S. Border Patrol said it encountered 541,000 foreign nationals from the region in one year alone, 2022.
Americans who are worried about the crisis at the U.S. southern border ought to care about creating opportunities in the Northern Triangle, said Peter Bragdon, chief administrative officer for Seattle based Columbia Sportswear. “It is part of the immigration debate,” he said.
Vice President Kamala Harris has called upon businesses to invest in the Northern Triangle in an effort to address the root causes of migration. More than 40 companies have responded to the Harris “Call to Action” plan.
