Along the United States - Mexico border in California changing immigration restrictions have added to the uncertainty faced by those seeking to enter the U.S. Since 2016 the number of migrant shelters in Tijuana has grown from five to more than 30. Migrants staying in overflowing shelters live in an indefinite state of waiting. From Tijuana to the eastern corner of San Diego counties, migrants who cross the border and present themselves to immigration authorities sometimes wait days without shelter and little access to food and water until they are processed. This ongoing photo project aims to capture the toll that living with fear and uncertainty has for the thousands of families and individuals who find themselves in limbo in deserts, mountains and cities along the border. It also strives to show the ways people come together to build community and support one another through each day.
Mairani Rubio Padilla, her son Tadeo and Hazel Lucia Flores Rodriguez look up towards a window at the Libélula women’s shelter in Tijuana, Dec. 9, 2022.
A group plays the game Memoria at the Libélula Women's Shelter in Tijuana, Dec. 16, 2022.
Reegens Novalus cuts the hair of his son, Reedjy, at the Templo Embajadores de Jesús shelter in Tijuana, May 23, 2022.
Dozens of people work to move a truckload of cinder blocks for new construction at the Templo de Embajadores shelter in Tijuana, Dec. 1, 2022.
Neemie Jean Jacque braids the hair of a friend at the Templo Embajadores de Jesús shelter Tijuana, May 23, 2022.
Anahi Flores cooks in an outdoor cooking area at the Templo Embajadores de Jesús shelter in Tijuana, June 1, 2022.
A view of the outskirts of Tijuana is seen from a window at the Libélula Women's Shelter, Dec. 16, 2022.
Migrants wait to be processed by immigration authorities in the desert near Boulevard, Sept. 17, 2023.
Migrants enter a United States Border Patrol van which will transport them to an immigration processing center near Boulevard, Sept. 26, 2023.
A group of migrants from Colombia try to stay warm by a fire while waiting to be processed by immigration authorities near Jacumba Hot Springs, Jan 3. 2023.
A couple from Colombia looks out over an area near Boulevard where hundreds of migrants are waiting to be processed by immigration authorities, Oct. 2, 2023.
A man from China is searched by a border patrol agent before boarding a bus to a processing center near Boulevard, Jan 2. 2023.
A group of migrants from Colombia wait by make-shift shelters in the Jucumba Wilderness, May 13, 2023.
Dora Alicia Rodriguez pulls dry clothes off the line at the Libélula Women's Shelter in Tijuana, Dec. 19, 2022.
Grecía Kristel Flores Rodriguez washes dishes at the Libélula Women's Shelter in Tijuana, Dec. 16, 2022.
Dora Alicia Rodriguez, left, laughs with her daughters after a jug of water they were carrying breaks and spills down the street, Tijuana, Dec. 19, 2022.
Mairani Rubio Padilla and her son Tadeo hold a toy airplane at the Libélula women’s shelter in Tijuana, Dec. 8, 2022.
Laura Melissa Serrano Aguilar and her mother María Dolores Aguilar look at the view from a balcony at the Libélula Women's Shelter in Tijuana, Dec. 16, 2022.
Girls play outside at the Libélula women's shelter in Tijuana, Dec. 16, 2022.
A board filled with photographs taken of workers and guests of the shelter hangs on a wall of the Camino de Salvacion church and shelter, Dec. 8, 2022.
Gema Judith Olvera Chavez sits with her four children at the Border Line Crisis Center in Tijuana, Dec. 21, 2022. She fled violence in her home state of Michoacán.
Hazel Lucia Flores Rodriguez looks out the window while driving to receive a COVID-19 test in Tijuana, Dec. 19, 2022.
Mairani Rubio Padilla, her son Tadeo and Hazel Lucia Flores Rodriguez walk to the store outside of the Libélula women’s shelter in Tijuana, Dec. 9, 2022.
Mairani Rubio Padilla and her son Tadeo walk down the stairs at the Libélula women’s shelter in Tijuana, Dec. 9, 2022.
Mairani Rubio Padilla makes pupusas with Militza Arredondo Morales, center, and Dora Alicia Rodriguez, right, at the Libélula women’s shelter in Tijuana, Dec. 9, 2022.
Mairani Rubio Padilla and carries her son Tadeo as she leaves the Libélula women’s shelter in Tijuana to pursue an asylum claim at the U.S.-Mexico border, Dec. 12, 2022.
Mairani Rubio Padilla walks with her son Tadeo and other asylum seekers into the El Chaparral pedestrian crossing at the U.S.-Mexico border in Tijuana, Dec. 12, 2022.
Mairani Rubio Padilla and her son Tadeo wait at San Diego International Airport for a flight that will reunite them with family in the United States, Dec. 14, 2022.
A family from Peru tries to stay warm under blankets while waiting to be processed by immigration authorities near Boulevard, Jan 3. 2023.
The border wall near Jacumba Hot Springs is shown on, Jan 3. 2023.
A man from China tries to stay warm under a blanket while waiting to be processed by immigration authorities near Boulevard, Jan 2. 2023.
Migrants wait to be processed by immigration authorities near Boulevard, Jan 2. 2023.
Migrants from Brazil try to stay warm by a fire near Jacumba Hot Springs, Jan 3. 2023.
Much of the vegetation in an area near Boulevard has been cleared in recent months to be used as firewood by migrants, Jan 2. 2023.