At Roxham Road, migrants reach uncertain ends to harrowing journeys: ‘They’re scared’

As the influx of irregular crossings into Canada becomes a political lightning rod, Global News spoke with migrants and those who help them on the final leg of their journey.

At a small, unofficial border crossing at Roxham Road separating Quebec and New York state in mid-March, a group of migrants encounters an RCMP officer who delivers a final warning.

“It’s illegal to cross the border here,” the agent says, staying on the Canadian side of the crossing. “If you do so, you are going to be arrested for illegal entry into Canada.”

The migrants — including adults and children, all of them holding suitcases and carrying backpacks — stay frozen on the American side. They are either considering the ramifications of being arrested or do not understand English.

They have just completed the final leg of an arduous journey with hopes of making it into Canada, with most making the last stint by taxi from Plattsburgh, N.Y., about half an hour south of the Canada-U.S. border. Now, steps from potentially realizing their dream, they appear unsure what to do next.

“It’s your choice,” the officer tells the migrants.

After a few moments, the migrants cross, single-file, and line up in front of the officer on the Canadian side, who announces they are under arrest. They are processed under a small white tent and then taken inside a building, finally safe from the late-winter cold.

The arrest is just temporary, however. Soon, they will meet with an immigration official and apply for asylum — something they can’t do at an official border crossing.

This scene plays out multiple times a day at Roxham Road, which has become a microcosm for the ever-growing migration crisis facing North America as well as a political lightning rod in Quebec and Ottawa.