Los Angeles

Honduran Mother and Daughters Seeking Asylum Walk Over 2,000 Miles to LA

The family made the 2,000-plus mile trek to Los Angeles from Honduras due to the dangers of gang activity.

A mother and her four daughters seeking political asylum in the United States just completed a 2,000-plus mile long journey on foot from Honduras to Los Angeles.

The family's journey began back in October when Miriam Pérez and her four daughters fled Honduras to the U.S. in search of a better life.

The youngest daughter is only 8 years old, while the others are at an age where they were at risk of being forcibly recruited to join a gang in Honduras. 

Throughout these two long months, Pérez traveled with her daughters in a caravan of immigrants that left Central America for the U.S. 

Suffering through hunger and fear, they encountered the help and solidarity of Mexicans who gave them food and water, the family said. 

This was not an easy journey for them, and they witnessed the hardships that people experience on a trip such as this.

They walked so much that in only one day they surpassed the distance of a marathon.

"We would walk for 15 hours, up to 45 kilometers," Pérez said to NBC's sister station Telemundo 52.

The dangers of gang activity in Honduras were the main cause that led Pérez to bring her daughters to the U.S. 

Pérez admits that there were times when she felt like giving up, but for the sake of her daughters and their safety she was motivated to move forward.

Her daughters held the same strength and willpower of their mother, walking without giving up.

"They would cry to me and tell me that they couldn't continue. That was hard for me," Pérez said.

They arrived at Pérez's mother's house in LA. She had not seen her mother in 18 years her daughters had never met their grandmother before. 

Their reunion was sealed with a political asylum request on December 12.

"I just lifted my hands and said 'Holy Father! My daughter is here!'" Pérez's mother exclaimed.

Pérez -- who is currently wearing an ankle bracelet -- is awaiting an appointment with immigration with the hope that officials will accept her political asylum request.

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