Many members of the caravan say that the generosity of Mexican citizens helps them keep moving to their destination, the U.S. border still some 1,500 miles to the north.

For Sister Norma Pimentel, who has worked on the U.S.-Mexico border for decades, migration is not a political issue; it is a human issue.

The monument to the Virgin Mary, which will be surrounded by a meditation garden, was inspired by the Statue of Liberty and commissioned by the San Diego Organizing Project.

Thousands of Central American migrants resumed their slow trek through southern Mexico on Thursday, and activists aiding the group said they were shifting their route toward the Gulf coast, a path closer to the Texas border.

Thousands of U.S. troops to stop an "invasion" of migrants. Tent cities for asylum seekers. An end to the Constitution's guarantee of birthright citizenship.