Migration Through the Darién Gap:
Teaching Resources

By Elizabeth Hertzler-McCain

Immigration policy has been a point of contention in U.S. politics for centuries. Throughout the last few election cycles, the immigration debate has largely focused on the U.S. - Mexico border. However, in recent years a steadily increasing migrant humanitarian crisis has grown in a border region far south of the U.S. - Mexico border: the Darién Gap, a 60-mile stretch of jungle that connects Panamá and Colombia, bridging the Americas. As the U.S. government closes safer migration routes  such as commercial flights, Central American countries impose visa restrictions, forcing increasingly large numbers of migrants from across the globe to make the journey from South to North America on foot through the particularly dangerous Darién Gap. 

The following resources, suggested reflection questions, and activities are meant to help teachers introduce the Darién Gap crisis to their students within the context of political rhetoric and global migration crises. 

We recommend these resources be used with students who have already learned about the colonization of Latin America, as well as global push factors causing migration, such as climate change, poverty, and violence (and the role of U.S. foreign policy and multinational corporations with all of these factors). If students study the Darién Gap in isolation, it would appear that the biggest dangers are the harsh environmental conditions in the jungle and potential attacks by narcotraffickers. It is important for students to recognize that they would not face those threats if it weren’t for the push factors noted. Unless otherwise stated, the following sources are best for grades 9–12. 

Classroom Resources

Broader Context

The Darién Gap’s Fearsome Reputation Has Been Centuries in the Making (Americas Quarterly) takes a historical look at the Darién region. The article describes the earliest attempts at colonization in the early 1500s, several failed attempts at empire building in the region, the history of the Pan-American Highway, why the Darién region is the only gap in the highway, and the recent ecological and migration crises in the area. This article provides valuable context on the broader history of the region. 

Six graphs and one map, from an article by The New Humanitarian, visually explain the migrant crisis through the Darién Gap. The graphs and the map are all based on 2023 data. While this data does not perfectly capture the current situation in the Darién Gap, this is the most recent data available that covers a year-long period. The graphs and map would be excellent visual aids to include in an introductory slide presentation about the migrant crisis in the Darién Gap. Importantly, one of the graphs highlights the migrants' country of origin showing the global origins of many migrants, helping to undo misconceptions that the migrants passing through the Darién Gap are only South American.

Videos

Migrants and the Darién Gap (DW) shows footage of passage through the Darién Gap while interviewing migrants.  This video highlights the dangers and the hidden costs of passage. 12 minutes.

The Darién Gap: “The Most Dangerous Place I’ve Seen” (Doctors Without Borders) highlights the testimony of migrants who survived the Darién Gap. This video does not contain footage of anyone passing through the Darién Gap and does not ask why migrants made the journey. 4 minutes.

Podcasts

The Take: Inside the journey across the Darién Gap (Al Jazeera) interviews John Holman, a correspondent for Al Jazeera who recently traveled through the Darién Gap to create a documentary about a Venezuelan family’s migration journey. The podcast episode uses audio clips from the documentary to highlight the family’s own voices in narrating their reasons for migrating and the toll the journey takes on the family. The podcast addresses policy changes that push people to use Darién Gap instead of taking planes, it explains the uniquely large numbers of children crossing the Darién, and it explores the trauma of children getting separated from parents, as well as the environmental challenges and dangers of the route. 23 minutes.

Content warning: The episode contains graphic but brief descriptions of domestic violence at the beginning of the episode, discusses the threat of rape, and mentions seeing dead bodies. For older students, this episode could still be a valuable learning tool.

Migrant Narratives

"I wouldn't wish it on anyone": A migrants' journey through the Darién gap. The story of Keiber Bastidas, a man from Venezuela, traveling through the Darién Gap with his wife and children. The narrative mentions migration push factors of an unstable economy and inability to find work. 

“We are tired and desperate”: Stories from families who survived the Darién Gap - Panamá (ReliefWeb) Narratives from two families who crossed the Darién Gap. The first describes discrimination faced as Venezuelans in Colombia and the subsequent decision to cross the gap on foot. 

Content Warning: The second narrative in this article describes sexual assault and attempted rape in some detail. If using this source, it may be better to excerpt only the first narrative and not include the second. 

Non-Migrant Experiences

How migration transformed an Indigenous town in Panamá’s Darién Gap (Al Jazeera) explains how migration through the Darién Gap has changed the lives and livelihoods of the indigenous people of Bajo Chiquito, the last town many migrants stop at before leaving Colombia and entering the Darién Gap. The article discusses the environmental, economic, and cultural impacts of migration on the Emberá-Wounaan people who’ve lived in the region since before colonization. Reading this article with students could be particularly useful in helping to dispel myths about the Darién Gap that paint it as uninhabited wilderness. Indigenous people have lived in the Darién Gap since time immemorial. 

Insight: For migrants, the Darién Gap is hell; for adventure tourists, it's a magnet (Reuters) highlights the contrast between the humanitarian crisis taking place with migrants crossing the Darién Gap from the Caribbean side to the curated experiences of adventure tourists who explore the  Darién jungle for pleasure, typically from the Pacific coast.

Teacher Learning Resources

All the sources listed above for classroom use are great options for teachers to acquaint themselves with the crisis in the Darién Gap. The following resources provide additional information about the crisis; however, they may be too advanced in reading level or contain content that is too graphic for students. 

Additional Context

Neglected in the Jungle, a report from Human Rights Watch, contains a summary of the crisis and highlights key recommendations for Panamanian and Colombian governments. The full report in PDF form is 110 pages; however, skimming the report can provide teachers with important context about how governments/organizations are failing to address the migrant crisis and the suggested recommendations for improving conditions in the Darién Gap. The report also includes some good graphs/maps/photos that could be used in slide presentations. 

How the Treacherous Darién Gap Became a Migration Crossroads of the Americas (Human Rights Watch) provides more detailed context about the development of the crisis in the Darién Gap, the current situation, the global origins of migrants, services in Panamá, the feasibility of closing the gap and the impacts of doing so. If teachers decide to make a slideshow using the six graphs and one map from The New Humanitarian, this article, particularly the sub-heading “evolving trends” could help source the text that would accompany the graphs and maps on the slides. Additionally, information found throughout the article could help teachers answer a wide variety of potential student questions. 

Documentary

Children of the Darién Gap (Al Jazeera) follows the story of a family from Venezuela traveling through the Darién Gap. This documentary goes into more detail of the story that is discussed in The Take podcast that is linked in the classroom resource section. This source is excellent; however, it is likely not suitable for use with students because it can elicit strong emotions from viewers, goes into more detail about family-based violence and the threat of rape, and shows footage of human remains at some points. 25 minutes.

Suggested Reflection Questions

The following questions can be used as journaling or discussion prompts after reading/watching/listening to the above resources. Every resource does not contain the answer to every question. Therefore, select the questions that best align with your selected resources or write your own reflection questions. 

1. Why does the Darién Gap have the word “gap” in its name? 

2. What threats/dangers of crossing the gap does this source focus on? What threats or dangers to migrants are not being mentioned in this source?

3. Why did the Darién Gap become such a highly trafficked migration route?

4. Does this source mostly focus on push or pull factors for migration? Does it focus on both?

5. How does migrant traffic through the Darién Gap impact the Indigenous people living there? 

6. The journey through the Darién Gap is incredibly dangerous, and for many people, it’s only the first step in a long journey towards the U.S.A. What would it take for you to attempt to migrate through the Darién Gap? 

7. What actions could you take, as a class or as an individual, to help address the crisis in the Darién Gap?

Suggested Activities

Predicting Policy Impacts on the Darién Gap Crisis

After reviewing some of the resources explaining the humanitarian migration crisis in the Darién Gap, ask students to read a recent piece of immigration policy and answer the question:  “Do you think this policy will address, exacerbate, or have no impact on this crisis?” For policy changes from the U.S. government, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services News Page should have announcements of changes in U.S. immigration policy for use in this activity. If using the USCIS as a source, make sure to remind students of the inherent bias in favor of U.S. policies.  

For example, in July of 2024, Panamá and the U.S. announced that the United States would pay for flights to send migrants who illegally cross into Panamá through the Darién Gap back to their country of origin. After reviewing any of the above materials about the crisis in the Darién Gap, have students read this news article explaining the policy change and ask them to answer how they think the policy change will impact the crisis in the Darién Gap. 

Brainstorming and Assessing Recommendations to Address the Crisis

The Human Rights Watch Report “Neglected in the Jungle” contains a summary which explains the humanitarian crisis in the Darién Gap and details how the governments of Panamá and Colombia, as well as international organizations, are failing to address the crisis.

Have students read an excerpt of the opening summary of the report (paragraphs 5-11).

Organize students into groups, a group for the Colombian government, the Panamanian government, the U.S. government, and international human rights organizations. Instruct each group to develop a list of 5-10 recommendations for their assigned country/organization based on the report excerpt. Each group will then briefly share their recommendations with the class. 

Then have students return to their groups and instruct them to read the key recommendations for their assigned group as outlined in the Human Rights Watch Report. Students will compare their recommendations to the report’s recommendations. Ask students to explain (journal reflection, exit ticket. . . . ) the biggest differences between their recommendations and the report’s recommendations and why or why not they agree with the Human Rights Watch report recommendations as a solution to decrease the crisis.