In the peaceful town of Todos Santos, migration has become a rite of passage.

TODOS SANTOS CUCHUMAT?N, DEPARTMENT OF HUEHUETENANGO -- TUESDAY, JUNE 25, 2019: A dog walks by a home decorated with the American flag painted on its walls, near Todos Santos Cuchumat?n, Guatemala, on June 25, 2019. (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)

A dog walks by a home decorated with the American flag painted on its walls, near Todos Santos Cuchumatán, Guatemala. (Marcus Yam/Los Angeles Times)

By Marcus YamForeign Correspondent and Photographer

July 21, 2019 2:37 PM PT

It seems everybody has a close relative in the United States. The exodus is driven by economics.

Keili Chales, 4, plays with her siblings at home near Todos Santos Cuchumatán, Guatemala. (Marcus Yam/Los Angeles Times)

Jose Lucas, 57, stands with his motorcycle outside a construction site for a home in Todos Santos. (Marcus Yam/Los Angeles Times)

Many homes are built with money sent back by immigrants who moved abroad to work. (Marcus Yam/Los Angeles Times)

Claudia Perez, 45, prepares food while her son Franklin Isael Chales, 5, plays by the side at their home near Todos Santos. (Marcus Yam/Los Angeles Times)

Franklin Isael Chales, 5, left, looks on as his grandmother Francisca Mendoza, 78, far right, talks about the family’s migration history to the United States, at their home near Todos Santos. (Marcus Yam/Los Angeles Times)

Claudia Perez, 45, and her daughter Keili Chales, 4, stands outside their home in Todos Santos. (Marcus Yam/Los Angeles Times)

Dina Calmo and her son Dairo, 9 months, left, spend time with other local residents after celebrating Corpus Christi, as it makes it way through town Todos Santos. (Marcus Yam/Los Angeles Times)

Residents join in on the procession celebrating Corpus Christi as it makes it way through Todos Santos. (Marcus Yam/Los Angeles Times)

Residents march in procession celebrating Corpus Christi. (Marcus Yam/Los Angeles Times)

Priest Edgar Tarax, center, leads residents in a procession celebrating Corpus Christi in Todos Santos. (Marcus Yam/Los Angeles Times)

Residents pray as the procession celebrating Corpus Christi stops at different points in Todos Santos. (Marcus Yam/Los Angeles Times)

Residents attend Sunday services in Todos Santos. (Marcus Yam/Los Angeles Times)

Local residents join in on the procession celebrating Corpus Christi as it makes it way through town Todos Santos. (Marcus Yam/Los Angeles Times)

A faraway view of the scenic Todos Santos. (Marcus Yam/Los Angeles Times)

People go about their business on a busy street in Todos Santos. (Marcus Yam/Los Angeles Times)

World & Nation

Marcus Yam

Marcus Yam is a foreign correspondent and photographer for the Los Angeles Times. Since joining in 2014, he has covered a wide range of topics including humanitarian issues, social justice, terrorism, foreign conflicts, natural disasters, politics and celebrity portraiture. He won the Pulitzer Prize for breaking news photography in 2022 for images documenting the U.S. departure from Afghanistan that capture the human cost of the historic change in the country. Yam is a two-time recipient of the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Journalism Award, notably in 2019, for his unflinching body of work showing the everyday plight of Gazans during deadly clashes in the Gaza Strip. He has been part of two Pulitzer Prize-winning breaking news teams.

In the peaceful town of Todos Santos, migration has become a rite of passage.

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