By Luke Kyaw and Amy Berberyan
SACRAMENTO, CA – This past week in the small town of Del Rio, Texas, about 14,000 Haitian migrants were forced to live under a bridge, and were chased by the U.S. Border Patrol—using horses, whips and lariats.
The California Legislative Black Caucus (CLBC) released a statement that vehemently condemned the actions of the Border Patrol, likening the events of the horrible scene to “the barbaric and inhumane treatment of Africans brought to this country as slaves.”
These thousands of migrants make up just one portion of a prevailing wave of migrants who are seeking refuge in the U.S. after the Biden administration restored temporary protected status—which former President Trump had previously revoked—back to them.
This mass migration toward the southern border of the United States may be due to a variety of factors and events, including the assassination of Haitian President Jovenal Moise in July of this year as well as a devastating earthquake in August.
Former Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Elizabeth Neuman also attributed the Haitian chaos to the pandemic, stating that “the [Haitian] economy [tremendously] suffered with COVID.”
Jean Baptiste Wilvens, one of the migrants, told ABC news that his pregnant wife and 10-year-old daughter who were staying in the U.S. camp said to him that it was “hell.”
The California Legislative Black Caucus said these dehumanizing actions taken by the Border Patrol “[showed] no compassion” and were reminiscent of those taken by slave masters in America’s past.
The CLBC then called upon President Joe Biden and Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to “investigate and reprimand the Border Patrol Officers” involved in the incident, and also called for the “immediate and expedited acceptance of applications for the Haitian refugees at the border.”
They maintained that all refugees have the right to seek safety within America’s borders.
Gov. Gavin Newsom said he had to “raise his voice in protest of the actions of the Border Patrol and to invite and provide resources for resettlement for the Haitian refugees at the border.”
Furthermore, the CLBC said that “there comes a time when silence is betrayal,” urging immediate action from the Biden Administration.
This Friday, President Biden responded to the incident by censuring the Border Patrol and promising that those responsible would pay for their actions. He called the situation “outrageous” and “beyond an embarrassment.”
Secretary Mayorkas also revealed Friday that there are no longer any immigrants under the Del Rio International Bridge, with several thousand awaiting permission to live in the U.S. and others returning to Haiti and Mexico.
There is no proof that the Border Patrol used whips. It’s time to stop this false narrative.
BP, it’s Ok to make stuff up if your cause is just. That’s from the playbook.
But there was this Biden back in 1994:
Neither party has done a good job on this issue.
I disagree. Democrats have pushed for immigration reform for decades and worked to get compromise legislation approved by Congress. It was blocked by the Republican Speaker of the House. That needs to be restated frequently. This is not a ‘both sides’ issue.
The actual record of the Democrats is bad though. Look at the policies of Obama – yeah he should get credit for trying to get reform passed, but the number of deportations and their condition is still on him.
Just yesterday, Don citied (a poll?) which showed that the majority of Americans support deportation of those trying to enter the country illegally at this point.
Democrats are the ones whose views don’t align with most of the country on this issue.
Efforts to legalize those who enter the country illegally is also not fair to those who try to do so legally.
There are people who do so.
Why do some encourage this unfairness?
On that particular issue Ron perhaps. On the other hand, a majority of Republicans aren’t in favor of a path for citizenship in a host of scenarios whereas Democrats and Independents do.
I don’t believe that any of this has been well-thought out.
If you don’t support illegal immigration, isn’t granting of citizenship (years later) an incentive to continue doing so?
In any case, I believe you might be wrong, in that there are limited groups/instances in which a majority of both parties support a path to citizenship for those already here (as well as legitimate asylum claims).
I agree, it was Biden who made the statement “If Haiti, a god awful thing to say, if Haiti just quietly sunk into the Caribbean” and he’s hardly a Republican.
Obama had a horrible record on immigration. Trump was worse. Biden’s view was from 27 years ago. Hopefully he’s a bit more progressive now. Although so far not impressed.
So the that was then, this is now evasion.
Yes, make excuses for him because he’s a Democrat.
You apparently don’t read very well if that’s your reaction.
The Haitian refugees who were waiting at the border are all gone now. The government has done its job processing or repatriating them.
“At a news conference, Del Rio Mayor Buno Lozano called it “phenomenal news.”
… about 2,000 Haitians have been rapidly expelled on 17 flights since Sunday and more could be expelled in coming days under pandemic powers that deny people the chance to seek asylum.
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said Friday that the U.S. has allowed about 12,400 to enter the country, at least temporarily, while they make claims before an immigration judge to stay in the country under the asylum laws or for some other legal reason. They could ultimately be denied and would be subject to removal.
Mayorkas said nearly 30,000 migrants have been encountered by the Border Patrol in the Del Rio sector since Sept. 9, with the maximum at one time reaching 15,000. He said about 8,000 migrants “have decided to return to Mexico voluntarily,” and about 5,000 are in DHS custody and being processed to determine whether they will be expelled or allowed to press their claim for legal residency.
A U.S. official with direct knowledge of the situation said seven flights were scheduled to Haiti on Friday, six on Saturday and seven on Sunday.”
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/watch-live-mayorkas-joins-white-house-briefing-amid-scrutiny-of-u-s-treatment-of-haitian-migrants
If they even bother to show up for their hearings which we know a huge percentage don’t.
Even the NY Times issued a correction on the BS story they posted about the border guards using whips on immigrants.