Following a Customs and Border Protection raid that resulted in the arrests of several undocumented immigrants, a lifesaving medical camp along the U.S./Mexico border said it “can no longer guarantee a temporary shelter for migrants” and is being forced to turn people in crisis away. Earlier this month, Border Patrol agents allegedly violated an Obama-era agreement to not enter the No More Deaths humanitarian camp, which provides lifesaving aid to immigrants who have crossed the searing Sonoran Desert. The ensuing raid resembled a war movie:
The arrests came during a heat wave and after several days of heightened surveillance of the camp, which is run by No More Deaths. In a tweet Thursday evening, the organization said “30 armed agents entered camp w at least 15 trucks, 2 quads and helicopter to apprehend four patients receiving care.” Tucson.com first reported on the arrests Thursday evening.
For nearly a decade No More Deaths was able to operate without much disturbance from Border Patrol, medically assisting immigrants in crisis due to temperatures that can go anywhere from 110 degrees and up. From 2001 to 2014, an estimated 2,100 immigrants died in the desert, with workers finding 13 bodies in the past few weeks alone, according to NPR. But following the ramping up of Donald Trump’s deportation force, camp workers feel they can no longer safely work without endangering themselves and patients. "There's an entire desert to do law enforcement,” said Geena Jackson, an EMT who volunteered with the group. “Why are you targeting humanitarian aid?"
The big question is whether this was an isolated incident, a chance for the Border Patrol to nab some drug smugglers, or something bigger, part of a shift toward targeting aid groups that help migrants who slip into the country unlawfully.
There's "a lot of speculation" on what President Trump and his administration might do at the border, said Agent Daniel Hernandez of the Border Patrol's Tucson sector. But, he says, his agency is just doing its job as usual. "We're a law enforcement agency. No matter who the president is, we enforce the laws that are in the books."
And choosing to violate an agreement to not raid a medical humanitarian camp whose sole purpose is to help undocumented immigrants on the brink of death. Despite Border Patrol’s claim that their immigration enforcement actions are non-partisan, what a coincidence that Border Patrol decided to enter No More Deaths now that an anti-immigrant authoritarian is in office. Make no mistake, Border Patrol’s actions will only lead to deadly consequences for immigrants. "Our clinic space being compromised will directly lead to more suffering and more death in this desert," said Jackson.