ICE began dumping refugees they have collected in recent days and/or weeks at the El Paso Greyhound bus station beginning Sunday, December 23rd. Per the El Paso Times, the move surprised everyone and immediately overwhelmed private organizations required to pick up the broken pieces the hastily created shutdown of government caused.
Annunciation House, the NGO taking on the most up-front, has been trying to secure housing, food and transportation to as many as possible. Yesterday, volunteers gathered to pass out sack lunches, chicken and rice, pizza and finally, hamburgers, as efforts were being made to care for the lack of responsibility ICE had dumped upon the community.
Donations to Annunciation House will allow more to be done while the unnecessary tragedy unfolds. Catholic Charities have been doing a large amount of help also, as well as private citizens responding to malice upon a high holy Christian holiday.
The level of blatant disregard for the lives of others is especially hurtful because of the desires of a religious group to honor that of giving, the poor dear pResident sits alone in his empty house to reflect upon his damned soul. And from that reflection comes more hatred. This not the nation in which I was raised. Time to take our country back (still). We have a lot of work to do to repair this mess. Let us rise to the task.
Update: 3:22 PM EST — Article by Newsweek states:
“The practice is routine, as ICE processes those crossing the border to seek asylum and outfits them with an ankle bracelet and court date before releasing them at the bus station. This time, however, the number of immigrants being released is unusually great, and likely because of the government shutdown, they were dropped off without warning.”
By Nicole Goodkind On 12/24/18 at 4:46 PM
Update #2 : 4:52 PM EST
So far in our story, ICE has dumped hundreds of previously captured people and set them off on their own at the El Paso, TX Greyhound Bus Terminal. That occurred on Sunday, December 23rd with subsequent people abandoned there on Monday. This is not truly newsworthy as it has happened before except…
Those released over the 2018 Christmas Holiday were unprocessed without being tied into surveillance and tracking bracelets. Additionally, the abdication of legal responsibility ended without court involvement. In short, panic caused the dumping of people so they have no process in the ICE system when it is not funded.
Think about this for a second. The ICE system (in addition to the entire US government) is shut down due to tRump throwing a Fox-induced temper tantrum. Without heavy funding, this shit-storm in a teapot goes nowhere. Maybe a good source of non-funding.
And here is the big lesson — Republicans attempted and actually did destroy parts of our country by “defunding something to death”. Whenever some social program got within their grasp to control, they tried to kill it through strangling the effectiveness out of it. And, in this case regarding ICE, maybe the GOP did us all a favor by strangling their own pet project out of existence because of cutting the money.
Ironic, huh!?
The GOP has been siphoning money out of government for decades. How about we decide that is no longer acceptable. Because it isn't.
Defunding ICE is a start. Next, defund the campaign coffers of those who abdicated responsibility to the country, constitution and citizenry. Oh, and change laws allowing Citizens United corruption. Just sayin’.