Borderland Organizations Mourn, Denounce Preventable Migrant Deaths
For Immediate Release: June 29, 2022
Recent Tragedies Show Need to Move Away from Migrant Deterrence, Death, at U.S.-Mexico Border
The Borderland Immigration Council mourns the loss of the 51 migrant lives in San Antonio, those who have drowned in the rivers and canals around El Paso, and all those who have faced injury or death as they have sought to make a better life in the U.S. We stand in solidarity and grief with those affected and offer our condolences to their families and loved ones.
These deaths are the result of cruel policies of deterrence, like Remain in Mexico (also known as the Migrant Protection Protocol) and Title 42, that leave people fleeing for their lives without a safe, orderly way to come to the U.S. These deaths are the result of border policies that have become needlessly callous and hardened in the face of human suffering. None of these deaths had to happen; they are lamentable, shameful, and unacceptable. Continuing current border strategies guarantees future deaths to come.
Instead, we can build a border of true safety, opportunity, order, and hope. We must reopen pathways to claim asylum; doing so will disempower bad actors and demonstrate our commitment to a humane immigration process. We must invest in the infrastructure to process migrants at ports-of-entry; doing so will foster safe and orderly entry into the U.S. By taking these steps, rather than doubling down on the failures of Title 42 and MPP, we can uplift humanity over death, order over chaos, our laws over our fears.
As residents of border communities we are committed to doing this work, to building a border of welcome, dignity, and hope. We ask that the Biden Administration, Congress, Governor Abbott, and all Americans join us in this effort.
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About BIC: Founded in 2016, the Borderlands Immigration Council is a binational coalition of immigration attorneys and community advocates in the El Paso-Ciudad Juarez-Las Cruces region seeking justice, fairness, and transparency in the immigration system.