What Part of Illegal Don’t You Understand?

The law is meant to serve the people and people are not created to serve the law. This is the belief in Mexico and other Latin American countries. However, we live in the United States. People entering our country need to understand our simple immigration system, laws and policies. Here, we serve the law.

Although you may want to come to the United States because you cannot earn enough to feed your family or because of our boundless opportunities, you must follow the rules. Rule one is that you apply for a visa. You must either have a sponsor (that will support you if necessary) and/or proof of a waiting job. Second, if you have a sponsor and/or proof of a waiting job, you will wait for 10 years for your visa. Although you may have a child in the United States, you will still wait 10 years for a visa.

People may or may not be aware of the hopelessness of waiting for a visa, but they are aware of other facts.

·       There are at least 11.9 million people living in the USA without authorization. They are often referred to as illegals.

·       Many have lived in the USA for a decade or more. Their children attend school. Some have purchased homes.

·       Millions of these people file Federal income tax returns using a special identification number provided by the federal government.

·       The federal government will not use your income tax information to locate and deport illegals.

·       Many of those filing federal income tax returns receive refunds or ‘earned income’ checks from the federal government.

·       Many purchase cars and trucks that are registered with local state governments

·       Authorities will not question citizenship when these people file police reports, register their children for school or seek hospital care.

·       When sneaking into the United States there are ‘safe places’ where bottled water is left to help you on your journey and the U.S. Border Patrol is prohibited from arresting you at these ‘safe’ stops.

·       Many people that are illegally on U.S. soil are arrested for crimes but not deported.

·       Millions of people that are illegally on U.S. soil are not targeted for deportation because they have children in the United States.

·       Thousands of people illegally in the USA participate in protests to change immigration policies and are not arrested and deported.

·       Thousands attend colleges and do not need to pay non-resident costs that American citizens must pay if they do not legally reside in the state where the college is located.

·       Schools do not require people living in the USA illegally to provide the documents needed for U.S. citizens to register their children for school.

·       Some people are arrested and deported during random sweeps conducted by the Federal Government

·       Some people are sentenced to jail for being on U.S. soil without authorization and then deported.

·       Thousands of people from Latin America are arrested and released when entering the U.S. illegally and given citations ordering them to appear in court. They are allowed to remain in the USA until their case is resolved in court. If they fail to appear, an order for their removal may be issued.

·       Many people are arrested while trying to cross the international bridges to return to Mexico. These arrests bolster the statistics that show the number of arrests by the Border Patrol and our taxes pay for the overnight stay in jail.

A common belief among immigrants is that if you enter the United States and get passed the Border Patrol, you chances of remaining in the U.S. are very good.

I wonder why there might be confusion about the law. Is there any part of our immigration rules that might not make sense? Is there anything in our policies that seem inconsistent with the law? Are we doing anything that could lead people to believe that being on U.S. soil without authorization violates a very important law? Why would any poor person wait for 10-years on a list so that they could enter the USA when we obviously allow people to remain on U.S. soil in violation of our law?

What part of illegal do you not understand?

Angry Questions

Last week a 16 month old child was abandoned at the public hospital. The child was unconscious and suffered severe brain trauma. Bruises and other injuries strongly suggested child abuse. The child was also malnourished.

No hospital in Acuna, a city of 180,000 people, has the medical equipment required to even assess the injuries to this baby, let alone provide treatment.

Paper Houses paid to have the infant transported to a hospital in Piedras Negras, 55 miles away. The child was brain dead. A few days later the child was pronounced physically dead.

Both parents were found and arrested. The mother was released. The father confessed and was charged.

Anger exists on several levels. How can a father, or anyone, beat a 16-month old baby? How can a mother remain while her baby is undernourished? Can anyone believe that this was not a case of on-going abuse?

How can a city of this size not have a fully equipped public hospital? The public hospital does not even have the equipment needed for a routine CAT Scan. There are only two ambulances in the city and they only transport patients to a hospital. Transports from hospital to hospital most often happen in a pick-up truck.

Yet, we must set aside the anger. Many things are not within our control. We must look at the immediate need of the child. Although the chances are slim, the child might survive with proper diagnosis and treatment. We paid for the transportation of the child.

It is far to easy to become angry about the situations in these border cities. The cartels, the silent media, the politicians, rumors, corruption, extortion and the lack of good jobs are all frustrating. Too often anger and frustration become excuses to justify not trying to help the poor. We must redirect our anger into positive action that helps the weakest and the poorest.

One other thought about the abused baby . . . Did the neighbors know? If the neighbors knew, what was their obligation? The people in the Mexican border cities are our neighbors. What do we know about their needs and situations? What is our obligation?

Latin American Children Run to Us

Put aside concerns about immigration and our fear about the changing nation in which we live. On the most basic level, the children from Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras are running in panic and fear. Imagine a child being chased by a rapist. The child runs down the street and wraps her arms around your legs saying, "Please help me. He is after me!" Would we ever push the child away? Would we force the child to return to the rapist?

Some might say this is over dramatic or an over simplification. I believe it distills the situation down to its basic components.

I worked and supervised investigators in the Juvenile Sex Crimes Unit of one of our nation's largest cities. Mandatory training and working with my counterparts in the Adult Sex Crimes Unit taught many truths about victims of sexual assaults. Studies agree that almost half of sexual assault victims do not report their rape. Think about that: almost 50% of sexual assault victims cannot bring themselves to file a report. Now, let's think about a child that may have even been raped by the police or army. Think about the child that their little sister will be raped and killed if they every make a police report. Think about this child being in an interview room with a uniformed Border Patrol Agent who asks why they fled to America.

The cartels and the gangs that serve the cartels use children. Let me be specific. We will call him Juan Pedro and cannot use his real name. Neither can he. At the age of 11 he was told that he was now a member of the Z. He knew of the zetas and knew that he could not say no. A few weeks later he was at the bridge and told to watch for a particular truck. He watched the license plates and saw the truck. He called the phone number that he had been given and reported that the truck arrived in Mexico and was not searched. He had other duties and he did what he was told. Eventually he was picked up by adult members of the cartel and told that today he would prove his loyalty. Failure to prove his loyalty would result in the death of his baby sister. He was given a pistol and ordered to kill his best friend, who was 10 years old. Juan Pedro is now hooding from the Zeta in a shelter, under an assumed name.

We will call the little girl Maria. She was raped at the age of 10 and forded into a house of prostitution. She escaped eight months later and now lives in a shelter under an assumed name.

Neither of these children are our responsibility. The hundreds or thousands of children in similar circumstances are not our responsibility. But if Juan Pedro or Maria ran across our border and into our arms would we really return them to the cartels? Really?

I don't pretend to know the solutions to the complex issues surrounding illegal and legal immigration. But I can't pretend that I don't have any moral responsibilities to many of these children and their families.  I know that I remain accountable to God for whatever and I say, whatever I do, whatever I don't say or don't do.

Shots are occasionally heard and most agree that the shots were a dispute between thugs. However, most days are quiet. The mayoral election is Acuna was quiet and surprising. The PRI lost. Many people say that they accepted the 200 pesos offered by the PRI for their vote, but that they voted their conscience and ousted the PRI.

I know the new first lady (her husband takes office on January 1) because of her generous work and support at the Divine Providence Nursing Home. She's donated substantial amounts of money and a lot of elbow grease to improve the shelter. She is not afraid to get her hands dirty as she helps the poor. She's personally rescued old people that were literally dying on the street.

We've opened  "Sam's Park" and Christine and her husband are pleased. When Sam passed away last year, Christine asked that money be donated to build a playground in the colonias to honor Sam. Donations came flooding in and we now have a new playground in an area where there was nothing for the children of the poor.

Immigrants from Latin America continue to arrive in hope that immigration reform will make it possible for them to qualify for work permits. Most claim to have lived in the USA for many years and hope that they will slip through the system. In the meantime, Acuna has a troubling number of immigrants with no jobs and no food. The immigrant shelter that was designed for 35 people sometimes houses a hundred, with many more sleeping on the streets.

School will open. We need to increase the number of children we feed at the schools. Parents get out of bed at 5 a.m. and go to the schools to prepare the meals. Each is a volunteer, certified and trained by the state to prepare the food. The state sells the ingredients at far below costs. We pick up that cost. There are still too many children going to school that are too hungry to concentrate. We will fix this because we can.

I am walking the dirt roads in tomorrow. Otherwise, I would be bored.

Flood!

Piedras Negras, a city that is less than a mole from Eagle Pass, Texas had torrential rains last weekend. A small AP story appeared in a few news papers.

The rain came during the night and entire houses were filled and covered with water. The city received more rain than they usually get in six months. Picture a card-board house with a tin roof that is completely under-water. Picture a small cinder-block house that is completely underwater.

The downtown area was particularly hard hit, but most of the damage was confined to the rooftops, ceiling, and some low shelves. Downtown has a good drainage system and alarms sound when there is an emergency. Police drive the streets and warn the people in the better parts of town that there is flooding.

In the poor sections of town there are no alarms and no police warnings. Fortunately, the thunder and lightening woke some people and they woke their neighbors. There was only one death. But the damage to the poor was terrible.

From San Antonio, it does not sound like much. They lost their appliances and furniture. However, when standing inside a poor person's home that was hit with this storm, things are different. The couple that worked their entire lives and build a small cinder-block home in this neighborhood should have been a news story. Juan is 78 and physically handicapped (his words - sorry if he offends you). He can not walk without his cane and even then it is a struggle. Juan and his wife worked hard, their entire lives. They set aside a few pesos each week and then purchased a few cinderblocks. Eventually, they purchased cement, doors and windows and they built their own house. As the years passed they purchased a refrigerator, washer and some meager furnishings. Their entire house was covered with water. Marks on the walls show that the interior was filled with water. Every possession is ruined. They are retired and live on $96 a month!

Other homes and families told similar stories. Everyone is thankful that they awoke and ran to higher ground. Everyone that works, is back on the job. However, when the children return from school they come to a house that reeks of the odor of wet cardboard. The smell is nasty.

The people cannot prepare meals. No stoves, no firewood, and many pots, pans and dishes floated away during the storm. Local people organized a partial solution. Volunteers cook meals in huge pots, load them on to pick-ups and deliver them to the poor that are in need. One operation alone, delivers 3000 meals - breakfast, lunch and dinner. The meals are a 'poor person's meal' but the food is nourishing and very much appreciated. Because local merchants discount the food and the cooks and drivers are all volunteers the meals only cost us 10 cents.
That is right, we pay. Paper Houses Across the Border is paying for as many meals as possible.

This weekend millions of us will pay $20 to enjoy a movie and snacks. I can at least send $20 to provide 200 meals to these people.

In anticipation of Immigration Reform

Hundreds of people from deep in the heart of Mexico and from El Salvador, Guatemala and other Latin American countries are in Acuna, Piedras and probably most border cities with the intent of returning to the United States. They hope that they can piece together enough evidence to obtain legal status in the USA. Some told me that they hope to get lost in the huge flow of paper work because they know they do not qualify under the proposed bill.

The Mexican border-cities and towns are also flooded with deported Mexicans. Acuna experienced more than its share of repatriated Mexicans. Under a U.S. program to deter re-entry, our government flied many people that are deported from Arizona, to Del Rio, Texas - where they are dumped into Acuna. The idea is that they probably do not know anyone to help them cross in Acuna and will simply go home. The people that I interviewed said that because they do not know Acuna, they are desperate to return to the United States and will try to cross.

Meanwhile, Acuna has more than its share of strangers wandering its streets. The one migrant shelter in Acuna was built to help as many as 35 people for a few days. Often the numbers are between 50 and 100 people at this lone shelter.

A little discussed fact in all of the immigration reform proposals relates directly to the intent of these Bills. The intent is to resolve the issue of 11.5 million people on U.S. soil without authorization and to prevent more of the same. Nobody proposes what to do with the millions that are on U.S. soil without authorization and who will not qualify for legal status under the proposed legislation. All of the rhetoric about eliminating she shadow society did not result in any proposal that addresses this central issue.

Fences, more Border Patrol Agents and hammering employers may have an impact in the future, but for less taxpayer money the companies doing business with or owning factories in Mexico could be required by U.S. law to pay a living wage. A real living wage would do much more than any fence. It would also discourage companies from outsourcing our jobs. Hmmmm.

Inevitable

It was common to see kids and young adults swimming in the Rio Grande. I recall the first time I saw kids swim within a few feet of the U.S. and then turn around and swim back. “Look” my translator said as he pointed to a camera on the U.S. side of the river. “The kids know that camera is there. Everyone can see it. They know the Border Patrol seems them. They are kids.”

I asked a Border Patrol Agent about people swimming in the river or boating in Lake Amistad, which also separates Mexico from the United States. He said, “Generally, until they touch U.S. soil, we don’t do much with the boats. I mean if it is obvious they are about to stop on our side of the lake, we stop them, but most of the time we wait. As for the river, people have the right to be in the river.”

Sometimes off the cuff remarks from law enforcement officers addresses the practical day to day situations on the ground and may not perfectly reflect the law and official policies. However, what actually happens on the ground is important.

I thought of those kids playing in the Rio Grande when I read in the San Antonio newspaper that a father of three was killed by Border Patrol Agents while the attempted to pick up a swimmer that was likely headed to the USA and not simply playing in the Rio Grande. The story said that a crowd gathered on the Mexican side of the river and were shouting at the officers, “You are drowning him. Stop.” The story also said the people were heckling the officers.

Gunfire erupted. A father of three died in the arms of his 9-year old daughter. The Border Patrol boat sped away. Later, the officers admitted shooting into the crowd and said people were throwing rocks at them. The story raised a few questions in this former law-enforcement officer’s mind.

·         First, would people throw rocks at the boat and risk hitting the Mexican in the water?

·         Second, since the agents felt so threatened that they fled the scene, why did they simply not do so without firing their weapons?

·         Third, if they thought the man was swimming to the USA, why not park their boat near the shoreline? It is likely that the man would have turned around and went back to the Mexican side of the shore.

When the Border Patrol was doubled in size, many people in the Border Patrol acknowledge that the rush to hire agents resulted in people being accepted in the Border Patrol that are not suited to the job. Also, pressure to increase arrests resulted in some over-zealousness on the part of some agents. For example, I’ve witnessed Mexicans being arrested as they tried to cross the International Bridge to return to Mexico. They could have easily been checked for warrants and then be sent on their way. However, they became part of the apprehension statistics. The arresting officers received the same ‘credit’ for these arrests as agents that chased down Mexicans in the desert. An arrest is an arrest.

I recall in 2002 that sailboats in Lake Amistad cruised the border. Thousands of Mexicans walked across the International Bridge, shopped in Del Rio and then returned to Mexico.

I also recall when the Border Patrol instituted the OTM policy. In response to political pressure, the Border Patrol arrested as many Mexicans as possible. The focus on Mexicans was so strong that agents were told not to waste time arresting people on U.S. soil without authorization, other than Mexicans. (OTM stood for other than Mexicans). Unless an illegal alien was from Mexico, Iran and a few other terrorist countries or unless the illegal alien was wanted, the agents were told to give them a citation and to release them.  South American radio, television and news outlets told their audiences, “If you travel to the United States without papers and are stopped by immigration, do not lie and say you are from Mexico. Tell the truth. They are only arresting Mexicans.”

Audiences thought these stories were an elaborate U.S. hoax. People from Latin American would often tell the Border Patrol that they were from Mexico, so they would be deported to a Mexican border city and not sent all the way back home. This way, they could quickly cross the border again.

The very idea that the United States would only issue a citation sounded ludicrous. However, as the policy was confirmed, more unbelievable information came to light. “When an immigration officer catches you, they check the computer to make sure you are not wanted for a crime or on a terrorist watch list. The process can take several hours. They give you a citation that orders you to appear in court, which everyone ignores. Keep that citation! If you are ever stopped by immigration again you can show them your citation. This tells the officers that you’ve already been run through the system and they do not keep you for hours to run you again. It is almost like a Green Card!”

Several Border Patrol Agents confirmed that all of this was true. They all expressed frustration. “We are the pawns. The politicians decide when to ignore Mexicans, when to focus on Mexicans and it makes us sick” said one agent.

Instead of risking the anger of voters by initiating and passing a comprehensive immigration law with a fair temporary work provision, politicians use enforcement as a way of avoiding existing laws and to avoid addressing the issue of illegal immigration. This is not new. It has been going on for more than 50-years.

As the investigation into this most recent death on the border is inevitable. What are not inevitable are changes to border patrol policies and making those policies public. What is not inevitable is a comprehensive immigration law that deals with all issues in a fair way.

After tomorrow there will be more deaths along the border.