Thread by @RAICESTEXAS

It’s raining in Piedras Negras, the Mexican border town where 2K migrants are held in an abandoned factory.

They’re the first of the most recent caravan to arrive at the border.

Hundreds of cops & soldiers surround them, armed w/kevlar, riot gear, & truck-mounted machine guns.

They were bussed here by the Mexican gov. & initially locked in, unable to exit until they got humanitarian visas.

Most are men, but about half are women & children.

We don't know how many of the children are unaccompanied. You can't tell much from one side of the fence.

They’re in an industrial area, a maquiladora 2.5 miles from the border. It used to make body bags for the US army.

Latest reporting shows just 246 have gotten visas letting them enter/exit shelter.

They’ve been there about a week already.
vanguardia.com.mx/articulo/niega…

We’ve seen many freely entering & exiting shelter to buy food & supplies—there seems to be relative freedom of movement for those w/the visas.

But we don’t know how many are confined inside & in what conditions, b/c the gov. isn’t letting press or orgs like ours enter.

Someone inside said it was like a prison. They felt tricked when gov. bussed them here w/out telling them situation. They just want to apply for asylum at the border.

Saddest thing: If they apply, they'll be forced to remain in Mexico under Trump's new plan. Many don't know.

All they want, as another said, is a chance to seek refuge according to the laws of the United States.

Trump’s response? He hosted a rally in El Paso for his border wall & sent 250 troops to Eagle Pass, Texas, directly across the border from the shelter.

nbcnews.com/politics/immig…

Some who have grown desperate have tried swimming across the river before being rescued by the Red Cross or Grupo Beta.

If they're caught crossing on their own, their visas are revoked & they're automatically deported by Mexico.

univision.com/noticias/inmig…

These are predictable outcomes of US policy meant to dissuade asylum-seekers—& it’s working.

We saw a big group volunteering to self-deport back home.

They were mostly women & children.

We're turning away desperate people to appease fearmongering coming from the White House.

Piedras Negras, like other border towns, is facing consequences of our long asylum lines & remain in Mexico policy.

The port of entry only allows 12-15 cases a day.

At that rate, it’d take more than 130 days for everyone in this group, to say nothing of others.

Piedras Negras isn’t set up to handle the influx. There's one shelter in town. It has about 80 beds.

There aren't strong immigrant support groups.

The town’s pop. is divided. Its mayor wants to control the migrants' movement & when they seek asylum. razon.com.mx/mexico/alcalde…

This will keep happening so long as we seek to deter immigrants instead of address the humanitarian needs of those coming to us in their darkest hour.

By shutting people out, we are exporting our responsibilities to those less equipped to handle them.

This cannot stand.