Thread by @elizTrovall

A thread 🧵 on what I heard and saw in #DelRioTexas and Acuña, where thousands of #Haitians and other migrants are hoping to get their shot at a life of safety and economic security in the US:

Babies crying — a lot of ppl at the border camp are families w young children. A volunteer who runs a respite center said she’s seen many pregnant women as well. Some w medical emergencies have been taken to the hospital. (sound up)

Yes, the camp is totally overwhelmed. It’s so many ppl. But there’s still a sense of order and community. Ppl have constructed tents from carrizo cane. Women braid each other’s hair.

At a shallow part of the river, migrants travel back and forth from the enclosed US camp to Mex. On the Mexico side (Acuña) ppl travel more freely. In the AM I saw ppl bringing back water bottles and noodle cups from Mexico to take back to the camp.

This view is from Acuña:

I was surprised to be able to communicate w many folks in Spanish. Either they picked it up during the journey (!) or they learned it bc they have lived in Chile or another part of Latin America prior to coming to the US.

The ppl I spoke with want to immigrate to the US to find jobs and work hard. They’ve seen family or friends do it. Many tried to do it in another country first, but ultimately couldn’t make it work.

Since ppl often use militarized language to talk about the border, I also want to note that I didn’t feel unsafe whatsoever at the river/border on either side. I didn’t witness violence or ppl w weapons (except Mexican and US law enforcement).