Migrant Mass Drowning in Texas Spurs Calls for Immigration Reform
Advocates on Saturday urged Congress to pass immigration reforms after at least nine migrants drowned while attempting to cross the swollen Rio Grande from Mexico into Texas earlier this week.
According to reports, 37 migrants were rescued while trying to ford the surging river near Eagle Pass on Thursday, while eight other people are missing. U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) spokesperson Rick Pauza said in a statement that federal and local authorities continue to search for possible survivors.
CBP said that U.S. authorities arrested 53 migrants at the scene, while their Mexican counterparts apprehended 39 others.
“My heart goes out to the families that have lost loved ones during their tragic journey to the U.S.,” tweeted Rep. Jesús “Chuy” Garcia (D-Ill.) in response to the drownings. “This is an unfortunate reminder that we must prioritize our immigration laws along with the socio-economic policies that fuel displacement and migration.”
Ieva Jusionyte, a professor of international security and anthropology at Brown University’s Watson Institute, wrote that “our border policies continue to kill.”
“Hardened borders are deadly,” concurred Ruthie Epstein, a former deputy director of immigration policy at the ACLU.
The National Immigration Forum, a Washington, D.C.-based advocacy group, tweeted, “This heartbreaking tragedy highlights once again the need for Congress to act and pass immigration reforms.”
“Congress must act quickly to pass solutions that bring compassion and security to our border, in the names of human lives and human dignity,” the group added.
Recently, two boys, one 3 years old and the other 3 months old, slipped from the grasp of an uncle as they were attempting to cross. The older boy drowned, and the locals took the infant to a San Antonio hospital in critical condition.
According to the Reuters report, there have been more than 1,000 border fatalities during Biden’s tenure, both on land and in the river.
Originally published at Commondreams.org.
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