As per multiple people who were present, dozens of immigrant activists virtually walked out on senior Biden officials during Saturday. This happened over the outrage about the government’s choice to retain border measures adopted during the Trump administration.
People are Done with Biden’s Inaction
Well before the start of a teleconference meeting with numerous Biden authorities, (including personnel from the Homeland Security Department and Esther Olavarria of the U.S. Government Domestic Policy Council), campaigners requested time.
The activists delivered a declaration, accusing the government of “playing politics with people’s existence” and saying they couldn’t “enter into discussions in good conscience” anymore.
“We have tragically reached a defining moment,” they said, before exiting the video call with the majority of the supporters.
There’s a jobs crisis.
There’s an inflation crisis.
There’s a hostage crisis.
There’s a border crisis.
There's a COVID crisis.
THIS IS CNN… pic.twitter.com/32L0SDcJn4
— Benny (@bennyjohnson) October 11, 2021
“I can’t take another session of them lying,” said Ariana Saludares, a 40-year-old activist from Colores United in New Mexico, who’d been present at the meeting.
“From the outside, they praise us, but inside, we’re having to remove the metaphorical blades from our backs.” The government’s plans to re-establish Migrant Protection Protocols triggered the discussion and eventual walkout.
The administration stated Friday, starting next month, it will restart the process of requiring immigrants at the Mexico border to wait in Mexico for their refugee hearings. This came after a judge rejected Biden’s original attempt to terminate the Trump-era practice.
“The Biden government is very clear MPP is not an immigration system we agree with or endorse,” a White House official informed Politico. “That’s why, as soon as the judge’s order was issued, the Department of Homeland Security filed an appeal.”
Meanwhile, the official stated they have to follow the law; DHS also stated they will publish a fresh termination notice to remove MPP. “We are tremendously grateful and blessed by the work immigrant advocates and groups undertake around the clock to enhance our immigration process,” the source continued.
They are Incompetent
“Border czar Kamala Harris skipped a high-level meeting with Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador Friday to discuss the migrant crisis at the US's southern border – to visit a daycare center in New Jersey instead.”https://t.co/jAlnVNcNaG
— Bill Melugin (@BillFOXLA) October 9, 2021
The expansion of the “Remain in Mexico” rule was the impetus for Saturday’s conflagration; however, proponents acknowledged it was not the only reason. Tensions between the Biden government and migration supporters have been building for years, but they have just recently surfaced.
Advocates speaking with Biden executives on a regular basis for the past year are becoming firmly confident the administration’s actions are mostly based on politics. They also believe senior White House officials perceive the borders as a highly harmful issue for Democrats.
“I believe they’re terrified of the response from anti-immigrant organizations. We’ll keep reminding them that reaction will occur regardless of what they are doing,” said Luis Guerra, a 32-year-old Christian Legal Immigrant Network proper strategic director who stormed out of the conference Saturday.
“We don’t think they’re genuinely doing everything they can in their ability to restore refuge at the frontier the way they say they’re attempting to.”
