Ending Trump-era Title 42 won't mean Mexico border will be open: US

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
6 May 09:27

This comes after Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas' visit to the Texas border town of Brownsville.

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building in Washington, US, on April 25, 2023 (Reuters)

The Biden administration relayed on Friday that although the Trump-era restrictions, namely Title 42, will be lifted, that does not insinuate that the US-Mexico border will be open.

This comes after the visit to the Texas border town of Brownsville by Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas who said that safeguards were set along the border to prevent the "uncontrolled inflow" of migrants when lifted.

Mayorkas asserted that legal procedures are being established for those who want to reach the US safely, but consequences were also set for those who attempt to enter "irregularly". Title 42 is a Trump-implemented policy that allows the United States to immediately deport migrants that are seeking asylum directly after they cross into the country.

"The message is very clear. We are coming with the relief that our laws provide to the individuals in need. The border is not open, it has not been open and it will not be open into May 11," Mayorkas said.

Republicans have been pressuring US President Joe Biden, claiming that Latinos are flooding the nation and that it will worsen when Title 42 expires. Republicans were even demanding back in December that Mayorkas be impeached for his "failure" of a border policy under Biden. The end of Title 42 would bring "total chaos," argued Republican Texas Governor Greg Abbott, one of the most staunch anti-immigration politicians in the nation.

'America is under siege'

Senator Lindsey Graham expressed this week that "May 11 is a nightmare day for the American people, particularly people in New Mexico and Texas."

"In the next 90 days, you're going to (see) from 900,000 to 1.1 million" migrants crossing the border, Graham expected, adding, "America is under siege here."

In March, according to figures from US Customs and Border Protection (CBP), 192,000 "encounters" with migrants at the border were recorded.

On Tuesday, the Biden administration announced the mobilization of 1,500 troops to control the border situation alongside the 2,500 already in place.

According to CBP, during the fiscal year of 2022, more than 2 million illegal crossings into the US were recorded.

US CBP agents are notorious for the abuse and mistreatment of both migrants and the procedures of keeping them safe, as they flee dangerous regions to find security. Human Rights Watch found last year in October shocking cases of sexual and physical abuse of asylum seekers at the southern US border by federal authorities, following a years-long struggle to extract evidence from the Department of Homeland Security. The abuses range from juvenile sexual abuse to forced starvation, rape threats, and harsh incarceration circumstances.