As regular readers only too well know, we have been covering all this for over a decade. And here, Democrats should shoulder some blame -- but the culture of blatant lawlessness at the border, by federal agents was really created under Tangerine. And it largely persists.
Even so, no matter who is next in the White House -- this is wrong. It violates our laws, and our international treaties -- on the treatment of putative asylum-seekers. Especially as to children. The wholesale (and unchecked) violence has mostly ended -- as has the shocking refusal to provide soap and blankets and toothbrushes -- but at the temporary staging areas, like Whiskey 8, below -- very disturbing conditions persist, in the hot Southern California summer months. See below.
We must do more -- once Kamala is in charge, after November. [Sadly, it is unrealistic to expect Mr. Biden will do much of anything, now.]
Here is the full sworn statement -- and a bit of it:
. . .Beginning on August 1, 2024, the water tank at Whiskey 8 toppled over when the base it rested on was crushed from the water tank’s weight, rendering it unusable. On approximately September 10, 2024, service workers replaced the water tank, but they did not repair or replace its base. On the evening of September 29, 2024, I noted that the water tank hoses were disconnected, and the tank has not been replaced and its base has yet to be replaced or repaired. When the water tank was operational, Border Patrol did not provide any drinking cups. Upon information and belief, the only water available to noncitizens detained at Whiskey 8 since August 1, 2024, was provided by volunteers, except for the short period in September 2024 when the water tank was replaced, but Border Patrol also did not provide water cups then. During the entire month of September 2024, I never once saw any person at Whiskey 8 drink water obtained from the water tank.
There is no shade or shelter at Whiskey 8 except for a small tarp attached to the border wall which has since been removed. Border Patrol did not provide this tarp. This small tarp is pictured on page 9 of the CBP Juvenile Coordinator’s September 6, 2024, Interim Report as Photograph 6 [Doc. # 1466-1].
Over the summer, temperatures at Whiskey 8 ranged from 75 to 90 degrees during the day. I often saw people, including children, trying to take cover from the sun in a 1-foot space between the secondary border wall and the base of the water tank. People also attempted to take cover under the small tarp that was attached to the border wall. I witnessed the parents crowding the children under the limited shade from the tarp. . . .
[For example, on September 15, 2024] between 7:15 p.m. and 3 a.m., at least three other groups of noncitizens arrived. At approximately 3 a.m. on September 16, 2024 -- over seven hours after the group first arrived at Whiskey 8—Border Patrol agents arrived to prepare approximately 39 people for transport. During the time between 7:15 p.m. and 3 a.m., Border Patrol drove by several times. On two separate times, Border Patrol parked with lights dimmed over 30 minutes on the road in front of the gate at Whiskey 8, close to the humanitarian aid station. At about 1 a.m., a Border Patrol agent instructed everyone to sit by the border wall, west of the gate, to wait for transport, which did not take place until 3 a.m. . . . During the time these groups waited at Whiskey 8, Border Patrol agents did not provide water, food, or shade. It is not their practice to provide any of these items while noncitizen children and adults are waiting to be transported. The only water and food provided to the people detained at Whiskey 8 was from volunteers. . . .
To be certain, things have greatly improved since Tangerine lost in 2020. But there is much more work to do. And there is so much lying going on in MAGA/GOP circles, about what is actually going on -- the task of righting it will be. . . monumental. But we will move forward resolutely, next term. We will make it better -- and more humane. That much is certain, under a Harris Administration. Out.
नमस्ते
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