Ongoing deportation tragedy

This week DHS began a review of all deportation cases that are in the immigration courts. They have started training their agents and prosecutors to stop deportation of many undocumented people who are not convicted criminals. This new policy was first revealed by the ICE director last June. It applies to undocumented folks like those with family here, young "Dream Act" students and undocumented members of the military, All of those affected will be in a sort of limbo status, but at least they will not be deported.

The initial announcement and subsequent kick-off of the new policy is full of hope. But nobody should think that the tragedy of family separation is already on hold. The deportation buses continue to roll, and parents continue to be separated from their children and other family members.

Last week I was able to make an afternoon and nighttime visit to Nogales, Sonora. We spoke, sometimes at length, with people who had just been deported. A young man who spoke perfect English talked about the only life he has known, here in the US. Another man talked about his family in California and a son who was now also facing deportation. Long after dark, while we were talking at a shelter in the midst of many deportees who had arrived during the last three days, a new group of exhausted women came to the door. (We soon learned that their original homes are about 1,500 miles south of Nogales.) The face of a young mother who had arrived earlier showed panic because she feared losing her children to a foster home.

After the thousands of migrant deaths in the US borderlands, I see nothing more devastating than the still-continuing family separations.

By the way, there seems to be a widespread belief that deportations at Nogales do not take place at night. They do. During the previous night, three deportation buses unloaded their prisoners before 5 a.m. The last report I have is that there are two or three buses every night.

More from me on all of this very soon.