You might think a town that is almost 90 percent Latino would be fighting to keep an old immigration detention center closed. But many are desperate for it to reopen. The story of Raymondville, Texas, shows that life near the border is more complicated than outsiders might think.
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Delays in reunifying separated families underscore the chaos in the immigration system and the hardened stance that migrant advocates now face. Immigration courts are becoming more adversarial as a result.
Read moreImmigration court judges have a bench-side view of the stresses already placed on the system. The Monitor’s Texas bureau chief interviewed former and current judges about the effects of the Trump administration’s changes.
Read moreLiving on the border means living with things most Americans don’t, and to live with them without batting an eye. Recently, though, those tensions of border life feel as if they’ve been dialed to 11 – and even a beloved sports event isn’t providing a respite.
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The changes at the border notwithstanding, advocates for migrants and asylum-seekers see no let-up in the demand to enter the United States. Almost all the migrants are coming from the “Northern Triangle” of Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala – where murder rates exceed even those in active war zones – and are unlikely to be deterred by months in immigrant detention or long waits on bridges over the Rio Grande, the advocates say.
Read moreFederal immigration agencies have identified them as ‘sensitive locations’ – places to avoid making arrests. After a 10-year-old immigrant was detained at a Texas hospital, however, officials are wondering if formal legal defenses are needed. Rosa Maria Hernandez was released Friday evening.
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Immigrants fighting deportation can be detained for more than a year without a judge’s approval. The Supreme Court will consider if that is constitutional at a time when Donald Trump could increase deportations.
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