Ever since President Biden was sworn into office three years ago, the Border Patrol Union, republicans, right-wing media, legacy media and even many democrats jumped on board the "if Title 42 ends, chaos will ensue and Border Patrol will be overwhelmed with illegal crossings!!!" All of these so-called border and immigration experts got it wrong.
I shouldn't say "all" the border and immigration experts got it wrong. I wrote this article in May of 2022 showing how Title 42 was the cause of so many migrants crossing without inspection in
between the ports of entry and overwhelming agents. Customs and Border Protection's (CBP) own data shows how within months of Trump enacting Title 42 in March of 2020, illegal crossings increased. This was because asylum seekers who had been waiting in Mexico under Trump's Migration Protection Protocols (MPP, aka Remain In Mexico) for months were tired of waiting. They also knew this was going to close the asylum processing doors at the ports. Left with no other choice, they were forced to cross illegally.
How did I know this?
I talk to asylum seekers. I have been listening to asylum seekers and migrants for decades. As an agent, I witnessed the beginnings of our deterrence policies that intentionally send migrants to the most dangerous terrains to cross. After I left the agency, I began listening to asylum seekers in the shelters and in Mexico. The vast majority of asylum seekers do NOT want to cross in between the ports in the desolate and dangerous areas. They are aware of how dangerous it is. They would prefer to stand in line at the various ports of entry even if it takes weeks just to have the opportunity to apply legally. Many tell me that they do not wish to break the laws of the United States before asking for asylum as they consider it to be disrespectful.
This is something that none of these so-called experts were doing, and they still are not doing it. The media, whether right-wing, legacy or liberal, rarely speak to migrants or asylum seekers.
Main stream and even many liberal media simply repeats what right-wing media, Border Patrol and its union propaganda mouth-pieces spew. They use right-wing, anti-immigrant photos, videos and talking points consistently and rarely if ever speak to migrants. Additionally, legacy and liberal media do not interview or quote border and immigration experts such as myself or any of the organizations and volunteers who have been working with migrants for generations down here on the southern border. We are painted with the Border Patrol's and right-wing media's broad brush as "open border activists" or "left-wing nut jobs" or "Border Patrol haters," and so, the main stream media is afraid to cover our observations, our opinions and the facts.
So, why did they get it all wrong?
The Border Patrol and its union have a financial and political interest in portraying asylum seekers as dangerous and criminal. I am not talking about drug smugglers or other people who do cross the border with nefarious intentions. I am talking about migrants and asylum seekers. Border Patrol and their union have greatly benefited off the false narrative that "all" people crossing are borders are criminals. They have more than doubled in staff since the days when I wore that uniform. They have immense resources and a never-ending supply of taxpayer dollars. More importantly they have drastically increased their power and authorities because of this false narrative.
The media benefits because the optics of Black and Brown bodies entering the country illegally sells in a country whose denied history consists of enslaving Black people and killing Indigenous Tribes and stealing their lands. Today, politicians on both sides continue to benefit in districts that believe the false narratives about asylum seekers and migrants because it gives them votes and campaign donations. Most leaders at all levels of government actually have no idea what is going on on the border and in immigration. When they do come to our southern border, they only speak and listen to Border Patrol and their union.
This false narrative is so strong that the democrats don't even pay attention to their own statistics that prove otherwise. In June of 2022, Biden quietly began letting Haitians apply at the port of entry. The immediate result was a significant decrease in Haitians entering the country illegally. It was so drastic that the graph literally flatlined:
Now that Title 42 has ended and the illegal crossings have in fact drastically decreased as I and other experts stated they would, all those who made the catastrophe predictions are quiet. Even the verbal diarrhea that flows from the Border Patrol union representatives about it has gone away. For their part, the media has publicly been left scratching their heads. Why have illegal crossings declined after Title 42 by 50-60% they wonder aloud? Nobody knows they exclaim.
The experts I know on the border know why, but few are listening.
This is a discussion that no one is willing to have, but it is an extremely important one that we must have. The disinformation and lies told about asylum seekers and migrants by Fox News and other right-wing media outlets is akin to the disinformation they sowed about the 2020 election. The lies about "the big lie" spread by these outlets helped fuel the insurrection that occurred on January 6th when Trump and his supporters tried to overthrow the presidential election results and thus our government. These are the same outlets pushing the disinformation and lies about migrants, asylum seekers and Title 42.
The Border Patrol and its union are the biggest pushers of "the big lie" and fully support those who led the insurrection. Just look at the union's vice president Art del Cueto's social media page:
So, why are any of you listening and repeating their lies?