“The last thing we need is further militarization of the border,” said Isabel Garcia, co-chair of the Coalición de Derechos Humanos, a Tucson-based immigrant advocacy group.
José Ignacio Castañeda Perez
Arizona Republic
Local Arizona officials welcomed President Joe Biden’s decision to send 1,500 troops to the U.S.-Mexico border on Tuesday as migrant advocates blasted the move.
Biden’s decision comes days before Title 42, the pandemic-era health rule that’s been used to rapidly expel more than 2 million migrants, is expected to expire. Officials are preparing for an increase in migrant encounters when the restriction lifts May 11 and in the following days.
The troops will do ground detection, data entry, warehouse support and other administrative tasks so that U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials can focus on fieldwork, U.S. Department of Homeland Security officials said.
Migrants and asylum seekers are detained by U.S. Border Patrol agents after crossing at Yuma County, Ariz., on Dec. 8, 2022.
State and local officials of border communities welcomed the move that they say will relieve the strain on Border Patrol and allow agents to better focus on their jobs. Biden’s decision is part of an effort to mitigate overcrowding and facilitate asylum processing at the southern border after Title 42’s expected expiration.
Migrant advocates in Yuma and Tucson, however, condemned the decision to further militarize the border, describing it as a “huge” mistake that will lead to further “death, suffering and destruction.”
“The last thing we need is further militarization of the border,” said Isabel Garcia, co-chair of the Coalición de Derechos Humanos, a Tucson-based immigrant advocacy group.
“I’m outraged that this is the way (Biden) is planning to handle the mass migration flows that we see from areas of the world where people are fleeing really dire situations.”
