On August 24, 23-year-old Brazilian Kesley Bill died in the custody of ICE (Immigration police agency). He was arrested in El Paso, Texas, after crossing the Mexican desert to meet with his mother, who lives in the U.S. Kesley’s story is just another one amid many cases that make up the most severe humanitarian crisis in The United States’ history.
This month, the White House again warned of an imminent border-collapse and publicly pressed authorities to speed up the deportations of migrants who are detained. The main argument is the lack of infrastructure and overcrowding of immigration detention centers. In many of these centers, there are several reports of maltreatment and inadequate food and hygienic material.
The expectation is that in the coming weeks, many immigrants will be deported, and Congress will approve new border control and repression laws.
“The crisis caused by the situation at the border is political and has been reflected in the difficulty of the current administration in passing several pro-immigration laws. If, on the one hand, Democrats believe that more lenient rules should be applied to immigrants, on the other hand, Republicans believe that stricter measures need to be implemented to guarantee security at the borders. Even Biden’s proposal to allow the legalization of nearly 11 million undocumented immigrants was almost vetoed. Meanwhile, the situation at the border is getting worse,” said U.S. Immigration attorney Marcelo Gondim.
The migration movement toward the U.S. continues to increase dramatically. Since 2021, approximately 200,000 people have been trying to enter the country illegally every month. There are already more than 2 million arrests at the border in 2022, with 268,000 people deported to their home countries or removed to Mexico.
“Many people seek to enter the U.S. through the so-called Cai-Cai scheme, which consists of crossing through Mexico, usually with the help of a coyote, and voluntarily surrendering to the U.S. authorities while applying for an asylum process in the country. This is an unsafe practice, whether because of the difficulties of the desert, the possibility of being deceived by the coyote or the punishments that the person may suffer from the American government, including imprisonment and permanent deportation. Unfortunately, many groups on WhatsApp and social networks spread fake news and encourage the illegal practice of the Cai-Cai scheme,” – Gondim said.
The population of Brazilians arrested at the border and deported back to Brazil has never been more prominent than in 2022. In July this year, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency reported that more than 2,200 Brazilians were deported. About 2 to 3 flights arrive every week in Brazil, bringing undocumented immigrants from America.
“The saddest thing is to know that many of these Brazilians arrested and deported have professional and academic profiles that could legally qualify them for a green card. Disinformation is the worst enemy of Brazilians who dream of living in the United States,” – said Marcelo, the founder of Gondim Law Corp., an immigration law firm in Los Angeles serving thousands of clients in their immigration processes to the U.S.