Posted on Jul 29, 2019
Opinion | Why American Cruelty Doesn’t Deter Migrants
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We told Hondurans of harsh U.S. asylum policies. They said it was still better than facing poverty and death threats at home.
In response to growing criticism that the state of immigrant detention centers at America’s southern border is inhumane, President Trump this month tweeted a sweeping dictum meant to deter migration from Central America: “If Illegal Immigrants are unhappy with the conditions,” he wrote, “just tell them not to come. All problems solved!”
But the two of us have seen firsthand that merely telling potential asylum seekers of the terrors that may await them in the United States will not work.
This summer, we traveled across Honduras speaking about the asylum laws of the United States. We aimed not to influence decisions about fleeing but rather to inform potential asylum seekers of the legal obstacles they would face, and the rights to which they are entitled, if they chose to make the trip north.
At the beginning of each presentation, we asked attendees to raise their hand if they could name five protected grounds of asylum — race, religion, nationality, political opinion or particular social group — or if they had heard of the new “remain in Mexico” policy. Among all of our audiences — whether at an elite private university in San Pedro Sula, a rural church in the mountains or a firehouse on the coast — no one raised a hand.
In response to growing criticism that the state of immigrant detention centers at America’s southern border is inhumane, President Trump this month tweeted a sweeping dictum meant to deter migration from Central America: “If Illegal Immigrants are unhappy with the conditions,” he wrote, “just tell them not to come. All problems solved!”
But the two of us have seen firsthand that merely telling potential asylum seekers of the terrors that may await them in the United States will not work.
This summer, we traveled across Honduras speaking about the asylum laws of the United States. We aimed not to influence decisions about fleeing but rather to inform potential asylum seekers of the legal obstacles they would face, and the rights to which they are entitled, if they chose to make the trip north.
At the beginning of each presentation, we asked attendees to raise their hand if they could name five protected grounds of asylum — race, religion, nationality, political opinion or particular social group — or if they had heard of the new “remain in Mexico” policy. Among all of our audiences — whether at an elite private university in San Pedro Sula, a rural church in the mountains or a firehouse on the coast — no one raised a hand.
Opinion | Why American Cruelty Doesn’t Deter Migrants
Posted from nytimes.comPosted in these groups: 
Refugees
Immigration
Refugees Immigration
Posted >1 y ago
Responses: 3
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Chip, I think you and I share a genuine concern for those the Bible references as, "strangers"...those who, just like the Israelites, come seeking shelter from foreign lands. Personally, I believe offering immediate aide, asylum, and a path to citizenship, is a fundamental responsibility of the United States...as is interceding on behalf of the international community when threats to peace and freedom abroad cannot be managed by host governments. The very motto of our own Special Forces seems to hint to this; “De oppresso liber”...to free the oppressed. One of our most venerated monuments, the Statue of Liberty, celebrates it. I largely volunteered to go to Afghanistan to defend it.
The problem is this-not everyone coming across the border is a refugee seeking aid, or freedom from oppression. Some are violent criminals and opportunists, coming to our country to take advantage of weak law enforcement policies, tolerant legislation born of political gamesmanship, and "soft" targets offering greater pay-offs than the "prey" on their own turf. Others, may even be terrorists seeking to access their targets free of the increased scrutiny placed on other means of ingress.
When people become scared and angry, they talk in extremities. To my mind, it would be inhumane to shoot anyone coming across the border, indiscriminately, as it would to force thousands of people fleeing violence and poverty to starve, die from exposure, or return to oppressive regimes without help. To help them, while maintaining security...is a challenge.
That's why these centers exist.
Doubtless, they are hard places to be, compared to many others...but I assume still much better than the alternatives. Portraying such places as "concentration camps", or even "prisons" is dangerously inaccurate. Being subjected to the realities of overcrowding, ad hoc preparations, and logistical nightmares isn't "cruelty"...it's a harsh reality created by the risks, and the responsibilities.
The problem is this-not everyone coming across the border is a refugee seeking aid, or freedom from oppression. Some are violent criminals and opportunists, coming to our country to take advantage of weak law enforcement policies, tolerant legislation born of political gamesmanship, and "soft" targets offering greater pay-offs than the "prey" on their own turf. Others, may even be terrorists seeking to access their targets free of the increased scrutiny placed on other means of ingress.
When people become scared and angry, they talk in extremities. To my mind, it would be inhumane to shoot anyone coming across the border, indiscriminately, as it would to force thousands of people fleeing violence and poverty to starve, die from exposure, or return to oppressive regimes without help. To help them, while maintaining security...is a challenge.
That's why these centers exist.
Doubtless, they are hard places to be, compared to many others...but I assume still much better than the alternatives. Portraying such places as "concentration camps", or even "prisons" is dangerously inaccurate. Being subjected to the realities of overcrowding, ad hoc preparations, and logistical nightmares isn't "cruelty"...it's a harsh reality created by the risks, and the responsibilities.
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