Several recent letters have sought to blame President Biden entirely for the “crisis on the border.” In fact, Biden’s policies were not that much different than Trump’s. Under Trump, 400,000 immigrants were detained and expelled; under Biden 2.28 million were expelled, according to the BBC. Biden’s cancellation of Trump’s Migrant Protection Protocols (70,000 expelled) and the policy of separating families (3,900 children separated from their parents, more than 1,000 of whom still have not been reunited) did not significantly affect immigration.
The influx of migrants is more likely the result of longstanding foreign policy of the United States. Migrants from Venezuela, Cuba and Nicaragua are responding to the U.S. embargo. The dictators of those countries surely haven’t missed many meals, but ordinary, blameless citizen have suffered greatly. Also, the U.S. support of repressive dictatorships in Guatemala, Salvador, and Honduras have spurred immigration from those countries.
Sean Bruner
West side
Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.
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