In her post about the World Health Organization declaring Ebola outbreaks the “new normal,” Leslie noted that 350 people from the Congo turned up at our southern border.
It appears this was not an anomaly and that a record number of African nationals from a range of countries are arriving in America via Mexico.
Last week alone, hundreds arrived in San Antonio, Texas.
. . . . City leaders said they weren’t given a heads up and quickly scrambled to accommodate them and quickly recruit several French-speaking volunteers who could serve as translators.“The City of San Antonio has received more than 200 individuals, mostly families and children. The families were released by the United States Customs and Border Patrol into the country with paperwork directing them to Portland, Maine,” said Interim Assistant City Manager Dr. Colleen Bridger.The majority of them stayed at Travis Park Church, which regularly hosts asylum seekers.“I’m not necessarily surprised…we react to changes on the border every day, we just had to figure out that process it didn’t really shake us up too much,” said Gavin Rogers, associate pastor.It’s not just Congolese migrants arriving in alarming numbers. Border Patrol agents reported arresting more than 500 people from Africa since May 30. The group included nationals from Angola, Cameroon, the Republic of the Congo,and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
The influx is creating problems for border agents who often do not speak their language and are faced with individuals with no ties in the U.S. Additionally, there reportedly is no cause for concern about Ebola.
Fox News continues:
Unlike most Mexicans and Central Americans, many of the migrants from Africa don’t have roots in America or families who can take them in once they are released from immigration detention. And many speak languages the immigration officials do not.“Quite often, the individuals from the African continent do not have a permanent address or a sponsor already in the U.S. And so you really just have to pinpoint an immigration court near where they think they are going to ultimately end up and hope that they report themselves in,” said Ortiz.. . . . Over the weekend, the city, along with Catholic Charities, worked with the asylum seekers to figure out their next destination as many arrived without designated host families and cities.“If we don’t know exactly the best place to send the migrant community like the Congolese. We have to figure out what shelters are available around the nation, where’s the best place for their community to go,” said Rogers.There was also concern that some of the migrants could carry diseases, as there is currently an Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo.However, Bridger quickly shut down those rumors, telling local reporters that the migrants go through multiple health screenings.
It’s not entirely clear why there is a sudden spike in African nationals arriving at our southern border, but the AP reports that it may be related to immigration crackdowns in Europe, Turkey, and Libya.
The explosion in immigration to the United States from sub-Saharan Africa coincides with a steep drop in the migration flow across the Mediterranean to Europe after European countries and two main embarkation points — Turkey and Libya — decided to crack down. From Jan. 1 to June 12, only 24,600 migrants arrived in Europe by sea, compared to 99,600 over the same period in 2017, according to the International Organization for Migration.But IOM spokesman Joel Millman doubts the migrant path for Africans has swung over from Europe to America.Pombo, who was a teacher in Congo, learned in an internet search and by asking around that Portland is good place for migrants. He said his next step is to start rebuilding a life for himself and his family.
The African migrants are reportedly surrendering to Border Patrol and then requesting asylum before fanning out across the country.
Watch this segment from the Ingraham Angle in which investigative journalist Urs Gehriger reports on his interactions with Congolese asylum seekers:
As noted in that segment, the Congolese are being told not to trust or cooperate with ICE, yet they are, again according to the segment, demanding “help” from American taxpayers.
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