Haitian Immigrants' Mistreatment At US-Mexican Border

“It’s horrible what you saw. To see people like they did, with horses, running people over, people being strapped, it’s outrageous,” President Joe Biden recently declared at a White House press conference, after seeing a video of Border Control officers on horseback grabbing and yelling at Haitian migrants at the Texas-Mexico border. In an interview with The View, Vice President Kamala Harris echoed the President’s thoughts saying there needed to be “consequences and accountability.” She explained, the videos “evoked images of some of the worst moments of our history where that kind of behaviour has been used against the indiginous people of our country, has been against the African Americans during times of slavery.” What exactly is happening at the Texas border? Haiti recently suffered a disastrous earthquake that left 2,248 dead, 12,763 injured, and 329 missing. In addition, 136,800 buildings were either destroyed or damaged and at least 900 aftershocks occurred. Haiti has also been experiencing some political instability since the assassination of its former president, Jovenel Moïse, in July. Many of the migrants have fled and came here to America where they were met by Border Control on horseback.

The agents were seen and recorded yelling, swinging their reins like whips, and grabbing migrants’ shirts. The photos and videos of the inhumane behavior towards the migrants quickly gained nationwide attention. Biden suspended the use of horse patrols in the U.S.-Mexico border crossing in Del Rio, Texas. In an interview, he declared, “I promise you; those people will pay,”, referring to the officers. “There is an investigation [going on] right now, and there will be consequences.” Biden is yet to address how the government will address the future issue with the surge of immigrants.

Historically, Haitians have been discriminated against in terms of migration, especially being granted asylum. According to immigration data from AP News, many structural barriers make it more difficult for Haitians and other Black migrants to leave or enter the United States. And Haitians are granted asylum at the lowest rate of any ethnic group despite consistently high numbers of asylum seekers.

“Now through the videos capturing the abuses of Haitians at the border, the world has seen for itself that all migrants seeking a better tomorrow aren’t treated equally when skin color is involved,”said Yoliswa Cele, director of narrative and media at the UndocuBlack Network, a national advocacy organization for currently and formerly undocumented Black people.

By Henry Winter