Immigrant Processing at the Borders Leads to Mass Detention

The US is one of the countries that invests the most in its immigration detention system. According to a recent report by Santa Fe New Mexican, in 2019, the local government spent $3.2 billion in the process of incarcerating immigrants, who, in their vast majority, are men and women seeking international protection, have not committed crimes and yearn to build a promising future in North America.

Annually, immigration enforcement agencies arrest hundreds of thousands of undocumented immigrants, both at the borders and within the US, and incarcerate more than 500,000 individuals.

Usually, as it used to work before the global Coronavirus pandemic and the implementation of Title 42 that allows expedited deportations in border territory, agencies such as CBP (Customs and Border Protection) and ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) detain undocumented immigrants and most of the time send them to immigration detention centers, where they must wait for an immigration court date.

Since the local immigration system is currently saturated, this appointment scheduling process can take several months. It is important to mention that immigrant detention and mass deportations increased disproportionately under the Donald Trump administration, which even had to sign contracts with private prison companies because ICE centers did not have enough space to house the number of undocumented immigrants detained on a daily basis.

Ultimately, this process becomes a burden on taxpayers, that is, American citizens. Therefore, the US must find better tools to process undocumented immigrants.

Contact Motion Law and start your immigration journey through a FREE Consultation, always following legal guidelines and the advice of our experienced attorneys!

Are there other ways to process immigrants apart from mass detention?

The US is the country that spends the most on processing undocumented immigrants at the borders, not only because of the number of people who arrive daily, but also because it has a fairly complex detention system, which might even be inefficient.

Why would one think that the US’ immigrant detention system is inefficient? Basically because most of the people who try to enter the country without legal documentation plan to apply for international assistance through humanitarian programs such as political asylum while trying to flee persecution, violence, war and famine.

Therefore, spending federal resources on incarcerating innocent immigrants does not necessarily protect national security and, on the contrary, increases social division and discrimination between the American population and immigrant communities.

There are several examples of First World countries where asylum seekers and undocumented immigrants are not related to crime or a threat to national security. Thus, could there be other alternatives to reduce the costs of detention and process undocumented immigrants safely?

Well, in one of our most recent articles we talked about a report that reveals that the national network of community support services could be a means to, on the one hand, reduce massive immigrant detention and, on the other hand, make sure that undocumented immigrants attend their immigration court appointments and comply with all mandatory parameters until they receive a response to their immigration cases.

Adding to that, dozens of activists and immigrant rights advocates have also stated that entities such as ICE have the resources to monitor undocumented immigrants remotely, without the need to detain them indefinitely in centers that rarely have adequate conditions for the well-being of vulnerable immigrants.

Seek reliable help and have a successful immigration process!

We understand that starting an immigration process requires constant dedication and expert help. Our team is highly qualified to guide you through your immigration journey in the US, so please don’t hesitate to contact us for a FREE Phone Consultation with one of our expert immigration attorneys.

Simply call Motion Law today at: (202) 918-1799.