On Tuesday, May 8, the United States Border Patrol announced that it would realign its tactics concerning the enforcement of immigration law. The change comes amid a decisive drop in the number of undocumented border crossings from Mexico, and the Border Patrol claims its new strategy will emphasize repeat offense and will allocate resources to high-traffic areas. Figures in both the anti-immigrant and immigrants’ rights movements have expressed doubt in the new plan; Peter Nunez of the nativist group Center for Immigration Studies claims that “interior enforcement” is still lacking under the new policy, while Pedro Rios of the American Friends Service committee described it as “militaristic” with the potential to trample the rights of those residing near the border.
Race • Identity • Democracy