"Haitian Migrants Chased on Horseback" by Gillian S.

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Photos of U.S. Border Patrol agents chasing Haitian migrants on horseback have sparked outrage and prompted investigations into the matter.


The migrants, who were trying to cross the Rio Grande in order to reach U.S. soil were pushed back towards the Rio Grande in Mexico. A photo of the chaos shows that one Border Patrol agent grabbed a migrant. AFP photographer Paul Ratje, who took the photos, says, “Some of the migrants started running to try to get around the horsemen, and one of the agents grabbed the Haitian in the picture by the shirt and he ended up swinging him around while the horse trotted in a circle.”

The chaos unfolded on Sunday, in the wake of Haitian migrants coming to the U.S. en masse, with a reported 14,000 migrants attempting to cross the border this past week. More and more migrants are seeking asylum in the U.S. as misinformation around immigration policies continues to spread.
While Haiti is reeling from the assassination of their president and a powerful earthquake, the majority of the Haitian migrants didn’t come seeking asylum from Haiti. The 2010 earthquake in Haiti, which caused an estimated 200,000 deaths and billions of dollars in property damage, spurred many Haitians to flee to South America. Roberto Velasco, the chief officer for North America at Mexico’s foreign ministry says, “We are dealing with this really new type of migration which are these Haitians coming from mainly Brazil and Chile...They are mainly looking for jobs, they come from third countries so repatriation is difficult.” Many Haitians fled to Brazil and Chile in search of jobs and asylum. However, Chile is adopting increasingly stricter immigration policies, and many Haitians faces discrimination in Chile. The Covid-19 pandemic has devastated Brazil’s economy and has left little job opportunities.
The lack of opportunities and stricter immigration policies have caused an influx of Haitian migrants seeking a better life in the U.S. Under the Biden administration, immigration policies were being relaxed, and a temporary status that protected Haitians from deportation was extended; these led some Haitians to believe that the U.S. would be more welcoming to migrants, and migrants have arrived by the thousands since then.

However, the Haitian migrants were not met with open arms, and Border Patrol agents deterred migrants from entering the U.S. by chasing them on horseback. Photos captured at the scene spread like wildfire, and sparked outrage. Vice President Kamala Harris called the treatment “horrible” and went on to say that “human beings should never be treated that way”. White House press secretary Jen Psaki called the situation “horrific”.

In the midst of the situation, the U.S. envoy to Haiti resigned, and wrote a scathing letter to the Secretary of State. He wrote, “I will not be associated with the United States inhumane, counterproductive decision to deport thousands of Haitian refugees and illegal immigrants to Haiti,” Daniel Foote wrote in a letter.”

In the aftermath of the situation, thousands of Haitian refugees are still being deported back to Haiti, further adding to the outrage and calling Biden’s immigration policies into question.

Works Cited

Chappell, Bill. “U.S. Border Agents Chased Migrants on Horseback. A Photographer Explains What He Saw.” NPR, NPR, 22 Sept. 2021, https://www.npr.org/2021/09/21/1039230310/u-s-border-agents-haiti-migrants-horses-photographer-del-rio. 

Dobbins, James, et al. “How Hope, Fear and Misinformation Led Thousands of Haitians to the U.S. Border.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 18 Sept. 2021, https://www.nytimes.com/2021/09/17/us/haitians-border-patrol.html.

McBride, Courtney, and Michelle Hackman. “U.S. Envoy to Haiti Resigns in Protest of Biden Administration Migrant Policy.” The Wall Street Journal, Dow Jones & Company, 24 Sept. 2021, https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-special-envoy-for-haiti-resigns-in-midst-of-migrant-crisis-1163247941.

“Migrants in Texas: US Probes Horseback Charge on Haiti Migrants.” BBC News, BBC, 21 Sept. 2021, https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-58637116.

Sullivan, Eileen, and Zolan Kanno-Youngs. “Images of Border Patrol's Treatment of Haitian Migrants Prompt Outrage.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 22 Sept. 2021, https://www.nytimes.com/2021/09/21/us/politics/haitians-border-patrol-photos.html.




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