News Summaries in January 2025
“More Than 80 People Killed in Colombia as Truce Between Rebel Groups Collapses,” The Guardian, Jan. 19, 2025
[Posted out of chronological order to catch up to an earlier story.] A fragile truce between rebel groups struggling for control of the cocaine trade ended in violence that took the lives of more than 80 people in northeastern Colombia near the Venezuelan border. At least 5,000 people were forced to leave their homes in the violence between the National Liberation Army (ELN) and dissident factions of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc). School has been called off indefinitely with classrooms converted into emergency shelters for families fleeing their homes, a Colombian official said. Twenty people including 10 women have been kidnapped. "We are seeing innumerable familes who have lost their children and even sadder still, children who have lost their parents," said the local mayor in the municipality of Tibú. "Kids and the elderly are crying as they are leaving their farms and crops behind." The clashes "are among the worst Colombia has seen since its first leftist president Gustavo Petro took office in 2022 with a promise to bring ‘total peace’ to the region,” said Guardian reporter Luke Taylor. A 2016 peace deal between the Colombian government and Farc “formally ended six decades of conflict which killed 450,000 people and displaced millions more,” Taylor noted. Petro promised to bring all the major armed groups into negotiations and not pursue them militarily but has made little progress. The government has sent 300 troops to the region to try to stop the violence. But the latest killings mean that “the Total Peace strategy is dead,” declared Gerson Arias of the Ideas for Peace Foundation in Bogotá.
“Trump Says U.S. Will Open Center at Guantánamo to Detain Migrants,” New York Times, Jan. 30, 2025
President Trump Jan. 29 ordered preparations to house “criminal aliens” at the U.S. Navy base at Guantánamo Bay in Cuba. “We have 30,000 beds in Guantánamo to detain the worst criminal illegal aliens threatening the American people,” Trump said. “Some of them are so bad we don’t even trust the countries to hold them, because we don’t want them coming back, so we’re going to send them out to Guantánamo.” About 40,000 immigrants have been held in private detention centers and local jails in recent weeks. “Adding 30,000 beds would dramatically expand the government’s detention capacity,” wrote Post reporters Hamed Aleaziz and Carol Rosenberg. “A site on the 45-square-mile base could hold those 30,000 deportees.” It was unclear how the operation would be staffed and what rights if any the deportees would have. Migrants and asylum seekers “are being cast as the new terrorist threat, deserving to be discarded in an island prison, removed from legal and social services and supports,” said Vincent Warner of the Center for Constitutional Rights. Amnesty International also slammed the Trump directive (see below).
“On Deportees’ Flight to Brazil, Desperation, Chains and Fear,” New York Times, Jan. 30, 2025
It was a flight said to be marked by fear and desperation on the part of its passengers – 88 Brazilian deportees, most of them handcuffed and shackled. “There were demands to stay seated, shoving, shouting, children crying, passengers fainting and agents blocking exits, according to interviews with six of the deportees aboard the flight” -- the first deportation flight of the new Trump administration, wrote Times reporter Jack Nicas. For many of the passengers, it was a journey that began weeks before with long bus rides across the U.S. to an immigration center in Louisiana. The men on those rides were handcuffed, sometimes for days. Early the morning of Jan. 24, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents “filled the passenger jet with the deportees, putting dozens of shackled men in the rear and women and children, who were not handcuffed, in the front, the deportees said,” according to Nicas. Operated by the charter airline GlobalX Air, the plane struggled to take off. It finally did after a mechanic worked on a turbine engine, but deportees wondered how their shackles would be taken off if something happened. They asked that the shackles be removed but were told keeping them on was protocol. After a refueling stop in Panama, the plane again struggled to take off, and three of the passengers said they saw smoke coming from one of the engines. Then they said the air conditioner stopped working and the plane became like a sauna in the tropical heat. The air conditioning eventually started working again but when the plane landed in Manaus, Brazil, far short of its destination because of what Brazilian police said was a technical issue, tensions spiked. The plane struggled for a third time to take off and air in the cabin stopped flowing as they waited on the tarmac in the sweltering city in the Amazon jungle. “To be honest, I didn’t think I’d make it home alive,” said one deportee who was asthmatic and struggled to breathe. He said kids started crying and desperate parents started screaming and “that’s when we decided to do something.” Shackled deportees began pushing their way up the aisles. ICE agents standing in their way shouted and pushed back “and several deportees said they were struck,” Nicas recounted. Some passengers then opened the emergency exits and some of the shackled men made their way out onto the wing and shouted for the Brazilian police, who eventually entered the cabin and ordered the ICE agents to release the Brazilians. Brazilian authorities removed the shackles and passengers spent the night at the airport before a military plane called in by Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva took them to their final destination, the city of Belo Horizonte. Brazilian government ministers called the Trump administration’s handling of the deportees unacceptable and degrading. It was the conditions on this particular Brazilian flight that led Colombian President Gustavo Petro to turn away deportation flights carrying deported Colombians from the U.S. (see summary below). Deportation flights to Brazil are nothing new; the U.S. has deported some 7,700 Brazilians on 95 flights since 2020. U.S. officials have largely ignored Brazilian requests to only shackle deportees if they pose a threat. Said Nicas: “the difference on Friday [Jan. 24], officials and passengers said, was the condition of the plane and the rough handling of the deportees by ICE agents.”
“DHS Rescinds Immigration Protections for Venezuelans, Despite Past Support,” Washington Post, Jan. 30, 2025
The Trump administration has canceled the Biden administration’s recent 18-month extension of humanitarian protection for up to 600,000 Venezuelans under the Temporary Protected Status program. The Biden decision said the immigrants could remain in the United States through October 2026, “citing the economic and political crisis in the country,” wrote Post reporter Maria Sacchetti. “They were going to be able to stay here and violate our laws for another 18 months, and we stopped that,” said Kristi L. Noem, the Department of Homeland Security secretary. Noem said she was going to make her own decision on the matter to see if it merited an extension. Said Sacchetti: “If she does nothing by Saturday [Feb. 1], protections for some Venezuelans would automatically extend until October, but they could ultimately end for all this year.” Noem’s tone departed sharply from that of Trump in his first term, in which he declined to deport undocumented immigrants from Venezuela. He said at the time that Venezuela’s situation was catastrophic because millions had to flee because of shortages of food and medicine.
“Trump Order to Turn Guantanamo Bay Into Migrant Detention Center Sparks Outcry,” The Guardian, Jan. 29, 2025
An executive order by President Trump instructing the military to prepare the U.S. Naval base at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba to house 30,000 deported migrants was met with criticism across the U.S. and around the world. Amnesty International said that Guantanamo Bay has been the site of torture, indefinite detention without charge or trial and other unlawful practices. “President Trump should be using his authority to finally close the prison there, not repurposing the facility for offshore immigration detention.” Rep. Jerry Nadler, a Democrat from New York, said “for years I have advocated for its closure, condemning the abuses and glaring lack of accountability that persist there. This massive expansion into a mass detention camp is morally indefensible and raises significant civil liberties concerns.” Rep. Rashida Tlaib, a Democrat from Michigan, said “we cannot allow this level of dehumanization to become normalized. We need to shut down Guantanamo for once and for all.”
“Trump Backs Off Trade Threats After Colombia Agrees to Deportation Flights,” Washington Post, Jan. 27, 2025
The Trump administration said Colombia has now agreed to receive military flights carrying Colombian deportees back to their home country after its earlier refusal led to trade threats by President Donald Trump and counter threats by President Gustavo Petro. Reports that the U.S. was sending back deportees in handcuffs and leg shackles appeared to ignite the dispute (see below) but the U.S. has now agreed to transport deportees under “dignified conditions,” said Colombian Foreign Minister Luis Gilberto Murillo. “We have overcome the impasse with the United States government,” Murillo said in a statement late Jan. 26. “Petro made available the presidential plane to facilitate the travel of the deported Colombians who were going to arrive in the country early Sunday [Jan. 26] morning,” Post reporters wrote. Former U.S. officials said shackles have traditionally used around the world to keep deportees from attacking the security personnel who accompany then.
“Trump Hits Colombia With Tariffs in Feud Over Military Deportation Flights,” New York Times, Jan. 26, 2025
President Gustavo Petro of Colombia said the United States should not treat Colombian migrants as criminals and has turned away U.S. military flights carrying deportees, causing a furious reaction from Donald Trump. The U.S. president retaliated with tariffs and sanctions against Colombia, long a top U.S. ally in Latin America. Trump announced a 25 percent tariff on all Colombian imports, which include coffee, crude oil and cut flowers. The tariff will increase to 50 percent in one week, Trump said. His administration also plans to impose banking and financial sanctions, apply a travel ban, and revoke the visas of Colombian government officials. Petro said earlier Jan. 26 that until the Trump administration provided a process to treat Colombian migrants with “dignity and respect,” Colombia would not accept military deportation flights from the U.S. Colombia appears to be the first Latin American country to explicitly refuse to cooperate with Trump’s sweeping deportation plans, said Times reporters Genevieve Glatsky and Simon Romero. They said the tariffs along could significantly harm the Colombian economy because the U.S. is Colombia’s largest trading partner.
“Haitian Leader Says the Trump Administration’s Plans Will Be ‘Catastrophic’ for His Country,” Associated Press Jan. 25, 2025
President Trump’s decision to freeze aid programs, deport migrants and deny entry of refugees will be a catastrophe for Haiti, said the president of the country’s transitional presidential council. “Leslie Voltaire made the comment in an interview with the Associated Press in Rome on Saturday following a meeting with Pope Francis at the Vatican,” said AP reporter Trisha Thomas. Voltaire said “I’m knocking on the doors of people who love Haiti. The pope loves Haiti, and he is eager to help.” According to Voltaire, half of Haiti’s 11.4 million are hungry, and the loss of humanitarian assistance “will make the situation dramatically worse,” Thomas wrote. An estimated 1.5 million Haitians are in the United States. About 150,000 of them entered under the “Temporary Protection System” program. Voltaire said Trump said he will expel all of them. The United Nations says more the one million people have been displaced within Haiti, largely because of gang violence. Voltaire said he has asked the Pope to organize an international conference of solidarity with Haiti.
“Migrants Stranded by Trump Decision Face Rising Hostility in Mexico,” Washington Post, Jan. 25, 2025
The Trump administration shutdown of the asylum system along the U.S. border has stranded tens of thousands of migrants from Venezuela, Guatemala and other countries in Mexico. At the same time, Mexico is facing the reentry of many of its own citizens who President Donald Trump plans to deport. Resentment of migrants from other countries is growing in Mexico. “For the Mexican deportees there’s a good plan,” a former Mexican migration official told the Post. But for stranded foreigners, “there’s uncertainty about what’s going to happen to them.” Some migrants in Mexico City have built tent cities or are sleeping on the streets, causing neighbors to protest. Adding to the crowding was Trump’s shutdown of the CBP One app, which allowed migrants to obtain appointments at U.S. ports of entry to apply for asylum. They could live and work in the U.S. while their applications were being considered. For a long time, the app could only be used by asylum seekers who had reached at least as far north as Mexico City, leading to an influx of migrants there competing sometimes for weeks or even months to get one of the limited number of appointments available through the app. An estimated 280,000 would-be migrants in Mexico have been trying to make appointments. Now that the app has been turned off, it’s unclear where they will go. Analysts say the cancellation of the app will fuel the migrant-smuggling business, according to Post reporters. A number of migrants from places like Venezuela and Haiti say they won’t go home. Although Mexico has more than one million unfilled jobs, it’s difficult for migrants from other countries to gain legal status.
“Plans for Trump’s Border Mission Include Combat Vehicles, Infantry,” Washington Post, Jan. 24, 2025
In what could become a big long-term and politically dicey mission, the Pentagon is preparing plans for President Trump to send more than 10,000 troops to the U.S. border with Mexico. That total would represent a dramatic expansion of the 1,500-troop presence ordered to the border this week, including many engineers and military police. The planned buildup of military force follows a declaration by Trump that the flow of migrants into the U.S. from Mexico constitutes an invasion, even though the number of crossings has dropped sharply in recent months. Under discussion is sending Stryker combat vehicles from the 4th Infantry Division in Colorado. “Strykers are armored, possess powerful optics and sensors, and are topped with removable machine guns,” wrote Post reporter Dan Lamothe. “The eight-wheeled vehicles can rapidly move infantry troops on a battlefield and were used extensively during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.” Ukrainian troops recently used Strykers to conduct a “stunning” raid into Russia during the summer. “Trump has long shown an appetite to employ U.S. troops domestically for demonstrations of force, whether to deter migration or to crack down on civil protests.” The deployments under discussion are not without precedent and are not illegal, said Duke University political scientist Peter Feaver. But they risk alienating the public. Feaver told the Post that “it’s the kind of thing where initial public support does not signal that it will be popular three, four months from now, when the troops are complaining, and it seems like a waste of money.”
“Major Legal Channels Shut for Migrants to Reach the U.S.,” New York Times, Jan. 24, 2025
Executive orders issued by President Trump on his first day in office “aimed to seal off the nation from immigrants by closing off legal channels for migrants to enter, especially access to asylum,” said Times reporter Eileen Sullivan. For example, the Trump team disabled CBP One, a smartphone app that let migrants get appointments to safely enter the U.S. to apply for asylum without having to risk their lives by crossing the Rio Grande. Migrants were given parole, meaning they had permission to temporarily stay in the U.S. and to work while their applications were considered. “Deactivating the program on Monday sent some 30,000 migrants with existing appointments into limbo,” wrote Sullivan. Trump canceled a program from the Biden era that let people from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela facing humanitarian crises apply for humanitarian parole if an American agreed to provide financial support. If they qualified, they could fly to the U.S. to stay for two years and work and while in the U.S. could apply for asylum or other benefits. By the end of 2024 more than 500,000 migrants had entered the U.S. that way. Trump also ordered the reinstatement of the “Remain in Mexico” policy. It requires that migrants remain in Mexico while a U.S. immigration judge considers their case. Sullivan said that during the first Trump administration “it effectively forced migrants seeking asylum to live in unsanitary conditions while they waited for their claims to be heard. Many reported being victims of kidnapping, extortion and rape.” If the program is challenged in court it is likely to be quickly considered by the Supreme Court. Another Trump order said illegal crossings at the southern border have reached a point where they constitute an invasion. The Constitution says the U.S. must guarantee every state protection in the event of an invasion. Trump invoked the authority of the Immigration and Nationality Act to order that noncitizens would no longer be permitted to enter the U.S. through the southern border until he decides the invasion is over. This interpretation of the Constitution is likely to be challenged in court.
“Mexico’s All-Hands Plan to Welcome Deportees,” New York Times, Jan. 24, 2025
The Mexican government has prepared an ambitious plan to welcome the many migrants President Trump plans to send back as part of his mass deportation drive. “Plans are underway to build nine reception centers along the border – massive tents set up in parking lots, stadiums and warehouses – with mobile kitchens operated by the armed forces,” Times reporters said. All of the agencies of the Mexican federal government along with state governments are expected to help out with activities such as busing people to their home towns, logistics, providing medical care, and enrolling returnees in programs to receive pensions and paid apprenticeships, as well as giving individuals cash cards worth $100 each. Mexico has the most unauthorized citizens living in the U.S., an estimated four million people in 2022, and so feels obligated to make preparations. But the buses the government is sending to take deportees back home will be transporting them to places they fled from in the first place because of violence and a scarcity of jobs. Even with the construction of new facilities, existing shelters will have a hard time serving large numbers of deportees along with the usual flow of northbound migrants hoping to enter the U.S. Complicating the effort to help migrants are plans by the Trump administration to stop distributing foreign aid, which is a source of funding for the assistance provided by the shelters. The U.S. is the largest funder of the United Nations International Organization for Migration. The I.O.M. “presently offers many of the services provided to migrants and deportees, starting with the kits of sanitary supplies people receive when they step off deportation flights,” the Post said. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said concerning migration that the State Department would no longer be taking steps to “facilitate or encourage it.”
“Federal Judge Temporarily Blocks Trump’s Birthright Citizenship Order,” Washington Post, Jan. 23, 2025
A federal judge Jan. 23 blocked an executive order by President Trump ending birthright citizenship for the children of undocumented parents and foreign visitors. U.S. District Court Judge John C. Coughenour, a federal judge in Seattle appointed by President Ronald Reagan, called the order “blatantly unconstitutional,” said Post reporter David Nakamura. The judge told U.S. Justice Department lawyers in a hearing that the order “boggles the mind.” The two-week restraining order responded to a lawsuit by Arizona, Washington, Oregon and Illinois saying Trump’s order violated the 14th amendment of the Constitution guaranteeing citizenship to those born in the United States. His order says his administration “will no longer recognize automatic citizenship for children born on U.S. soil to immigrant parents who are in the country without authorization, provided that neither parent is a U.S. citizen or legal permanent resident,” wrote Nakamura. The same would apply to noncitizen parents in the country on temporary work, student or tourist visas. The lawsuit filed by the four states says thousands of babies in their jurisdictions would be harmed each year. It estimates that 153,000 children are born each year across the U.S. to undocumented parents. In addition, it says states would have to take on disruptive administrative duties to enforce the order and that they would lose federal revenue to provide Medicaid and other public health benefits. It adds that people stripped of their citizenship would be stateless and so face lifelong instability and insecurity as part of a new underclass. The 14th amendment says people born or naturalized in the U.S. “and subject to the jurisdiction thereof” are U.S. citizens. The Trump administration contends that it can ban birthright citizenship because undocumented immigrants are in the U.S. illegally and therefore aren’t subject to the jurisdiction of the U.S. government. Experts said Coughenour could try to extend the temporary order or issue a preliminary injunction putting Trump’s order on pause while the case is tried. Eighteen other states and the District of Columbia have filed a similar lawsuit in Massachusetts. In addition, at least three civil rights groups including the American Civil Liberties Union are challenging Trump’s order. Says Nakamura: “the issue could ultimately land in the Supreme Court, where Trump had a mixed record on immigration-related cases during his first term.” In a separate Jan. 21 article, “States, Civil Rights Groups Sue to Stop Trump’s Birthright Citizenship Order,” the Post reported that legal experts do not think the Trump order will stand. Although Trump says the U.S. is the only country offering birthright citizenship, more than 30 countries do, the story said. It added that experts said the 14th amendment was passed to reverse the Supreme Court’s 1857 Dred Scott ruling saying that Black Americans were not citizens. Elizabeth Wydra of the Constitutional Accountability Center told the Post that the idea was to ensure that citizenship is secure “so you’re not worried about it being taken away by the next election.”
“In Letter to U.N., Panama Rejects Trump’s Remarks,” New York Times, Jan. 22, 2025
A statement by President Trump during his inaugural address that he intends to take back control of the Panama Canal violates the United Nations charter, Panama said in a formal letter to the United Nations Jan. 20. The letter cited parts of the U.N. charter that bar member states from using threats and force that violate the territorial integrity or political independence of a member country. Trump has falsely claimed that China has taken control of the canal. “I must reject in its entirety the words expressed by President Donald Trump regarding Panama and its Canal,” Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino said in a statement attached to the letter. The canal “is and will continue to be Panama’s.” Trump recently said he hasn’t ruled out military force to take the canal. Mulino said “dialogue is always the way to clarify the points mentioned without undermining our right, total sovereignty and ownership of our Canal.” However, the Panamanian comptroller’s office said late Jan. 20 that it is auditing a Chinese subsidiary that is the operator of a major port associated with the canal. [Trump has complained that fees being charged to U.S. ships to pass through the canal are exorbitant, while others note that those increases followed a drought that depleted water for the canal and allowed fewer crossings.] “The purpose of this exhaustive audit is to ensure the efficient and transparent use of public resources,” said the comptroller’s office. Since taking office last year Mulino “has consistently signaled his willingness to help the United States restrict migration toward the U.S. border,” wrote Times reporters Annie Correal and Farnaz Fassihi. After Panama adopted tougher border restrictions at the Darién Gap, the stretch of treacherous jungle between Panama and Colombia, the number of migrants crossing through in an attempt to reach the U.S. has plunged.
“Guatemala Gets Ready to Handle Planeloads of Trump’s Deportees,” New York Times, Jan. 22, 2025
Officials in Guatemala, preparing to receive significant numbers of deportees from the United States, are developing what they call a “Welcome Home” plan to give them a “dignified reception.” But deterring deportees from trying to return to the U.S. will be difficult. About 675,000 undocumented Guatemalans lived in the United States in 2022 according to the Pew Research Center. One recent deportee, 32-year-old Carlos Navarro, may be typical of Trump’s upcoming deportees. Navarro said he worked in poultry plants in the U.S. and had absolutely no contact with the law while there. “By last week, he was back in Guatemala for the first time in 11 years, calling his wife in the United States from a reception center for deportees in the capital, Guatemala City,” wrote Times reporter Annie Correal. Until now, deportees getting off the plane in Guatemala City “mostly got some basics, like new identification documents, sanitary supplies and a ride to a shelter or the main bus terminal,” wrote Correal, based on comments by Anita Isaacs, a Guatemalan expert who created the blueprint for the new plan. Said Isaacs: “If you can find a way of integrating them and of harnessing their skills, then the opportunities for Guatemala are enormous.” Now, under what President Benardo Arévalo calls the Return Home plan, government employees will extensively interview deportees to find out what type of work they can do and what help they need. Says Correal: “The plan, which focuses on linking deportees to jobs and making use of their language and work skills, also aims to offer mental health support for people coping with the trauma of deportation.” But an estimated 40 percent of deportations in 2020 involved people who had been deported before and tried to get back into the U.S. The forces remain that made them leave in the first place: grinding poverty, few jobs, extreme weather worsened by climate change, gang threats and organized crime. Back in the U.S. they’ve been paid in dollars and experienced success. Deportees feel greater pressure to return to the U.S. than those attempting to enter for the first time because they often owe thousands of dollars to smugglers and have turned over the deeds to their houses as collateral, leaving them homeless if deported. Smugglers have adjusted to that reality by offering help with up to three attempts to enter the U.S. for the price of one. Then there is the powerful pull of family members still in the U.S. Navarro, the recent deportee, said despite Trump’s crackdown “I have to go back, for my son, for my wife.” But Trump’s attitude toward immigrants is a deterrent to others, who plan to try to make a go of it at home.
“Bishop Calls on Trump to ‘Have Mercy’ on Migrants and LGBTQ+ People,” The Guardian, Jan. 22, 2025
“There are gay, lesbian and transgender children in Democratic, Republican and independent families, some who fear for their lives,” the Episcopal Bishop of Washington told President Donald Trump at an inaugural prayer service Jan. 21. “You have felt the providential hand of a loving God,” said the Right Rev. Mariann Budde, referring to Trump saying in his inaugural address that God had saved him from an assassin’s bullet to make America great again. “In the name of our God, I ask you to have mercy on the people in our country who are scared now.” Budde also said that “the vast majority of immigrants are not criminals. They pay taxes and are good neighbours. They are faithful members of our churches, mosques and synagogues, gurdwara and temples. Our God teaches us that we are to be merciful to the stranger, for we were once strangers in this land.” Guardian reporter Lauren Gambino wrote that Trump sat stone-faced in the front row next to Melania and JD Vance. When Trump was asked later about the sermon he said that it “was not too exciting” and later wrote on his Truth Social platform that Budde was a “Radical Left hard line Trump hater” who was “nasty in tone.” Georgia congressman Mike Collins said that Budde, an American citizen, should be deported for her criticism of Trump.
“Trump Says Immigration Authorities Can Arrest People at Churches and Schools,” The Guardian, Jan. 21, 2025
Immigration authorities are now free to arrest migrants at churches, schools and hospitals under a directive issued Jan. 21 by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. They also can quickly deport certain migrants under a second directive. “Criminals will no longer be able to hide in America’s schools and churches to avoid arrest,” the department said. “The Trump Administration will not tie the hands of our brave law enforcement and instead trusts them to use common sense.” The “expedited removal” directive states that the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency can quickly deport any undocumented person arrested within the U.S. who can’t prove they’ve been within the country continuously for at least two years. Trump’s border czar Tom Homan said late Jan. 20 that immigration agents would fan out across the U.S. Jan. 21 to arrest and deport people without papers. Arrests at sensitive locations would have harmful effects on immigrant families and their children, including children who are U.S. citizens, said the Center for Law and Social Policy. They’d be deterred from getting medical attention, seeking out disaster relief, attending school and carrying out other everyday activities, the center said. It’s also more likely that children would witness a parent being taking into custody by ICE.
Excerpts From President Trump’s Inaugural Address, Jan. 20, 2025
We now have a government that cannot manage even a simple crisis at home, while at the same time stumbling into a continuing catalog of catastrophic events abroad. It fails to protect our magnificent law-abiding American citizens, but provide sanctuary and protection for dangerous criminals, many from prisons and mental institutions that have illegally entered our country from all over the world. We have a government that has given unlimited funding to the defense of foreign borders, but refuses to defend American borders, or, more importantly, its own people.
….Today, I will sign a series of historic executive orders. With these actions, we will begin the complete restoration of America and the revolution of common sense. It's all about common sense.
First, I will declare a national emergency at our southern border. All illegal entry will immediately be halted, and we will begin the process of returning millions and millions of criminal aliens back to the places from which they came. We will reinstate my "Remain in Mexico" policy. I will end the practice of catch and release, and I will send troops to the southern border to repel the disastrous invasion of our country.
Under the orders I sign today, we will also be designating the cartels as foreign terrorist organizations. And by invoking the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, I will direct our government to use the full and immense power of federal and state law enforcement to eliminate the presence of all foreign gangs and criminal networks bringing devastating crime to U.S. soil.
….“I will immediately begin the overhaul of our trade system to protect American workers and families. Instead of taxing our citizens to enrich other countries, we will tariff and tax foreign countries to enrich our citizens. For this purpose, we are establishing the external revenue service to collect all tariffs, duties and revenues. It will be massive amounts of money pouring into our treasury coming from foreign sources., including our cities and inner cities.
….America will reclaim its rightful place as the greatest, most powerful, most respected nation on earth, inspiring the awe and admiration of the entire world. A short time from now, we are going to be changing the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America, and and we will restore the name of a great president, William McKinley, to Mount McKinley, where it should be and where it belongs. President McKinley made our country very rich through tariffs and through talent. He was a natural businessman and gave Teddy Roosevelt the money for many of the great things he did, including the Panama Canal, which has foolishly been given to the country of Panama after the United States.
….The United States — I mean, think of this — spent more money than ever spent on a project before and lost 38,000 lives in the building of the Panama Canal. [Overwhelmingly, the workers who died were not Americans.] We have been treated very badly from this foolish gift that should have never been made, and Panama's promise to us has been broken. The purpose of our deal and the spirit of our treaty has been totally violated. American ships are being severely overcharged and not treated fairly in any way, shape or form, and that includes the United States Navy. And above all, China is operating the Panama Canal, and we didn't give it to China. We gave it to Panama, and we're taking it back.
….
“Presidential Inauguration Fact Check: Analyzing Claims From and About Trump,” USA Today, Jan. 20, 2025
“The United States, I mean think of this, spent more money than ever spent on a project before and lost 38,000 lives in the building of the Panama Canal.”
While thousands of people died in the efforts to construct the Panama Canal, “the toll of American deaths does not remotely approach 38,000 lives Trump claimed in his inaugural address,” said USA Today reporter Andre Byik. Matthew Parker, who wrote “Hell’s Gorge: The Battle to Build the Panama Canal,” said about 25,000 people died, many from mosquito-borne viruses, in an unsuccessful French effort to build the canal in the 1880s. Almost none was American. Most were French and Jamaican. In the U.S. period of construction from about 1904 to 1914, about 6,000 people died, almost all from Barbados. About 300 Americans died in this effort, Parker said. “These figures are largely in line with other estimates of the death toll in the efforts to build the canal, which was completed in 1914,” Byik said.
“China is operating the Panama Canal, and we didn’t give it to China, we gave it to Panama, and we’re taking it back.”
Trump says the U.S. should seize control of the canal because of what he called “exorbitant” rates charged for its use. The U.S. built and operated the canal before signing a treaty to give it to Panama on Dec. 31, 1999. Canal administrator Ricaurte Vásquez said a Hong Kong consortium won a bid in 1997 that allows Chinese companies to operate in ports at the ends of the canal. “But U.S. and Taiwanese companies also operate ports along the canal, which is open to commerce from all countries, Vásquez said,” wrote USA Today’s Kim Breen. “Panamanian President Jose Raul Mulino has said market conditions are used to set passage rates and that China was not influencing the country.” The U.S. accounted for about 75% of canal traffic in fiscal year 2024, and China 21%.
“Trump Speaks Ahead of Signing Executive Orders,” New York Times, Jan. 20, 2025
President Donald Trump promised in his inaugural address to sign orders declaring a national emergency at the border, allowing the deployment of troops. He said he also would sign orders declaring cartels to be “global terrorists.” The Times noted that “incoming officials also said he would end birthright citizenship, though it is not clear what an executive order would do because the Constitution guarantees citizenship for those born in the United States.” Around the time of his speech, the Trump administration turned off a government app allowing migrants to schedule appointments to use ports of entry to apply for asylum in the United States. Almost a million immigrants used it. Also, the acting head of the immigration court system along with three other leaders of that system were fired soon after Trump took office.
“In Lavish Latin American Rite, Boys Can Now Don the Crown,” New York Times, Jan. 17, 2025
A growing number of young Latin American boys are embracing the tradition that one’s 15thbirthday marks the transition into adulthood – a tradition that until recently had been reserved for girls, writes Times reporter Christina Morales. Quinceañero, join quinceañera. Quinceañeras parties “tend to be big and elaborate, and can cost as much as a wedding,” Morales says. “Quinceañeros have been no exception: Some parents are spending up to $70,000 to host them for their teen-age boys.” The grandfather of one teenage boy said “it’s the celebration of becoming a man. The male should be celebrated as much as the female.” However, some shy away from the celebrations, seeing them as appropriate for females but not a manly rite for males. At the beginning of his quinceañero, Javier Calderon, a Mexican-American in Corpus, Christi, Texas, walked into a ballroom dressed in a purple tuxedo and was introduced by a master of ceremonies as a prince. A string quarted played pop tunes and a group of high school freshman boys dressed in black tuxedos performed a dance. “His guests were seated at tables with twinkling gold crowns as centerpieces,” wrote Morales. “By the end of the night, Mr. Calderon sat on a throne in the center of the room and was ordained a king.”
“Brazil’s Ex-Leader Hopes Ally’s Comeback is His Stay-Out-of-Jail Card,” New York Times, Jan. 17, 2024
Brazil’s former President Jair Bolsonaro got some welcome news last week in the form of an invitation from Donald Trump to attend his Jan. 20 presidential inauguration. But Brazil’s Supreme Court shot down the invitation to Bolsonaro, who is under investigation into whether he tried to stage a coup after losing a bid for re-election in 2022. He has had his passport confiscated and is facing three criminal investigations: one says he took money from selling jewelry he received as state gifts, including a diamond Rolex watch from the Saudis; a second said he helped falsify his Covid-19 vaccination records so he could travel to the U.S.; in the third and most serious one, the police said he planned, took part in, and had direct control over a conspiracy to carry out a coup. Police also said he knew about a plan involving several men to assassinate incoming President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and his chief nemesis on the Brazilian Supreme Court, Alexandre de Moraes, who has blocked hundreds of social media accounts as threats to democracy. Bolsonaro denies he know about the plot but could be headed to prison while Trump, the man he is often compared to and who he idolizes, is sitting in the White House. Bolsonaro will be watching the inauguration on TV, but he has been buoyed recently by the claims of Tesla and X owner Elon Musk that Judge Moraes is engaged in censorship, a view Meta founder Mark Zuckerberg now appears to share. But Brazil’s electoral court has barred Bolsonaro from office until 2030 and the Brazilian right may be ready to move on from his leadership. Still, Bolsonaro is hoping Trump’s resurgence, and the views of Musk and Zuckerberg, will somehow change the political landscape in Brazil. He is also hoping that a change in the makeup of the electoral court will lead to a reversal of his ineligibility ruling.
“Cuba Begins Releasing Prisoners Following Biden Announcements,” Reuters, Jan. 15, 2025
Cuba began releasing prisoners Jan. 15 jailed after taking part in anti-government protests in 2021 against shortages of food, medicine and electricity. An estimated 1,000 people were arrested following the protests, which occurred as Covid-19 cases soared. Their release began after President Biden Jan. 14 announced the removal of Cuba from a terrorism blacklist and the rollback of the sanctions placed on Cuba by Donald Trump during his first term as president. Cuba “said separately it would release upward of 500 prisoners from its jails, in dual announcements poised to reshape U.S.-Cuba relations just days before Donald Trump takes office,” a separate Jan. 14 Reuters story said. Biden said the changes would expedite a transition to democracy in Cuba. “If they endure, they would represent the most significant advance in U.S.-Cuba relations since the Obama era détente,” Reuters said. They would rescind a 2017 Trump order restricting financial transactions “with some military- and government-linked Cuban entities.” A Trump spokesman welcomed the release of prisoners but said the Biden measures could be rolled back and that “no one should be under any illusion in terms of change in Cuba policy.” Reportedly, the Biden and Trump teams had been in communication on the topic. Depending on how long they last, Biden’s moves could give Cuba some economic relief from severe conditions that have led hundreds of thousands of Cubans to flee the island, many of whom have entered the U.S. illegally. However, the Cold War-era U.S. trade embargo against Cuba remains in effect, the Cuban government said. Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel said 553 prisoners would be released “gradually.” At least 15 prisoners had been released Jan. 15 but they were warned they would be monitored and could be returned to prison.
“More Than a Million Haitians Forced from Their Homes Amid Gang Violence,” The Guardian, Jan. 14, 2025
More than a million people in Haiti have been displaced from their homes as gang violence increases in the country, the United Nations says. Never before has such a large number reportedly been displaced by violence, it says. More than half are children, many of whom have been displaced repeatedly. Driving the violence was a coordinated attack that began last February in which gang bosses joined forces to attack the government. It “brought the city to a virtual standstill, toppled the prime minister, and forced thousands of citizens to flee their homes,” said Guardian reporter Tom Phillips. The arrival of hundreds of police officers from Kenya as part of a multi-nation mission brought a temporary lull in the violence but it soon spiraled out of control again, Phillips wrote. The UN’s migration agency says there are now 108 severely overcrowded sites for displaced families in the capital of Port-au-Prince, including churches, schools and government buildings. That’s up from 73 a year ago. Rosy Auguste Ducena, a human rights activist, said that despite a series of gang massacres Haiti’s judicial system has not convicted even a single gang member, not even in absentia. Amy Pope, a UN official, said the international community must and act and “choose solidarity over indifference.”
“Spain Proposes 100% Tax on Homes Bought by Non-EU Residents,” The Guardian, Jan. 13, 2025
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez announced plans to charge a tax of up to 100 percent on real estate bought by non-residents from countries outside the European Union such as the United Kingdom. The Spanish government “seeks to quell mounting anger over housing costs that have soared far beyond the reach of many in Spain,” says Guardian reporter Ashifa Kassam. Sánchez said housing prices have increased 48 percent in the past decade across Europe. “The west faces a decisive challenge: to not become a society divided into two classes, the rich landlords and the poor tenants,” he said. Other measures he proposes include increasing the supply of social housing, offering incentives to real estate owners who renovate and rent out properties at affordable prices and cracking down on seasonal rentals. Sanchez said in 2023 non-European residents bought about 27,000 houses and flats in Spain. They did it to speculate not to live in them which in the context of a housing shortage Spain cannot permit, said Sánchez. Sánchez may have difficulty passing the 100 percent tax but the proposal may create enough uncertainty to deter property buyers, the Guardian story suggested.
“How Undocumented Immigrants Are a Resource for Social Security,” Jan. 13, 2025, New York Times
Undocumented immigrants paid an estimated $25.7 billion in Social Security taxes in 2022, money for which they would receive no benefits during retirement unless their immigration status had changed. That statistic illustrates one of the consequences of massive deportation of undocumented immigrants – it would weaken the financial stability of the Social Security program. “It’s hard to predict whether the incoming administration will be able to follow through with its most aggressive promises, among them sending home the estimated 11 million undocumented workers currently in the United States,” writes Times reporter Tara Siegel Bernard. “But if the White House does follow through, economists project a broad drag on the economy – and it could cost Social Security roughly $20 billion in cash flow annually,” she says. That shortfall would come at a time when “falling birthrates mean fewer people are paying into the program, thousands of baby boomers are retiring daily, and retirees are collecting benefits for longer periods."
“Biden Extends Protected Status for Nearly One Million Immigrants,” Washington Post, Jan. 10, 2025
Immigrants from Venezuela, El Salvador, Ukraine and Sudan who have been designated as having “temporary protected status,” or TPS, will be eligible to renew their work permits for 18 months, the Biden administration announced Jan. 10. The designation was created by a 1990 law that protects immigrants from being deported to countries “engulfed in conflict or natural disasters,” wrote Post reporters Nick Miroff, Maria Sacchetti and Marianne LeVine. The move protects nearly one million immigrants from deportation until the 18 month period expires. The largest group to benefit is from Venezuela, with some 600,000 eligible to renew their protected status through October 2026. About 232,000 Salvadorans are eligible, as are 103,700 Ukrainians, and 1,900 Sudanese. “Critics of the TPS program have long argued that repeat extensions flout the temporary intent of the law, and that the protections were never meant to bestow long-term U.S. residency on immigrants who don’t otherwise qualify for legal status,” the Post reporters said. U.S. officials have extended the protections for Salvadorans a dozen times over the past two decades. El Salvador’s extension was based on a continuing environmental disaster there. “The country has not fully recovered from the 2001 earthquakes and continues to experience powerful hurricanes, landslides and poverty,” the Post said.
“Trump Seeking a Disease to Pin on Immigrants,” New York Times, Jan. 10, 2025
Later this month President-elect Donald J. Trump is expected to justify closing off the border with Mexico by declaring that migrants crossing into the U.S. pose a public health emergency -- never mind that his aides are struggling to specify what it is. In his first term, Covid allowed Trump to clamp down on migrant crossings by invoking Title 42 public health restrictions. But “as he prepares to enter office again, Mr. Trump has no such public health disaster to point to,” write Times reporters Zolan Kanno-Youngs and Hamed Aleaziz. Using relatively few cases of some disease such as tuberculosis “or even a vague fear of illness – rather than a major disease outbreak or pandemic – would amount to a radical use of the public health measure in pursuit of an immigration crackdown.” Asserting broadly that migrants come from different countries and may have unfamiliar diseases has been under consideration – an approach that “echoes a racist notion with a long history in the United States that minorities transmit infections.” It’s up to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, not the White House, to assess whether Title 42 is needed at the border. When Covid was spreading throughout the U.S. the CDC resisted the idea that denying entry to migrants was an effective way to control the disease. A CDC official said Trump’s decision to adopt the 42 restrictions ignored CDC experts and was given to CDC by the White House.
“Mexico President Trolls Trump With ‘Mexico America’ Map After His ‘Gulf of America’ Name Change Proposal,” CBS News, Jan. 9, 2025
Responding sarcastically to a proposal by Donald Trump to rename the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum proposed Jan. 8 that North America should be renamed “América Mexicana” or Mexican America. She said a founding document dating from 1814 that preceded the Mexican constitution referred to it that way. She added that the Gulf of Mexico has had that name since 1607. House Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia said she would introduce legislation Jan.9 to make the name change Trump wants.
“Venezuelan Opposition Leader María Corina Machado ‘Kidnapped,’ Allies Say,” The Guardian, Jan. 9, 2025
The most influential leader of the opposition to Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro was “violently intercepted” after emerging from hiding to speak out against his planned swearing in Jan. 10 to begin a third term as president. María Corina Machado’s representatives said in a statement that “regime officials opened fire on the motorbikes that were transporting her” and that she was knocked off her motorbike and was taken by force after leaving the rally and compelled to record a number of videos. Three hours after their announcement her supporters said she had been released. The 57-year-old Machado had emerged to speak after being holed up for more than 133 days in a secret location said Guardian reporter Tom Phillips.
"Venezuela's Political Newcomer Edmundo Gonzales Says
It’s His Turn to Rule,” Associated Press, Jan. 8, 2025
Venezuelan opposition leader Edmundo González has left exile in Spain to travel to other countries to gather support for his inauguration as president of the South American country. Impartial observers say Gonzalez won far more votes than the current president Nicolàs Maduro in Venezuela’s recent presidential election, but Maduro was set to be sworn in for a six-year term as president Jan. 10 after waging a campaign of repression to retain power. “González, who has been recognized by several governments including the U.S. as Venezuela’s president-elect, has not said how he plans to return or wrest power from Maduro, whose ruling party controls all aspects of government,” wrote AP reporter Regina Garcia Cano. Maduro’s government appears to be stepping up repression in the hours before his planned new term, detaining for several hours María Corina Machado (see story above). In addition, González said his son-in-law Rafael Tudares had been kidnapped in Caracas Jan. 7. González’s foreign stops have included Argentina, where an estimated 220,000 Venezuelans reside, and Uruguay. Their leaders declared support for his presidency. He also visited the United States, where he met with President Joe Biden and a representative for incoming President Donald Trump, who also have voiced support.
“House Passes Bill to Deport Immigrants Charged With Minor Crimes,” New York Times, Jan. 8, 2025
The House passed a bill Jan. 7 also expected to clear the Senate that would deport migrants charged with nonviolent crimes. “The bill would require federal authorities to detain undocumented immigrants charged with burglary, theft, larceny or shoplifting, broadening the list of charges that would subject them to being held and potentially deported,” said Times reporter Karoun Demirjian. The bill is named after Laken Riley, a 22-year-old nursing student killed in 2024 in Georgia by an illegal migrant from Venezuela who was arrested and charged with shoplifting but not detained prior to killing Riley. A total of 48 Democrats joined with Republicans in voting for the bill, but those who objected said it would result in the arrest of innocent people. “Unfortunately, there are countless real-life examples of people getting wrongfully arrested for crimes they didn’t commit,” said Rep. Pramila Jayapal, a Democrat from Washington. The bill also would allow state attorneys general to sue the U.S. attorney general or homeland security secretary if an immigrant who enters the U.S. illegally is released and goes on to commit other crimes that harm the state or its residents. Republicans are optimistic that with their control of the House and Senate and White House they will pass similar measures. “Those include bills to increase deportations, hold asylum applicants outside of the United States, and strip federal funding from cities that limit their cooperation with federal immigration enforcement authorities,” Demirjian said.
“Schools Brace for ICE Agents at Their Doors,” New York Times, Jan. 8, 2025
New York and some other school districts around the U.S. are preparing educators and immigrant families for a possible wave of deportations once Donald Trump returns to the White House. The New York City school system has enrolled about 40,000 immigrant students since 2022. In New York City, officials have told school principals and school security staff to immediately call a school district lawyer if Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents show up and demand access to a school. They are supposed to ask the agents to wait outside while they call the lawyer. In the absence of legal help it isn’t easy to ascertain whether the agents have a judicial warrant. The city says without such a warrant it won’t consent to nonlocal law enforcement accessing school facilities. The Mount Diablo school district outside of San Francisco plans an information session later this month for parents explaining that under current law undocumented immigrant children have the right to a public education, and that federal immigration agents generally can’t arrest students or family members at schools. Also, American public schools typically don’t track immigration status. ICE officials have been restricted in the past from making arrests at schools, but Trump is under pressure from right-wing policy advocates to allow arrests there. Some immigrant families are so afraid now about the possibility of deportation “that they are reluctant to separate from their children for even part of the day,” wrote Times reporter Dana Goldstein. In New York City, anxious parents are being counseled to keep their children attending school and to not skip a single court date because that’s a sure-fire way to get removed from the country.
“Trump Will Not Rule Out Force to Take Panama Canal, Greenland,” Reuters, Jan. 7, 2025
President-Elect Donald Trump told reporters Jan. 7 that he won’t rule out using military or economic action to pursue acquisition of the Panama Canal and Greenland. “But I can say this, we need them for economic security,” he said. The Panamanian foreign minister , Javier Martinez-Acha, replied that “the only hands that control the canal are Panamanian and that’s how it will continue to be.” Trump also promised to rename the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America. Mexican Economy Minister Marcelo Ebrard said “Today I’d tell you if we saw each other in 30 years , the Gulf of Mexico will still be called the Gulf of Mexico.”
“Cuba’s ‘Invisible’ Tragedy: US-Bound Migrants Who Disappear in the Caribbean,” Agence France-Presse
[Posted out of chronological order to catch up to a Dec. 25, 2024 story.]
“The Caribbean has become a watery grave for Cubans fleeing a severe economic crisis on the communist island and headed for Florida.” So writes Agence France-Presse reporter Letitia Pineda, who notes that at least 368 Cubans have died or disappeared on the Caribbean migratory route to the U.S. since 2020, according to the International Organization for Migration. She says that the US Coast Guard repatriated a similar number, 367, in the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, 2024 who tried to enter the U.S. illegally. But that doesn’t mean Cubans won’t keep trying. Cuba is experiencing its worst economic crisis since the fall of its main ally the Soviet Union in the 1990s. The wave of emigration from the island is the largest since the revolution that put its leader Fidel Castro in power in 1959. About one million inhabitants have left Cuba since 2012. More than 700,000 Cubans entered the US legally or illegally between January 2022 and August 2024. “Unlike in the Mediterranean, where NGOs track migrant boats and organize rescue missions, the plight of the people crossing the Caribbean goes largely undocumented,” Pineda says. People attempting to cross often keep their preparations quiet because Cuba considers what they are doing to be illegal and they do not want to worry their families. Interviews with 21 relatives of 32 Cubans who went missing at sea Jan. 3, 2023 all found them desperate to know what happened to their loved ones. “We need to know whatever the answer is…because the uncertainty is unbearable,” said the mother of a man among the people missing.
“In Era of Possible Tariffs, Mexico Beckons,” New York Times, Jan. 2, 2025
Businesses in Mexico see an opportunity for growth with the return of Donald Trump to the White House despite his threats to impose tariffs on that country. That may be the case because Trump’s animosity toward China may be greater than that toward Mexico. “The last time Mr. Trump was president, he unleashed a trade war against China that proved beneficial to Mexican industry,” says Times reporter Peter S. Goodman. “Companies that relied on Chinese factories to make goods for the American market shifted production to plants in Mexico to avoid Mr. Trump’s tariffs.” This “nearshoring” trend accelerated when President Biden extended tariffs on Chinese imports. The soaring price of shipping during the pandemic underscored the risks of relying on distant factories in China. This has made Mexico an even more attractive place for manufacturing. But Mexico faced a high-stakes question when Trump in November threatened to impose a 25 percent tariff on all goods entering the U.S. from Mexico and Canada. Was it a bluff to pressure Mexico to do more to stop the flow of migrants and drugs into the U.S.? Or did he really plan to put tariffs on Mexican imports to force companies to move their production to the United States? “Hanging in the balance,” notes Goodman, “is the pace of investment and job growth in Mexico, along with the availability of a vast profusion of imported goods in the United States – from fresh fruits and vegetables to auto parts.” Businesses in Mexico predict they are in a position to thrive under Trump. That’s because if he increases tariffs on China that will augment the need for alternative places to manufacture products. “Trump hates China more than he hates Mexico,” said the head of an apparel business outside Mexico City that exports to the U.S. “This is a huge opportunity.” But another Latin American expert says companies need to get more clarity before investing in Mexico.
“A Decades-Old Dance Style Beguiles a New Generation,” The New York Times, Jan. 2, 2025
Under a noisy overpass on the decaying fringes of Rio de Janeiro, a 1970’s dance style called charme – Portuguese for the word charm – is attracting younger Brazilians adding their own distinctive moves. “There is something spiritual, an energy that can only be found here,” says Marcus Avezedo, a dance instructor who has founded a dance company based on the style. The dance “is rooted in the influx of Black music and culture from the United States in the 1970s and 1980s,” writes Times reporter Ana Ionova. “At a time when Rio’s far-flung impoverished outskirts offered young people few sources of pride or identity, the rhythm and style of American artists like James Brown and Stevie Wonder emerged as an inspiration.” When Black social clubs went out of business in the 1990s, charme enthusiasts moved to the underpass where they could dance undisturbed. “The swings carry a hint of bossa nova’s sway; the two-steps have a distinct samba flavor; and the bold hip bounces channel Brazilian funk.” Now the scene is a symbol of Black identity and culture in working-class Rio. More local music is getting blended in. “We’re not going to stop playing those songs we love,” a local disc jockey told the Times. “But today, charme is more Brazilian. And this is part of our evolution.”
“Dominican Republic Deported More Than 276,000 Haitians in 2024,” CNN World, Jan. 2, 2025
In the last three months of 2024 the Dominican Republic deported more than 94,000 Haitians, part of an operation with a goal of deporting up to 10,000 undocumented Haitians per week. The deportations, which totaled than 276,000 for all of 2024, aimed to address an “excess” of Haitians, a Dominican Republic government spokesman said. A Haitian government official recently condemned “brutal scenes of raids and deportations” and demanded justice for “dehumanizing acts” against Haitians. The people deported were sent back to a country in which more than 80 percent of the capital Port au Prince is under gang control. Dominican officials said the deportations were carried out in accordance with human rights.
“Mexican Mayor’s Odyssey Now Includes Trying to Stay Alive,” New York Times, Jan. 2, 2025
When Crispín Augustín Mendoza waged his campaign to become mayor of the small town of Alcozauca in southwest Mexico, gunmen came in the night and sprayed his home with gunfire as his wife and children screamed in fear. Mendoza stayed in the race and won, placing him “among the politicians who somehow survived assassination attempts this year in one of the most violent election cycles in Mexico’s recent history,” said Times reporter Simon Romero. Now, a security detail of six solders accompanies Mendoza around the clock. He’s “getting a frontline glimpse of the cartel turf battles overwhelming Guerrero, a Mexican state of 3.5 million known for exceptionally brutal attacks on public officials in recent weeks.” They include the beheading of a mayor in the capital of the state and the shooting death of a judge in broad daylight in Acapulco. Mendoza thinks the shooting attack on his house was meant to kill him and might have been waged by a cartel backing a rival candidate. Being mayor is very good business, he said, allowing officials to skim money from public works and distribute some of it to allies. In Guerrero, dozens of smaller cartels battle for control of extortion rackets, smuggling routes and trafficking of drugs, mainly crystal meth. Mendoza notes that these groups require the cooperation of local officials. A developer of housing built for Mexicans who send back money from jobs in the United States, Mendoza aims to complete his three-year term of mayor with the goal of improving life in Alcozauca. But “you have to assume one day you’ll be attacked and killed,” he told the Times.
“Trinidad and Tobago Declares State of Emergency Over Rising Crime,” New York Times, Jan. 2, 2025
The Caribbean nation of Trinidad and Tobago has empowered its military to make arrests and hold suspects without charge for 48 hours to counter a sharp increase in gang-related killings. Authorities also can enter suspects’ homes without warrants and deny them bail, said Times reporters Frances Robles and Prior Beharry. The government assumed these powers in declaring a state of emergency in response to a record 623 homicides in 2024 though late December. The previous record, in 2022, was 599 homicides. The situation has worsened because Trinidad’s proximity to Venezuela allows criminals easy access to high-powered weapons. Gangs are using AR-15s and AK-47s, said the country’s acting attorney general, Stuart Young. Adding to the violence is the location of Trinidad and Tobago between cocaine-producing South American countries and their biggest customer, the United States. An investigator for Insight Crime, which studies organized crime, told the Times that “we’re talking small and deeply territorial street gangs engaged in mostly street-level drug dealing, arms trafficking and other activities. They are extremely violent.” Attiliah Springer, who works with at-risk youth, said many people involved in community work believe that “what this state of emergency is going to do is kill young Black men, and that’s a frightening prospect.” Though aimed at people in gangs, the measures are likely to sweep up innocent people, she said. In April 2024 the Caribbean Community of nations recommended engagement with the U.S. government about the illegal entry of guns from American manufacturers fueling gang violence.
Comments
Post a Comment