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Title 42 expired, but for border towns, life goes on around immigration policy
For the residents of Brownsville, Texas, the national spotlight often
accompanies an increase in border crossings. But life goes on here, with or
without the media attention.

NPR


POLITICS

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POLITICS


AS IMMIGRATION DEBATE PLAYS OUT, BORDER TOWNS WANT TO PAINT A DIFFERENT PICTURE

May 16, 20235:30 AM ET
Heard on Morning Edition

Ashley Lopez

AS IMMIGRATION DEBATE PLAYS OUT, BORDER TOWNS WANT TO PAINT A DIFFERENT PICTURE

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Enlarge this image

Migrants wait at the Gateway International port of entry under U.S. Customs and
Border Protection custody in Brownsville, Texas, on May 5, before being sent
back to Mexico under then-active Title 42 restrictions. Veronica G. Cardenas/AP
hide caption

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Veronica G. Cardenas/AP


Migrants wait at the Gateway International port of entry under U.S. Customs and
Border Protection custody in Brownsville, Texas, on May 5, before being sent
back to Mexico under then-active Title 42 restrictions.

Veronica G. Cardenas/AP

When a Trump-era immigration policy — known as Title 42 — expired last week,
there were expectations that it would lead to an increase in the number of
people coming into the U.S. through many of the country's southern border towns.

In the past several days, though, that has not been a reality. In fact, there
has been an overall decrease in border crossings so far.

Rudy Flores works in downtown Brownsville, one of the southernmost cities in the
United States. It sits right on the border between Texas and Mexico. Often
border towns get media attention when something happens with U.S. immigration
policy. He says a lot of what he hears in the media often does not match his
experience.

"They are making it seem worse than it is," Flores said. "It's just calm. They
are just trying to get somewhere."

In general, an increase in attention from media and policymakers during national
debates over immigration policy causes some resentment among people who actually
live along the U.S.-Mexico border. Flores says this time is no different.

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"For me, nothing has changed even though I work downtown," he said. "Just a
little bit more traffic — foot traffic. But other than that, it's normal to me."

Enlarge this image

A pedestrian carries supplies as he enters Texas after crossing over from Mexico
at the Gateway International Bridge on March 20, 2020, in Brownsville. Eric
Gay/AP hide caption

toggle caption
Eric Gay/AP


A pedestrian carries supplies as he enters Texas after crossing over from Mexico
at the Gateway International Bridge on March 20, 2020, in Brownsville.

Eric Gay/AP

Brenda Gomez was born and raised in Brownsville and loves living there. She says
that because it's on the border, the city is a mix of Mexican and American
cultures.

"I grew up in Mexican culture," she says. "So I am at home. Every time I travel
outside of the valley, I like it, but it just feels like home whenever you come
back here. So, I like the culture. I like the people."

Gomez says crossing back and forth between Mexico and the U.S. is also part of
life here.

"I travel to Mexico a lot," she says. "So every time I go into Mexico and then I
come back and I see people wanting to cross over or just being held there for so
long. It has its pros and its cons."

On the one hand, Gomez says she's OK with people coming to the U.S. in search of
a better life. But, she says, people already living in these border towns need
help too.


NATIONAL


IMMIGRATION POLICY IS UNCERTAIN NOW THAT TITLE 42 HAS BEEN LIFTED


NATIONAL


FEAR AND CONFUSION, BUT NOT CHAOS, ALONG THE SOUTHERN BORDER AFTER TITLE 42 ENDS

Dani Marrero Hi is the communications director for a local organization called
LUPE, which is a generations-old community organizing group that works in the
Rio Grande Valley. Marrero Hi uses they/she pronouns.

They say immigration often becomes a focus for policymakers, but people and
voters whom their group talks to in the valley have a wide range of basic needs.

"Immigration is something that is important to the families that are already
here and the families that are arriving," they explained, about the concerns
facing families in Brownsville. "But what we hear most is, for example, access
to good-paying jobs, our infrastructure."



They said recent thunderstorms, which were relatively mild, caused school
closures and widespread flooding due to poor drainage in border communities.
Marrero Hi says basic public resources such as roads, water and electricity are
top of mind — and immigration is just another issue in the mix.

"Being in border towns, this is just part of life," they said. "That's in our
DNA. We all have immigration stories. I think where we get dismayed is when we
hear the state or national conversation or the way [Texas] Gov. [Greg] Abbott —
or at times even President Biden — talks about the border. It just doesn't ever
feel like they are talking to us."

Enlarge this image

Migrants receive pizza from volunteers after being released from a respite
center at the Texas-Mexico border on May 11 in Brownsville. Julio Cortez/AP hide
caption

toggle caption
Julio Cortez/AP


Migrants receive pizza from volunteers after being released from a respite
center at the Texas-Mexico border on May 11 in Brownsville.

Julio Cortez/AP

Marrero Hi says it is not surprising that the end of Title 42 resulted in a
focus on border communities, but they say the way these communities are
portrayed is often misleading.

"It's not at all the picture that I think people want to portray — or those
dehumanizing terms like 'waves' or 'surges' of people," Marrero Hi said. "It's
much more like families and individuals among the most vulnerable in the world
trying to find shoelaces, deodorant and a way to reunite with their families
here."

Every time there is this media attention, though, Marrero Hi says they hope it
creates an opportunity for policymakers to improve the situation on the border
for people already living here, as well as the families and individuals who just
arrived.

 * Title 42
 * U.S.-Mexico border
 * Brownsville, Texas
 * border
 * Immigration

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