Above: Al Sharpton and delegation visit Del Rio, TX on Sept. 23 to support Hatians seeking asylum in the United Stated. Photo via Twitter.
Representing the National Action Network, Civil Rights Leader Rev. Al Sharpton vistited the border town of Del Rio, TX on Thursday to pray with Haitian migrantsa and call for a federal investigation into allegations of unfairness and mistreatment of those asylum seekers as his faith in Pres. Joe Biden fizzles. Even before his trip, Sharpton sharply criticized Pres. Biden for not delivering on his promises to Blacks related to voting rights and police reform .
“[Biden] said on election night: Black America, you had my back, I’ll have yours,” Sharpton tell the Washington Post.
He goes on to say, “Well, we’re being stabbed in the back, Mr. President.
The situation at the border adds insult to injury as Blacks in the diaspora seeking refuge from political turmoil and environmental ruins were rapidly returned to the U.S. just weeks after thousands of evacuees from Afghanistan were taken in carte blanche. Sharpton is likely agitated with the Democratic leader following the George Floyd policing bill becoming a stalmate.
"We need you to stop the stabbing – from Haiti to Harlem,” Sharpton continued in his conversation with The Post.
On his Thursday trip to the south Texas border town he said, “We want Border Patrol to be fully investigated, we want those involved to be brought to justice and we want to see asylum given to those who deserve it.”
The Biden administration has expelled most of them under Title 42. The remaning Haitian migrants were bused to processing facilities where they are being evaulated for next steps. Thos who qualify to enter the country on a declaration of asylum will be further processed while thos who do not may be detained or sent back to Haiti.
Sharpton implied that Biden is (figuratively speaking) is forgetting the bridge that brought him over by letting down “those that helped you get there.”
Sharpton noted that this is a "defining" moment for Biden's relationship with democratic leaning Blacks. Mr. Sharpton hopes that the federal government will get to the bottim of the double standard in how people of African descent appear to be discriminated against compared to other migrant groups and they border patrol agents aggressively used horses to prevent them from crossing into the camp. Patrolmen on horseback appeared to be lashing at families as they crossed through the water to get to the border and even if theyr were not, most critics agree that the approach was uncalled for. Approximately 15,000 Haitians set up a camp in Del Rio around the Internationlal Bridge, an unprecedented challenge to under-staffed agents. Paul Ratje, the phtographer who took the photos in question said he did not see anyone getting whipped and his images were taken out of context speaking exclusively to KTSM.
The purpose of the Sh
arpton's visit was to hold the United States and boder patrol agents accountable for flagrant contrast in the treatment of Haitians at the border.
Rev. Sharpton and his delegation also prayed for and with the Haitians who mainly found their way to Mexico after their leader was killed, their government crumbled and a catastrophic hurricane hit ewhri nation in back-to-back crises. They initally were not allowed to settle in Mexico due to the government there only permitting residency to manly Spanish speaking people. having been reportedly told by Coyotes that the U.S. border was open. In their push for fairness for Haitian refugees, the Sharpton delegation met resistance at their press conference from protesters, one calling Sharpton racist.
Included in the delegation were the following leaders:
Mayor Bruno Lozano, Del Rio, Texas
Jennifer Jones Austin, Chair NYC Racial Justice Commission, CEO of FPWA (Federation of Protestant Welfare Agencies)
Rev. Freddie Haynes, Senior Pastor Friendship West Baptist Church, Dallas, TX
Rev. Jamal Bryant, Pastor of New Birth Missionary Baptist Church, Atlanta, GA
Rev. James Dixon, President of Houston, TX, NAACP
The patrolmen in the photos have been placed on administrative leave the WHite House says and the situation is under investigation by the Department of Homeland Security.
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