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By Billal Rahman
Immigration Reporter
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"After 25 years, you have to develop some coping skills to deal with the trauma," said Reverend Randy J. Mayer, lead pastor at the Good Shepherd United Church of Christ in Sahuarita, Arizona. Reverend Mayer has been assisting migrants on the US-Mexico border for over two decades.
The veteran humanitarian aid worker told Newsweek how he came across a group of migrants who had been caught in the crossfire of a brutal shooting between rival cartel factions and the Border Patrol.
"A few of the people had been shot and injured, and I remember one of the men, his younger sister, being killed in the crossfire," Mayer said.
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"The rawness of that is still there. It's a dangerous situation out there, and the trauma that people have experienced touches you," he added as he paused to compose himself.
He said officers from Border Patrol helped the injured migrants about 14 miles east of Sasabe along the border wall. The Reverend recalls migrants stopping at his home in the middle of the night to plead for water and to use the phone to let relatives know they were safe.
He lived in Latin America with his wife, who is from the region, and he developed an emotional attachment to migrants that compelled him to help.
He said it has been "very emotional and painful to see people suffer so much".
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U.S. Border Patrol officers have faced accusations of discarding migrants' medication, baby formula, and clothes, according to multiple allegations.
A recent report, From Hope to Heartbreak, attempts to shine a light on the treatment of migrants at the hands of U.S. border officials.
The report was published as a collaboration between the ACLU, the Kino Border Initiative, ProtectAZ Health, the Sikh Coalition, and ACLU affiliates in Arizona, New Mexico, San Diego and Imperial Counties, and Texas.
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Migrants tend to carry only their most important personal belongings when making the treacherous and rugged journey to the United States. Medicine, essential documents, and objects that hold personal sentimental value for the person are regularly brought by migrants.
The report claims: "Border Patrol and its parent agency, Customs and Border Protection (CBP), have routinely confiscated life-saving medications and medical devices from adults and children who have illnesses such as seizure disorders, high blood pressure, diabetes, asthma, and genetic conditions.
"This violates federal law, causes migrants extreme hardship and distress, and can even be life-threatening in the case of medicine being disposed of."
The report highlights the case of a 5-year-old who suffered convulsions in custody after agents allegedly confiscated and failed to replace her seizure medicine. The child was reportedly admitted to a local hospital for two days.
The mother was unable to obtain medication for her child until they were released to a shelter in Las Cruces, New Mexico.
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Another claim highlighted in the report focuses on a 2-year-old child with a history of epileptic seizures who reportedly suffered six seizures after Border Patrol agents confiscated her medication.
An individual was allegedly forced by Border Patrol agents to throw away the ashes of his father, who had been cremated after passing away on the journey from Nicaragua to the U.S. southern border, according to the report.
Reverend Mayer, who is co-founder of the Green Valley-Sahuarita Samaritans Humanitarian Group, told Newsweek that it is "common" for Border Patrol to discard personal belongings of migrants when they are apprehended.
He described meeting a woman recently who claimed that Border Patrol took "baby formula, diapers, and our family dignity."
"A woman named Reyna and her four children, including 6-month-old Diego, escaped violence in Veracruz. They paid 10,000 pesos per person to a smuggler to get them across the border. We found them 20 miles east of Sasabe, Arizona, along the border wall," he said.
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"Because of Biden's Executive Order, which is essentially an asylum ban, Reyna was not even allowed to make an asylum plea. She said the agents just shouted over her so they couldn't hear her.
"Our humanitarian workers were in Nogales, Mexico, working at a shelter. They were surprised to encounter Reyna and her children. She felt so dejected. She recounted her story of humiliation and fear now that she was back in Mexico," he added.
Kino Border Initiative (KBI) is a humanitarian aid group that operates in Nogales, Sonora, and offers assistance to migrants in Mexico, such as food, medicine, shelter, and clothing. KBI shared testimony from migrants with Newsweek.
Emily and her baby were forced to flee gang violence in Guerrero. Once they made the grueling trek across the border, she tried to turn herself in, but Border Patrol allegedly ignored her, according to KBI.
Emily claims at least six trucks drove by, ignored her, and none offered help. Eventually, Emily and her child were taken to a detention center.
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Law enforcement officials allegedly took her baby's jacket, which resulted in the baby becoming ill. One of the female guards mocked Emily, it is claimed, and told her that she could take off her shirt to keep the baby warm.
When she asked to apply for asylum, a Border Patrol official allegedly told her "there is no asylum" and that she would be deported back to Mexico. She was denied asylum, remains separated from her husband, and has no idea where he is located.
Noah Schramm, a border policy strategist at the ACLU Arizona, told Newsweek there is a "pattern of disrespect and dehumanization of migrants" under the custody of border patrol.
Schramm said migrants have been subjected to "inhumane" conditions at the border, and the government is "very much accountable."
He said, "A big finding of the report is 1200 cases of migrants who went into Border Patrol custody and had vital medications taken away from them, which were not replaced, and they were released without them."
"Things like medicine, baby formula, and clothes are replaceable, but Border Patrol doesn't need to be confiscating these things," he added.
The CBP did not deny that accusation, but when contacted by Newsweek said: "U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) works to ensure that all employees maintain the highest level of professional standards in all interactions with individuals in custody. Specifically, U.S. Border Patrol (USBP) and the Office of Field Operations (OFO) personnel abide by CBP policies and procedures regarding the handling of personal property of individuals held in CBP custody."
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