Texas Governor Greg Abbott has launched a controversial billboard campaign in Central America and Mexico, warning migrants about the potential for sexual assault and abuse by traffickers. The graphic billboards, written in Spanish, English, and indigenous languages, aim to deter illegal immigration and highlight the dangers faced by women and families seeking entry into the United States. This move comes as Texas intensifies its hard-line stance on immigration ahead of President-elect Trump's administration.
By Daniel Wu, The Washington PostMigrants are detained by U.S. Border Patrol in Eagle Pass, Texas , moments after crossing the Rio Grande at the U.S.-Mexico border in September.
“Your wife and daughter will pay for the trip with their bodies.” reads another. “Coyotes lie. Don’t put your family at risk.” The state’s new advertising campaign calls attention to the potential violence and abuse immigrants face as they seek channels to enter the United States illegally. Experts agree that it’s a pressing issue, but some scholars questioned whether the graphic messaging that Abbott deemed “tough medicine” would effectively deter would-be migrants or address the dangers they face from traffickers.
“There is a largely unspoken sexual assault crisis impacting women and children, children migrating to the Texas border,” said Rose Luna, the CEO of the Texas Association Against Sexual Assault, who spoke with Abbott at Thursday’s news conference."… We applaud the state in recognizing the silent crisis and for acknowledging and elevating this very serious yet hidden issue.”
“We’re here to expose the truth,” Abbott said. “The truth to immigrants who are thinking about coming here.” A Washington Post review of millions of immigration court records found migrants from Mexico and Central America reported entering the United States to flee instability including gang violence in Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador and the rule of Nicolás Maduro in Venezuela. Asylum claims from “extra-continental” migrants from outside Mexico and Central America - including Chinese immigrants, who were also targeted by Abbott’s billboards - have also surged in recent years.
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