SASABE, Ariz. (KGUN) — President-elect Donald Trump is promising mass deportations once he takes office, but deportations have already surged this year. Many asylum seekers coming into the country are now quickly sent back after President Biden added restrictions this summer.
Large groups of migrants overwhelmed Border Patrol last year, leading to widespread concerns about how well migrants are being vetted and the resources they receive.
Immigration activists continue to respond to the border to give asylum seekers a warm welcome, even now as the groups crossing are much smaller.
At the end of a long section of border wall east of Sasabe is a spot where migrants frequently cross the border into the U.S. They are usually shepherded by smugglers who take them through Mexico to the border.
Once on the U.S. side, it’s a short walk to a camp set up by humanitarian aid volunteers from groups like Humane Borders, Salvavision, and the Tucson and Green Valley Samaritans.
“Our job here is just to save lives,” said Helen Porter of Green Valley Samaritans. “We don’t have any political stance. We just don’t want people to die in the desert.”
At the camp, there are makeshift fire pits along with large, sturdy tents donated by the group No More Deaths. There, asylum seekers have a place to eat, sleep and stay warm while they wait for Border Patrol to pick them up.
Agents usually make rounds to pick them up a couple of times a day. Early Wednesday morning, they detained a small group that had crossed just hours before: two men from Bangladesh, another from India, and two women from Ecuador including one who is pregnant.
Before President Joe Biden’s executive order this summer, many asylum seekers would have a short stay in detention before being released to wait out their claims in the U.S.
Now, aid volunteers say those asylum claims usually don’t go far.
“They need an attorney. They need support. And just showing up is not gonna do it these days, that’s for sure,” said Porter. “They go to detention centers and they get deported.”
A second presidential term for Trump is looming, and could mean even more restrictions on asylum and on non-governmental organizations (NGOs).
Members of the Minnesota Freedom Fund came down to the border this week to see firsthand what’s happening. They pay immigration bonds for detained migrants.
“[Trump] actively thinks we are problematic,” said Jana Kooren, Director of Programs and Operations at Minnesota Freedom Fund. “We think it’s inherently unfair that people with money could be released from detention and people without money could stay in detention.”
They are preparing to defend their work during a more aggressive immigration policy under Trump.
Meanwhile, border volunteers vow they’ll keep helping migrants who are trying to start a life here.
“They are under threat for their life, so they will keep coming,” said Porter. “We’ll keep doing this [work] til we can’t do it anymore.”