Ray's First, Last Hearing

1/6/20

Upon reaching the United States, those hoping to request asylum must make an asylum claim to border officials. Depending on where individuals file their claim, they may be sent to a Detention Center and then deported to various countries (such as Honduras, Guatemala, and for the most part, the border zone between the US and Mexico) where they will wait for a series of court hearings to determine if their claim was accepted. During court hearings, they must defend their asylum claim to a judge in hopes they will grant them the opportunity to resettle in the US. Essentially, people must retell their personal experiences of displacement and the events leading up to their decision to flee to a judge they have never met before. Metaphorically speaking, the judge is their gateway to the future people seeking asylum have all traveled hundreds of miles to create for themselves. 

While the process seems logical, the system is incredibly arbitrary and cases are subjected to a level of scrutiny that one can only assume that it is built to deny as many asylum claims as possible, no matter their validity. Due to routine deportations and outright denying the entry of people hoping to migrate across the US’ southernmost border, refugee camps are forming along the border zone between the US and Mexico. One of these camps is in Matamoros, Tamaulupas. To provide some context, Tamaulipas is generally considered one of the most insecure states in Mexico. The US Department of Security recommends people not travel there due to kidnapping and crime, stating on its official website the following “Organized crime activity – including gun battles, murder, armed robbery, carjacking, kidnapping, forced disappearances, extortion, and sexual assault – is common along the northern border and in Ciudad Victoria” https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/traveladvisories/traveladvisories/mexico-travel-advisory.html. 

I first became aware of the unjust court hearing process upon meeting my good friend and colleague, Ray, in the refugee camp in Matamoros. Ray has lived in Matamoros for months and has undergone four court hearings and two additional hearings that were cancelled after he made the journey to the court office. Making this journey is no easy task, it requires that Ray, among others, must wait on the entry bridge beginning at 4:30 am where he will wait for hours, so  that he can make his hearing at 9:30 am. On Ray’s first “last” court hearing I decided to attend, along with a reporter from NPR and colleague. Upon our arrival, we were immediately subjected to a line of questioning and were stripped of all devices that could be used to record or document the proceedings. 

We decided to attend the court hearing in hopes of providing support to a close friend, and were subjected to a level of despotism so incredible I was inspired to create this blog. Once we rid ourselves of our phones, pencils and notepads, we signed our names, and were then patted down three separate times and put through a metal detector, I’m assuming to ensure we were attending with nothing more than the clothes on our back. We then signed our names a second time, and a Border Patrol official took all of our licenses. Raynaldo, the NPR reporter, was then subjected to a line of questioning, I can only assume it was out of their concern he would report what he would soon witness during Ray’s US immigration proceedings. We were then seated on a bench where we waited for an officer to escort us to Ray’s proceedings. 

We waited on the bench as four guards hovered over us, watching our every move. I quickly befriended a woman who was similarly awaiting her friend’s court hearing. Our muttered conversation was apparently too much excitement for the immigration officials, who almost immediately stormed over to relay the rules of the immigration court: 

1. No walking freely in the immigration court 

2. No talking If one must relieve themselves, they must raise their hand and request an escort to the bathroom

3. Do not speak to people undergoing the court hearings 

4. Do not speak to any immigration lawyers

Upon their methodical relay of the rules of the court, they demanded the name of Ray’s judge so that we could wait outside of the proceedings. 

None of us knew, as we were instructed to leave all of the materials that contained that information - i.e. notepads, phones, ipad, etc. Eventually, the immigration officials verified where Ray’s hearing was being held, and informed us that no one was allowed to witness final court hearings. Ray, his lawyer and the immigration judge were the only people allowed to witness the proceeding. With that, we left and now we wait to learn from Ray the decision of the final hearing.