A group of 48 mostly Venezuelan immigrants who were airlifted from Texas to Martha’s Vineyard last week are suing Florida Gov. Ron DeSandis and his administration for allegedly orchestrating a “fraudulent and discriminatory” scheme. The class action comes as at least two law enforcement agencies are also investigating the governor’s plans to allegedly “lure” immigrants with false promises of employment and financial aid. After the DeSantis administration dismissed reports of a second flight, this time to Delaware, immigrants in San Antonio told the Miami-Herald how they were lured onto a scheduled flight to the state with false promises of employment and aid before it was abruptly canceled. In the days after the flights, in interviews and in court documents, stories of the migrants and their harrowing journeys across the US-Mexico border emerged, including one man’s alleged torture and abuse at the hands of drug cartels. Gov. DeSantis and his aides have repeatedly defended sending immigrants to Democratic-led states and cities in protest of what they call the president’s “open borders” policy.
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Tragic photo shows Guatemalan migrant children at US border alone with phone numbers written on shirts
On Wednesday, U.S. border agents encountered two Guatemalan brothers, ages two and six, who had crossed into the U.S. without their families, with the names and phone numbers of their U.S. contacts written on their shirts. The boys were part of a larger group of 18 migrants from Honduras, Guatemala and Cuba who were confronted by agents near La Grula, Texas, in the southern part of the state in the Rio Grande Valley region. “Many of the unaccompanied children encountered by the Border Patrol are too young to provide names or phone numbers of family members,” the agency said in a news release.
Tragic photo shows migrant children from Guatemala alone at the US border
Recent controversial immigration programs by the governors of Florida and Texas have uprooted young people crossing the border Alex Woodward23 September 2022 08:00 1663912800
Massachusetts lawmaker: Immigrant families ‘incredibly grateful’ after moving to Cape Cod sanctuary
Massachusetts state representative Dylan Fernandes, who represents Martha’s Vineyard, told the Independent that the Venezuelan immigrants who arrived on the island are “incredibly grateful” for the community’s support and are in good health after moving to a largest retreat on Cape Cod. “Everyone’s needs are more than met,” he told The Independent on Thursday, a week after their surprise arrival in the state. “Every person has their own space, families have their own space. There is great access to health care, including dental health and other types of care such as crisis management and mental health,” he said. Lawyers from housing organizations help them with long-term housing solutions, and immigration lawyers also help with their asylum cases and navigate their legal status and resources while in the US. “The people there are in good spirits and in good health and deeply grateful,” he said. Several people have left the shelter and headed to New York, among other destinations, where they have contacts. Alex Woodward23 September 2022 07:00 1663909200
Migrants have been injured, kidnapped and abused, according to volunteers
Venezuelan migrants seeking asylum in the U.S. have survived injuries, torture and kidnapping during their perilous journey across the U.S.-Mexico border, according to volunteers providing support at a Martha’s Vineyard shelter. “What they had to go through is horrible,” according to Sergio Racig, who told the Martha’s Vineyard Times that he spent the night with a group of men at the church where the migrants slept during a two-day stay on the island after unannounced flights from the Texas chartered by Florida Governor Ron DeSandis had taken them. One man was “abducted in Mexico,” according to Mr. Racig, who described a man with a broken jaw and missing teeth. Another man was injured climbing a train. The men were among a group of about 50 mostly Venezuelan migrants who arrived on the island — among abduction and trafficking victims, children and other survivors of abuse who have been sent from Texas to US cities. Alex Woodward23 September 2022 06:00 1663905600
Aides to DeSantis said Democrats and the media fell for the “misinformation” about the Delaware flights. But the migrants said they were left behind
Days after a group of immigrants boarded planes chartered by Florida Gov. Ron DeSandis from Texas to Martha’s Vineyard, a woman was recruiting other immigrants to board another flight — this time from San Antonio to Delaware. While the governor was on Fox News defending his program in Massachusetts, another group of immigrants were in their hotel rooms preparing for what they were told would be a flight to Delaware, where they would receive financial aid and employment. The flight was abruptly cancelled. Officials and aid teams remained throughout the day to welcome migrants waiting to arrive at a small airport on the Delaware coast. Aides to DeSantis said the media and Democrats fell for the misinformation and “went nuts.” Migrants, meanwhile, have returned to San Antonio after being lured to hotels with false promises of a fresh start.
‘It was all a scam’: Immigrants reveal DeSantis’ plans to fly from Delaware
Governor’s agents allegedly left asylum seekers stranded after false promises and a canceled flight Alex Woodward23 September 2022 05:00 1663902005
ICYMI: Ron DeSantis chartered immigrant flights from GOP donor
An airline hired by the administration has donated thousands of dollars to Republican causes — including the governor’s campaign and a state lawmaker at the center of his legislative agenda.
Ron DeSantis chartered immigrant flights from GOP donor, report says
An airline chartered by the government has donated thousands of dollars to Republican causes, including the governor’s campaign and a state lawmaker central to his legislative agenda Alex Woodward23 September 2022 04:00 1663898405
Beto O’Rourke slams ‘cruel and rude’ migrant flights
Beto O’Rourke, who will face incumbent Republican Greg Abbott in the Texas governor’s race this fall, condemned the governor’s “heinous” moves to send hundreds of immigrants from the state to cities across the US. He said, “What I’m proposing is instead of these stunts, which are so cruel and rude, not only to those immigrants, but to those of us who live in Texas, to the border patrol agents, who we put on their backs all this. immigration system that is so badly broken [is] What if instead, we had a Texas-based guest worker program or the ability to join the family and not wait 20 years in line? “What if Texas led us to rewrite our immigration laws to reflect our values and our interests and our needs, and we said, ‘Look, if you want to come to this country, you have to follow our laws’, but our laws will follow our values’. I want Texas to lead on this.”
Beto O’Rourke slams ‘cruel and rude’ migrant flights
Texas police officer investigating flights arranged by Ron DeSandis Alex Woodward23 September 2022 03:00 1663894805
Jon Stewart blasts DeSantis over migrant flights
The former host of The Daily Show and the man behind The Problem with Jon Stewart said Ron DeSantis’ “trick” of removing immigrants from Texas and sending them hundreds of miles away to Martha’s Vineyard “did exactly what he wanted to do”. The plan “jumped his profile, made him a hero among those for whom cowardice is one of those unique qualities they look for in their leaders,” he said.
Jon Stewart blasts DeSantis over migrant flights
“That stunt did exactly what he wanted to do, which was to rise above his profile, make him a hero among those for whom brashness is one of those unique qualities they look for in their leaders.” Alex Woodward23 September 2022 02:00 1663891205
ICYMI: Texas sheriffs say immigrants ‘exploited and hoodwinked’ as probe opens into DeSantis flights
Announcing an investigation into last week’s migrant flights from San Antonio to Martha’s Vineyard, Texas Sheriff Javier Salazar of Bexar County condemned what he called a “political stance” on removing migrants from the state. “What angers me the most about this case is that here we have 48 people who are already on hard times, they’re here in the country legally at that point,” he said during a news conference Monday. “They have every right to be where they are, and I believe they were victimized – someone came from the state, victimized these people, lured them in with promises of a better life, which is what they were absolutely looking for, with the knowledge that they were going to cling to whatever hope they could be offered … just to take advantage of them and hoodwink them into making this journey,” he said.
Texas sheriff to investigate Florida for transporting immigrants to Martha’s Vineyard
Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar says the migrants “have every right to be where they are and I believe they were robbed” Alex Woodward23 September 2022 01:00 1663887605
Immigrants sent to Martha’s Vineyard were given pamphlets with false promises of help and jobs. Who made them?
People seeking asylum in the US were handed official-looking documents before boarding flights to Massachusetts booked by Florida Gov. Ron DeSandis. But the Massachusetts refugee agency he names on the flyers didn’t make them. The DeSantis administration won’t say who did it, but the governor defended them. The flyers are part of a class action lawsuit filed by a group of…
