Immigrant Caravans and 8 U.S. Code, Section 1324

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Promoted from the diaries by streiff. Promotion does not imply endorsement.
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For a recitation of the applicable federal law that deals with those who would knowingly aid in allowing illegal immigrants to enter the United States, see this link. I will mention the pertinent part as concerns this article:

(A)Any person who—

(i)

knowing that a person is an alien brings to or attempts to bring to the United States in any manner whatsoever such person at a place other than a designated port of entry or place other than as designated by the Commissioner regardless of whether such alien has received prior official authorization to come to, enter, or reside in the United States and regardless of any future official action which may be taken with respect to such alien…

In the case of these organized caravans from Central America making their way to our southern border, this should be an open a shut case because the organizers of knowingly bringing illegal aliens to America are known and they make no secret of their efforts. They are Pueblo Sin Fronteras, or People Without Borders (PSF). They, in turn are an offshoot of La Familia Latina Unida (LFLA), a Chicago-based 501(c) which advocates for illegal aliens.

The entire nexus of organizations is a study in how not to run an immigration system. LFLA was founded in 2001 by Elvira Arellano. She entered the country illegally from her native Mexico in 1997, was deported but within days was back in the United States where she lived in Oregon for three years before moving to Chicago. In 2002, she was again arrested for using a false social security number and order deported. However, since she had founded LFLA in 2001, an offshoot group Centro Sin Fronteras had taken her case to protect her. As of 2017 (that’s 15 years after her arrest), an immigration court granted a stay of her deportation.

Since 2010, these groups have been responsible for getting at least 1,000 illegal aliens across the border and into the United States. It is unclear who exactly founded PSF, but most attribute it to illegal immigrant activist Roberto Corona while organizing migrant workers near Southern Methodit University. In March 2018, PSF sponsored the first caravan from Central America by issuing a press statement demanding that Mexico and the United States:

…respect our rights as refugees and our right to dignified work to be able to support our families…open the[ir] borders to us because we are as much citizens as the people of the countries where we are and/or travel… and end all deportations which destroy families.

The group disbanded in Mexico City. This did not deter PSF which organized a larger caravan and made no secret they were going to challenge the US borders. This is the larger, more well-known caravan most recently brought to the border. They are the ones repelled with tear gas by CBP agents at San Ysidro, California.

These illegal immigrant rights groups have close ties with some factions of the Methodist church in the United States. For example, PSF’s executive director is Emma Lozano who is co-pastor of the Lincoln United Methodist Church in Chicago. Her brother was Rudy Lozano, a migrant worker organizer. Her nephew is Pepe Lozano, a known activist with the Communist Party USA and the Young Communist League. In 2014, her church in Chicago helped over 600 illegal immigrants apply for protection under DACA.

Of course, outlets like the New York Times are running interference for these groups. They claimed that “no group has claimed responsibility for organizing the caravan.” That is a partial truth because that is not how they act. However, according to the Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, and La Jornado, a Mexican publication, two members who are PSF- Dennis Omar Contreras and Rodrigo Abeja- are embedded within the caravan. In October, Irineo Mujica, a PSF activist in Mexico, was arrested for attacking a border guard on the border with Guatemala. Finally, at least three official PSF press releases have expressed support for the caravans.

Being these groups originate out of Chicago, they also have their hands in Democratic Party politics. Lozano was one of the first people to endorse J.B. Pritzker in his campaign against Bruce Rauner for Illinois governor in 2016. Surprisingly, she did so on official Lincoln United Methodist Church letterhead which is a violation of the Johnson Act prohibiting churches from endorsing political candidates.

Overall, PSF is a small organization believed to consist of no more than 100 members. They reported $34,000 in revenue in 2016 and $35,000 in expenditures. Most of that money came from the Public Welfare Foundation, a Leftwing organization that also funds the SPLC. In 2010, they received $60,000 from the National Immigration Forum which receives money from the MacArthur, Ford and Rockefeller Foundations.

The PSF does not need to be large or wealthy because they fall under the umbrella of the much larger and wealthier Centro Sin Fronteras. That group has a direct financial connection to the National Immigration Forum. This group is not an established 501(c), PAC or anything else, but a loose amalgamation of groups fighting for “comprehensive immigration reform,” which is code for amnesty, and for allowing Central Americans to enter the country illegally. Investigative reporters from a variety of sources have found that the two key financial contributors are the Ford Foundation and (surprise!) the Open Society foundation run and funded by George Soros.

Viridiana Vidal is a spokesperson for PSF and also Nevada state director for America’s Voice. She along with America’s Voice has been paid a consulting fee by the Immigrant Voters Win PAC which is exclusively funded by Soros money. That PAC also pays the salaries of the top executives at America’s Voice.

Unfortunately, all of this has come to light through the efforts of enterprising bloggers and investigative reporters. Most of the organizers or abetters of these caravans are located in the United States, mainly in San Francisco and Chicago. Yet despite having Chapter 8, Section 1324 of the US Code available to them, the Department of Homeland Security has done nothing. They do not even have to secure prosecutions, although it would be nice towards the bottom line. After all, the penalty calls for a fine of up to $10,000 for every illegal brought across the border per offender. However, it may help to disrupt the organizing efforts of those here in this country aiding and abetting caravans of illegal immigrants by bogging them down in court. If the Democrats want to talk immigration reform, then the Senate should open hearings into who aids and abets illegal immigrants, publicize it and make the penalties even harsher.

The tools for stopping this nonsense are available. The question is why they have not been used by the Department of Homeland Security or the Department of Justice, not to mention the fact that many of the people associated with these groups are, in fact, illegal immigrants. We are perhaps the only country in the world that allows people to illegally enter the country who then turn around and organize the entry of more illegal immigrants while openly flouting immigration laws and encouraging their violation all the while extending Constitutional rights to people who have no right to the protections of the Constitution. Welcome to the wacky, bizarre world of immigration enforcement.