EXCLUSIVE: Video Shows Migrants Released by Biden Admin Camping on El Paso Streets

EL PASO, Texas — Migrants recently released by the Biden administration erected makeshift structures for several blocks and alleyways around the Sacred Heart Church in downtown El Paso. The migrants sought shade as afternoon temperatures neared 100 degrees Fahrenheit on Wednesday. Breitbart Texas observed the migrants, unable to bathe for several days, searching for relief from the heat on the city’s sidewalks and business entryways.

The migrants, many from Venezuela, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, and Haiti, lay on the sidewalks of the city for three blocks surrounding the church. The migrants who spoke to Breitbart Texas said they had been living on the streets for anywhere between one and nine days after their release from Border Patrol custody.

The video above shows the crudely fashioned shade structures consisting of American Red Cross blankets, bed sheets, and cardboard in front of the church and for several blocks in the vicinity. Breitbart Texas counted more than one thousand migrants camped out in the area. Many more roamed farther from the area visiting downtown restaurants and businesses.

Randy Clark/Breitbart Texas

The scene is reminiscent of the September 2021 Haitian migrant crisis in Del Rio when nearly 20,000 mostly Haitian migrants crossed the Rio Grande and erected crudely built shelters on the banks of the river. One Dominican Republic migrant in downtown El Paso told Breitbart Texas he and most of the others camped out on the street have no money to pay for housing or travel away from the city. Jose Enrique, who is nearly 30 years old, says he will stay on the city’s streets until there is some way to get out of the border city.

As reported by Breitbart Texas, Border Patrol agents assigned to the El Paso Sector apprehended more than 41,000 migrants in April — making the sector the busiest crossing point along the southwest border. The April apprehension figure is up from the 39,512 taken into custody in March.

Randy Clark/Breitbart Texas

The city has experienced a surge in migrant crossings in recent weeks as the May 11 deadline for the expiration of the Title 42 Emergency COVID-19 expulsion authority approaches. In a recent joint press conference with Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas issued a statement concerning conditions at the border. Mayorkas told reporters “The smuggler’s propaganda is false. Let me be clear: Our border is not open and will not be open after May 11th.”

The video contradicts the Secretary’s border assessment and shows the scale of the routine DHS practice of “catch and release” for a significant number of migrants along the southwest border.

As the deadline for the sunset of the emergency COVID-19 expulsion order approaches, a similar situation is playing out in multiple border cities such as Brownsville, Texas, where released migrants are also seeking food and shelter in the downtown area.

In El Paso, a Migrant Situational Awareness Dashboard operated by the City reports Border Patrol officials released nearly 3,100 migrants during the past two weeks.

Randy Clark is a 32-year veteran of the United States Border Patrol.  Prior to his retirement, he served as the Division Chief for Law Enforcement Operations, directing operations for nine Border Patrol Stations within the Del Rio, Texas, Sector. Follow him on Twitter @RandyClarkBBTX.