'Don't Do It': Blinken Urges Illegal Immigrants Not to Take Risky Journeys to U.S. Southern Border

By Mary Anne Webber First Posted: Feb 26, 2021 10:59 PM EST

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is urging Central Americans without travel papers not to go through risky trips to the United States as the southern border is closed to illegal migration.

The Biden administration is currently grappling with fast-rising undocumented migration across the southern border. During an online meeting with officials in El Paso, Texas, and Mexico's Ciudad Juarez, Antony Blinken noted that the U.S. is strictly enforcing immigration laws and border security measures, Reuters reported.

"To anyone thinking about undertaking that journey, our message is: 'Don't do it'... The border is closed to irregular migration," Blinken said.

The meeting was the start of Blinken's "virtual visit" that included conversations with Mexican ministers and Canadian officials. The U.S., Mexico, and Canada agreed to close their borders to non-essential traffic to fight the spread of COVID-19.

The number of apprehensions at the southern border has spiked since Central Americans flee the worst humanitarian crisis in a generation caused by destructive hurricanes and the COVID-19 pandemic. Also, the number of people going hungry in Central America has ballooned in the last two years.

Antony Blinken on Biden's Immigration Reform Plan

Ever since his campaign period, President Joe Biden has promised to undo Trump-era immigration policies that closed off routes to asylum in the U.S. But until the system for legal migration is overhauled, Biden tries to dissuade new arrivals.

According to Antony Blinken, Biden is committed to reforming the immigration system while ensuring safe, orderly, and humane processing at the border.

He said the Biden administration is working to develop a "more rational" asylum process. However, he noted that these things would take time.

Antony Blinken said the administration is already working with Mexico and Central American countries to ease the conditions that prompt people to try to reach the United States illegally.

Biden Admin to Open New Tent Facility Amid Surge in Migrants at the Southern Border

The Biden administration is preparing to open a new tent facility in Texas to hold migrants crossing the southern border, as officials struggle to deal with the combination of a surge in numbers and the challenges of the coronavirus.

A source familiar with the matter told Fox News that the facility is being opened in Eagle Pass, Texas. It is being set up in addition to a similar 185,000 square-foot site in Donna, Texas that was opened early this month.

The Fox News report said these facilities are being managed by Customs and Border Protection and are different from a Health and Human Services-run center in Carrizo Springs that deals solely with unaccompanied migrant children.

The administration has received backlash after reopening centers for migrant children. People protested on Thursday outside of Homestead City Hall, saying children should not be treated like inmates and call on the Biden administration to keep the detention center closed.

Biden reportedly plans to reopen the Homestead Detention center for migrant teens. It was closed in 2019 after numerous protests.

"It's unheard of that we are here again under a new administration when we should have been moving on to other sorts of conversations. There are alternative solutions for these kids. They have family members," Melissa Taveras of the Florida Immigration Coalition said in a Local 10 News report.

Republican Florida Sen. Rick Scott also slammed Democratic leaders for the plan to reopen the center after campaigning so hard to close it, calling the party members hypocrites.

Scott said the Democrats are stopping the construction of the southern border wall and opening the borders, which caused the surge in migrant children being left at the border by the parents to try to get them in the U.S.

Meanwhile, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said the center would be a place where children can get access to education, mental health services, as well as health services. Psaki added that she believes the facility's reopening is the best choice the administration made amid the COVID-19 pandemic.