(SPECIAL TO LareDOS) – Organizations across South Texas are demanding that officials cancel outgoing President Donald J. Trump’s Tuesday visit to the border region for safety and security reasons. This will be the president’s first public appearance after his supporters engaged in mass violence in the nation’s Capitol last week that resulted in five deaths.
Members of the No Border Wall Coalition-Laredo will join allies in the Lower RGV to protest the wall and to send a message to the incoming Biden Administration that an immediate halt on wall construction is expected on Day 1.
According to reports from Brownsville’s TV station, KVEO, and the Associated Press, Trump will visit Alamo on Jan. 12 to “mark the completion of 400 miles of border wall.” Community organizers from the Lower RGV are calling on their elected leaders from Hidalgo County and the cities of McAllen, Harlingen, and Alamo to refuse cooperation with the visit in hopes that it will be cancelled. Organizers are also demanding that all COVID-19 public health guidelines are met if the visit is to proceed as planned.
“The border is not the border wall, the border is us,” said Danny Diaz, organizing director at La Union del Pueblo Entero (LUPE). The organization started a petition that garnered nearly 2,000 signatures over the weekend to demand that Trump cancel the visit at the risk of needlessly creating a dangerous situation.
“Border communities rightly see his trip as an immediate threat to community safety and security. It is also part of a long pattern of white supremacist violence at the southern border that right-wing politicians have taken advantage of for political gain,” Diaz said.
A Threat to Public Safety
President Trump’s visit to the border region comes less than a week after he incited mob violence to disrupt the certification of President-Elect Biden’s electoral victory. While President Trump has continuously claimed that a wall is necessary to protect the nation, the more than $15 billion in funds designated for border wall construction did nothing to ensure national security during the attack on the U.S. Capitol.
“Trump brings division and violence wherever he goes, and the wall is an extension of that,” said NBW Laredo activist and organizer Tannya Benavides. “The border wall harms U.S. communities and is contrary to American values. To heal and repair our country, we need a clean break. The wall must be canceled.
“One of the founding principles of the No Border Wall Coalition is a steadfast belief in non-violence and creative action to influence the decision making process. In light of recent events, we believe that President Trump is a clear and present danger to border communities because extremist groups have been known to target anti-wall activists in the Lower Rio Grande Valley,” Benavides said.
A National Issue
“The wall is not just a border issue, but a national disaster. It inspires racial violence across the entire country,” said NBW Laredo activist and organizer Juan Ruiz. “Attackers have chanted ‘build the wall!’ when assaulting people in states as far away as Michigan and Pennsylvania. Stopping the wall is one way we can shut down this surge in racist violence in our country.”
He continued, “The wall is like a battery power for racial division. Trump is coming here to get recharged, and power up his base. Biden needs to shut it off.”
Calling on Biden to Undo Trump’s Monument to Racism # NotAnotherFoot
Since the election, Trump has ignored the results and worked at light speed to put as much of his border wall in place before the Jan. 20 Inauguration, awarding lucrative construction contracts for public and privately owned land that the U.S. government has not even acquired. Trump also inserted an additional $1.3 billion for the wall in the recent spending bill.
“It’s sabotage. Trump is trying to force the Biden administration to have to continue the wall well into the new term, causing Biden to fail in his promise to not build another foot,” said Tricia Cortez, executive director of the Rio Grande International Study Center. “Every day that construction is allowed to continue makes it harder for Biden to undo the damage. The sooner Biden cancels it, the less difficult it will be.”
Incoming President Biden has the authority to immediately stop the wall through an Executive Order. Organizations and governmental bodies along the border are asking Biden to uphold his campaign promise that “not another foot” of wall will be built starting Jan. 20.
“Keep your word, President Biden,” Cortez added. “Stop the wall on Day One. Border communities are counting on you.”
The #NoBorderWall Laredo Coalition is a network of residents, elected officials, and organizations who oppose the border wall.
Website: www.noborderwallcoalition.com | facebook.com/NoBorderWallCoalition |
Insta: @noborderwall_ltx
Thank you, Ms. Cortez. Trump is coming to view his monument to racism and stupidity. He is willfully ignorant of ecology, diplomacy, humaneness, and has no conscience; a picture of pure evil. Reading Yale University School of Medicine psychiatrist professor Bandy X. Lee, MD’s compilation, “The Dangerous Case of Donald Trump, 27 essays were contributed by psychiatrists and clinical psychologists who, notwithstanding the 1960s “Goldwater Rule”, felt compelled to warn the danger that Trump presents to the nation. He was determined to have a stunted mental development with a temper of a 4 or 5 year old brat. His body grew, his hormonal drive guided by amorality and his decision-making lacked compassion for fellow humans. I read Dr. Lee’s book four years ago, and everything printed points to a warning few people heeded, especially narrowminded and less educated citizens. Four years too late, Trump has blood on his hands after what he incited on January 6 and must be held accountable, no matter his ability to have others do his dirty work for himj.