Dangerous Buzzsaw Border Buoys Serve no Purpose Beyond Cruelty and Harm
HOUSTON, TX – On Tuesday, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Texas may keep its deadly buoy barriers in the Rio Grande River while the case challenging the legality of the barriers moves through the courts. The buoys, sandwiched between circular saw blades, were first installed in June 2023 as part of Governor Abbott’s cruel and unaccountable border regime, Operation Lone Star. Governor Abbott’s installment of the buoys has prevented migrants from seeking asylum and even resulted in drownings. Numerous reports have confirmed that migrants seeking asylum and safety are swimming toward people in uniform, attempting to present themselves to immigration officials. Shockingly, Texas officials' response has been to force migrants to cross at more dangerous parts of the river where they are met with the risk of drowning and trumped-up trespassing charges.
In September of last year, a federal judge ordered Texas to remove the buoys from the river after the Department of Justice (DOJ) argued that they had floated into international waters and disrupted the navigability of the river. In December, the Fifth Circuit upheld that ruling and ordered Texas to remove the buoys. However, Governor Abbott refused to comply with the court’s order, even after admitting that the buoys had floated into Mexico territory. Allowing the barriers to remain since that ruling has meant more migrants have been placed in dangerous and deadly situations.
Priscilla Olivarez, Senior Policy Attorney and Strategist for the Immigrant Legal Resource Center, issued the following statement:
“This decision allows the pointless cruelty of Governor Abbott’s Operation Lone Star to continue. As someone who has witnessed these buoys up close, these barriers were clearly created to harm migrants seeking safety in our country. However, a thousand feet of buoys with serrated blades won’t stop someone from making the last leg of their dangerous journey across the border to bring their families to safety, but it sadly will drive asylum seekers into deeper, choppier waters where individuals and their families are at greater risk of drowning and where providing aid is more difficult.
“Ultimately, the curtains will close on Abbott’s border theater. The courts will rule that the buoys must be removed. But sadly, not before billions of taxpayer dollars will have been spent defending this $850,000 stunt, that is harming not only migrants but all Texans suffering and dying under the state’s failing infrastructure and abysmal leadership.”
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The Immigrant Legal Resource Center (ILRC) is a national nonprofit that works with immigrants, community organizations, legal professionals, and policy makers to build a democratic society that values diversity and the rights of all people. Through community education programs, legal training & technical assistance, and policy development & advocacy, the ILRC works to protect and defend the fundamental rights of immigrant families and communities. Follow us at www.ilrc.org, and on Twitter and Instagram @the_ILRC