FAITH IN ACTION
©Leslie DeGrassi
What Asylum-seekers Face at the U.S. Border after a Grueling Journey through Mexico
On March 12, PBS NewsHour reported from Mexico on the global migration making its way through that country to the U.S. border. With producers Christine Romo and Sam Weber, Amna Nawaz continues that journey and speaks with migrants, ranchers, Border Patrol officials and advocates.
Pastor Randy Mayer:
Six months ago, we had never seen somebody from Bangladesh or Africa in this part of the desert. It was all Mexicans and Central Americans, and sometimes it would be a few people from South America, but now this is pretty regular.
Amna Nawaz:
I notice one of the first things you say is welcome.
Pastor Randy Mayer:
Yes, we want to make sure that at least their first encounter is one of great welcome and saying we are glad you are here.
As migrants from ‘all over the world’ enter U.S., churches must go to meet them, says Arizona pastor
United Church of Christ News
by Maic D'Agostino | published on Mar 19, 2024
Pastor Randy Mayer Talks About the Border on PBS NewsHour
On March 12, 2024, Pastor Randy Mayer took Amna Nawaz and a PBS NewsHour crew to the US/Mexico border near Sasabe, Arizona to describe the migrant situation there.
He drives this stretch of the border weekly, interacts with the migrants who've arrived and lets them know that Border Patrol is here, they will be able to help them, and then tries to communicate with Border Patrol to come pick people up.
But he also shared that he's seeing larger and larger groups, yesterday alone groups of 150 or 200 people, from many countries. It stretches Border Patrol's resources. It stretches his. It's also stretching the local officials in Pima County
There's concern ahead about how to meet what is clearly a growing need without the resources to help them.
