Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas held a private meeting on Wednesday with Border Patrol agents who were falsely accused in 2021 of whipping Haitian migrants along the banks of the Rio Grande, according to a report.
The DHS chief, however, did not apologize for his overreaction to images of agents riding horses – with the reins snapped – as they tried to block immigrants from entering the United States near Del Rio, Texas, according to Fox News.
A day after the fight on September 19, 2021, Mayorkas defended the officers to the press, pointing out that the reins were used to control horses, not to whip people.
A U.S. Border Patrol agent on horseback tries to stop a Haitian migrant from entering a camp on the banks of the Rio Grande near the Acuña Del Río International Bridge in Del Rio, Texas, on September 20, 2021. AFP via Getty Images
But days later, the DHS chief changed his mind.
“I made the statements without having seen the images,” he said from the White House press room on September 24, 2021.
“Horses have long reins, and the image of the photograph that we all saw, and which horrified the nation, raised serious questions about what… occurred and, as I said quite clearly, conjured up images of what occurred in the past. ”Mayorkas added, referring to slavery in the US.
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas refused to apologize for reacting to images of agents riding horses. Shutterstock
President Biden also denounced images of agents standing guard at the southern border.
“To see people treated the way they did, horses barely running, people tied up, it’s outrageous,” he told reporters.
“I promise you those people will pay,” Biden said of the agents. “There will be an investigation underway now and there will be consequences. “There will be consequences.”
The DHS chief defended the agents, saying the reins were used to control horses, not to whip people. AFP via Getty Images
The subsequent internal investigation by Customs and Border Protection found that no migrants were injured during the incident, the agents did not carry whips and did not hit anyone with their reins.
While the officers were acquitted of the most sensational accusation, the investigation determined that they had used “unnecessary” force against the migrants and that one officer used “degrading and inappropriate language” and “maneuvered his horse in an unsafe manner” during the incident.
The president has not apologized for bringing the discredited whipping accusation against the officers.
The meeting between the agents and Mayorkas was described as “professional and respectful,” according to Fox News, and offered the agents the opportunity to explain to the Cabinet member how the incident affected their lives and careers.
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Source: vtt.edu.vn