Donald Trump’s immigration policy has been a spreading, ugly stain on the history of this country. There are the infants and children held in steel cages, but the White House has been persecuting elderly immigrants, too. This couple is just one example of POTUS’ horrific policies.
As was their habit, Concepcion and Margarito Silva and their adult children had come to Fort Drum for the Independence Day celebration with their son-in-law. He is a sergeant in the 10th Mountain Division, and he has served two deployments in Afghanistan.
Although the couple came from Mexico and did not have documentation, the Department of Labor gave them a work permit in 2007. The couple went to the Fort Drum military base entrance and showed their valid New York ID’s.
This time, though, the military police stopped them. Within minutes, Federal Border Agents arrived upon the scene and led them away.
There is a difference between Border Agents and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection:
‘As a Border Patrol Agent, you are focused 24/7 on securing our international land border and coastal waters, safeguarding the American people from terrorists and their weapons, drug smuggling and illegal entry of undocumented aliens.’
ICE held the two grandparents at a Buffalo, New York federal detention center hundreds of miles from their home. A spokesperson for ICE did confirm that Border Protection agents arrested Mrs. and Mrs. Silva, but all the Army would say came in the form of a written statement:
‘On July 4, 2018, two people attempted to gain access to Fort Drum without Department of Defense approved identification, which all visitors are required to present. Fort Drum security personnel identified a discrepancy with their passports. This prompted security personnel to contact Customs and Border Patrol.’
The couple’s daughter, Perla Silva, told the NBC affiliate, News 4 New York:
‘He’s (her brother-in-law) about to be deployed again while my sister is pregnant, and he works so hard for his country, and he loves his country so much.’
Their son, Eduardo Silva was in tears:
‘I know my dad, and he is scared…I don’t understand why people pick on people that just want to work and live their life without any troubles.’
The couple’s children were concerned, because each of their parents had recently had surgery and needed medication. Mrs. Silva has called them several times, saying that her captors would not give her the prescriptions she needed. At this time, they have not heard from the grandfather.
The couple’s children’s greatest concern was not that their parents would be deported. They were far more worried about the couple’s health during their incarceration. Another daughter, Dulce Silva, said the situation was “crazy:”
‘We don’t know what could happen to them in there. It would be crazy if they didn’t make it out of there.’
The Pentagon asked News 4 New York if it would hold its report on the couple until they investigated the issue. The station went ahead with the story.
This was not an isolated event. Just a month earlier, the military detained a pizza delivery man carrying a pizza order onto Brooklyn’s Fort Hamilton Army Base.
Featured Image via Getty Images/Chip Somodevilla.
