(Pembina) The discovery of four people who perished in the cold while trying to cross the Canada-US border could give a new twist to the debate on immigration to the United States.
Posted at 4:48 p.m.
The group, which included a baby and a teenager, were found Wednesday near Emerson, Manitoba, a few yards from the Canadian side.
US officials allege they were part of a larger group of Indian migrants trying to cross into the United States from Canada.
Borders expert Kathryn Bryk Friedman, and a law professor at the University at Buffalo, calls this a troubling sign that the country’s immigration problems are worsening.
Mme Friedman believes the discovery is likely a “red flag” that more people are willing to risk their lives to enter the United States, even on foot in the dead of winter.
Florida resident Steve Shand is scheduled to appear in Minneapolis court on Monday to face human trafficking charges.
Curbing the arrival of South American migrants at the US-Mexico border has become a defining feature of US policy in recent years, especially under former President Donald Trump.
Canada is no stranger to the problem either: Thousands of asylum seekers have crossed the border into Quebec every year while Mr. Trump was in office, although their numbers have fallen sharply since then.
But an organized effort to get groups of people into the United States from Canada is new, according to Ms.me Friedmann.
“It just demonstrates the appeal — perhaps the lasting appeal — of trying to get to the United States,” she said. It’s really fascinating. »
But a single tragedy is unlikely to cause either country to seriously rethink the way they manage and defend their common border, she added.
“It sounds terrible, but I think it will take more than four deaths at the border to really get Canada and the United States to act. »