The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) condemned the use of tear gas and rubber bullets on a crowd of migrant refugees at the\u2026<\/b>
\nThe League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) condemned the use of tear gas and rubber bullets on a crowd of migrant refugees at the U. S.-Mexico border in Tijuana, which President Trump has defended as a necessary use of force.
Trump on Monday downplayed the incident as involving \u201ca very minor form of the tear gas itself\u201d and argued \u201cit\u2019s very safe.\u201d
Trump blamed parents for \u201crunning up into an area where they know the tear gas is forming and it\u2019s going to be formed.\u201d
Domingo Garcia, the national president of LULAC, the nation\u2019s largest and oldest civil rights group for Hispanic Americans, strongly disputed Trump\u2019s characterization.
\u201cThese children were not anywhere near the CBP agents and did not in any way pose a threat to them,\u201d he said in a statement, referring to Customs and Border Protection.
\u201cLULAC strongly protests these actions against desperate, unarmed civilians,\u201d he said.
Garcia is demanding that Congress conduct investigations next year to find out whether border agents violated agency policy.
\u201cIf violations of CBP policy are uncovered, those responsible should be held accountable. In the meantime, we are urging the Administration to demonstrate restraint and allow the refugees to apply for asylum,\u201d he said.
Garcia said the Trump administration is in violation of the temporary restraining order issued by U. S. District Court Judge Jon Tigar last week against Trump\u2019s asylum proclamation earlier this month that blocked members of a migrant caravan from entering the country.
\u201cThe judge effectively blocked the government from denying asylum to those crossing over the southern border between ports of entry even if they entered illegally. Yet, they are being met with tear gas and rubber bullets in open defiance of the court,\u201d Garcia said.
The judge ordered the administration to resume accepting asylum claims from migrants regardless of how they enter the United States.<\/p>\n