Huddling for warmth, they talk about what they are fleeing: repressive governments, cartel violence and poverty. There are also Ecuadorians and Guatemalans. The volunteers ignore her and drive to the camps.īy nightfall, the temperature has plummeted.Īn entirely new group of migrants has arrived. But she says she's upset about the situation down in the camps. She doesn't give her name - she says it's a small community and she could lose her job. A retired social worker with first-aid training, Parker frequently goes down to the camps to treat migrants who need care.Ī woman in a pickup truck rolls up and starts shouting, 'That food over there, is it for Americans? Or do you only help immigrants?' Karen Parker rests on her porch in Boulevard, Calif., on a day off from volunteering at the camps in Jacumba. Even those who are going down to the camps as often as they can to offer humanitarian assistance. This sense of anxiety and dread is shared by many here in Jacumba. Just the dreams.'Ĭustoms and Border Protection told NPR 'private property law is the responsibility of state and local law enforcement organizations and not something that federal immigration officers have the authority to enforce.' Locals left to provide assistance to the migrants He keeps getting told they can't help him. Schuster says he's spoken many times to Border Patrol, the police and the fire department. Sometimes people come knocking on his door. Those who stay overnight sometimes cut down trees for bonfires. Then a few months ago, he woke up to find it being used - without his permission - as a migrant camp, for people who are hungry, thirsty, sometimes wounded. Schuster is also an immigrant, from Yugoslavia. 'They'll be gone, and I have to live with their destruction right here.' 'They'll be here for three days, destroying my property,' he laments. Jaroslav 'Jerry' Shuster stands for a portrait above Moon Camp, which largely rests on his private land just outside of Jacumba, Calif. This morning, they are handing out baby formula, first aid, water and food, when a Border Patrol truck shows up. The only people coming here to help are locals and volunteers. Locals say there is barely any oversight. The agency did not respond to NPR's specific questions concerning the Jacumba camps. CBP prioritizes the most vulnerable migrant populations and transports them out of inclement weather to CBP processing facilities as quickly as possible.' On Tuesday, after publication of this story, the agency emailed a statement saying in part that 'CBP officers and agents prioritize the health and safety of all those they encounter by providing appropriate medical care and humanitarian assistance as needed and by routinely coordinating with emergency medical services to assist individuals in need.

Customs and Border Protection for the past week. They are told if they leave, they will get deported. Migrants and volunteers told NPR that every single day, Border Patrol finds hundreds of people who have made their way through the gap, drops them off at these camps and tells them to stay put.

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