LIRS In CNN: The heartbreaking deaths of 53 migrants seeking a better life, and how the US can prevent future tragedies
Krish O’Mara Vignarajah is the president and chief executive of Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service. She previously served as a senior adviser at the State Department and as a policy director in the Obama administration. The views expressed here are her own.
The nation was shocked when 53 migrants were found dead in an abandoned tractor-trailer nearly 150 miles north of the US border with Mexico last week, with more than a dozen survivors, including four children, rushed to nearby hospitals to fight for their lives. It was a grisly, horrifying scene — unimaginable to most Americans, who simply cannot fathom the desperation of those who would embark on such a treacherous journey.
But those who have closely monitored border policy in recent years likely saw the tragedy for what it was: another horrific, preventable loss of life driven by our nation’s failure to establish a humane asylum system or an efficient immigration framework.
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WATCH: LIRS on MSNBC
Krish also joined MSNBC’s Jose Diaz-Balart to discuss the tragedy in Texas, the fatal consequences of deterrence-based immigration policy, and how the US can implement solutions that benefit both Americans and people desperately seeking safety here.