Locals have opposing opinions on national emergency at our border
Locals who live by the border have opposing views on the national emergency President Trump announced he would declare on Friday.
Some locals claim there is no need for a national emergency or a wall, but others said the wall is needed.
One point President Trump spoke about was the drugs entering our country.
In 2017, the Yuma Sector Border Patrol saw 30,181 pounds of marijuana and 261 pounds of cocaine enter our area, according to Customs and Border Protection statistics.
The Drug Enforcement Agency claimed the most common way for a transnational criminal organization to transport drugs is through ports of entry in either a car with concealed compartments or in tractor trailers.
President Trump also pointed out there was an “invasion of people” entering our country.
The U.S. Border Patrol has expressed a trend of other than Mexican nationals entering our country.
In 2017, there were a total of 12,847 in Yuma with nearly 80 percent illustrating that trend, according to CBP statistics.
One San Luis resident, who grew up along the border, claimed a wall is not needed.
“If he builds the wall, it’s going to be the same. People will cross the border. There are many ways to cross it. There are many ways to cross drugs because Americans are the ones that usually want the drugs,” said Gracia Noriega.
However, one longtime Yuma resident claimed the President is making the right decision.
“The president is supposed to protect the citizens of the United States against people foreign or domestic and they are coming in and creating havoc with our citizens in here,” said Tim.
Yuma Mayor Doug Nicholls explained to News 11 in January that with the increase in immigrants entering the region, he worked with lawmakers and Immigration and Customs Enforcement to ensure there was not a situation of homeless families on our streets.
“As a community of 100,000 people, when you release a large number of people that don’t have homes, don’t have resources, don’t have food, don’t have the capability of knowing where they’re going next into a community like Yuma it’s a very big impact,” said Mayor Nicholls.
