DHS investigating Border Patrol 'challenge coin' showing horseback agents accosting Haitian migrants
U.S. Customs and Border Protection is investigating a "challenge coin" that depicts white Border Patrol agents on horseback appearing to use their reins as whips to drive back Haitian immigrants seeking asylum in Del Rio, Texas, last September, The Miami Herald reported Tuesday. "Images of the incident led to a public outcry and national scandal." President Biden demanded accountability and the Department of Homeland Security launched an investigation into the treatment of migrants in Del Rio.
The unofficial U.S. Border Patrol "challenge coin," a token of memorabilia, is inscribed with the words "Reining It In Since May 28, 1924" and "Yesterday's Border Is Not Today's Border" on one side, and "You will be returned" on the rim, the Herald reports. The side with the infamous whip image reads: "Honor Will Always Be First."
"The images depicted on this coin are offensive, insensitive, and run counter to the core values of CBP," CPB assistance commissioner Luis Miranda told the Herald. "This is not an official CBP coin."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The CPB's Office of Professional Responsibility is investigating who minted the coins, and any agents found to be selling them will face "appropriate action," Miranda said. It isn't clear how many coins were made, but at least 41 were recently sold on Ebay for $15.19 apiece.
The date on on the unofficial challenge coin marks the enactment of the 1924 Johnson-Reed Act, which founded the U.S. Border Patrol — and also "drastically cut the total number of immigrants allowed in each year and effectively cut off all immigration from Asia," marking the "start of a dark chapter in the nation's immigration history," Smithsonian Magazine reports.
The level of disrespect for Haitians the coin represents is "unprecedented, outrageous, and intolerable," Marleine Bastien, a longtime Haitian and immigration advocate in Miami, tells the Herald. "President Biden promised to get to the bottom of this, but there was not any action or repercussions," and "now the Border Patrol is so emboldened that they are making a mockery of the suffering of Black refugees. They are so proud of their criminal behavior that they immortalized it with a coin."
The agents who chased the Haitians on horseback have been reassigned and barred from interacting with migrants, and "multiple" agents involved in the incident will be charged with civil "administrative violations" in the coming days, Fox News reports, citing a federal source.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
Mary Poppins tour: 'humdinger' of a show kicks off at Bristol Hippodrome
The Week Recommends Stefanie Jones and Jack Chambers are 'true triple threats' as Mary and Bert in 'timeless' production
By Irenie Forshaw, The Week UK Published
-
Jaguar's stalled rebrand
In the spotlight Critics and car lovers are baffled by the luxury car company's 'complete reset'
By Abby Wilson Published
-
What the chancellor's pension megafund plans mean for your money
Rachel Reeves wants pension schemes to merge and back UK infrastructure – but is it putting your money at risk?
By Marc Shoffman, The Week UK Published
-
Ukraine fires ATACMS, Russia ups hybrid war
Speed Read Ukraine shot U.S.-provided long-range missiles and Russia threatened retaliation
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
New York DA floats 4-year Trump sentencing freeze
Speed Read President-elect Donald Trump's sentencing is on hold, and his lawyers are pushing to dismiss the case while he's in office
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Wyoming judge strikes down abortion, pill bans
Speed Read The judge said the laws — one of which was a first-in-the-nation prohibition on the use of medication to end pregnancy — violated the state's constitution
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
US sanctions Israeli West Bank settler group
Speed Read The Biden administration has imposed sanctions on Amana, Israel's largest settlement development organization
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Gaetz ethics report in limbo as sex allegations emerge
Speed Read A lawyer representing two women alleges that Matt Gaetz paid them for sex, and one witnessed him having sex with minor
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Biden allows Ukraine to hit deep in Russia
Speed Read The U.S. gave Ukraine the green light to use ATACMS missiles supplied by Washington, a decision influenced by Russia's escalation of the war with North Korean troops
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Sri Lanka's new Marxist leader wins huge majority
Speed Read The left-leaning coalition of newly elected Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake won 159 of the legislature's 225 seats
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Biden arrives in Peru for final summits
Speed Read President Joe Biden will meet Chinese President Xi Jinping, visit the Amazon rainforest and attend two major international summits
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published