The government kept a secret list of immigration reporters and activists — and arrested at least 9 of them

Late last year, the U.S. government couldn't stop talking about the thousands of Central American migrants headed through Mexico to the border. But more quietly, it was compiling a list of 59 immigration journalists, activists, and attorneys who worked with or covered the migrant caravan, documents obtained by San Diego NBC affiliate KNSD reveal.

These people would be subject to questioning if they tried to cross the border, and 12 of them actually were, the database shows. Another nine were arrested crossing the border, the Customs and Border Patrol list also details.

President Trump and his administration stoked fears about the caravan, ultimately closing the border at one point. When migrants rushed toward it anyway, American officials hurled tear gas out the crowd, sparking chaos. Those considered "instigators" and "organizers" of that incident were placed on the CBP database obtained by KNSD, along with media members who covered it.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

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.

Sign up

The database also recorded peoples' citizenships and whether they had been arrested or interviewed, or whether their visas had been canceled. A Department of Homeland Security source told KNSD that "agents also created dossiers on each person listed," with one attorney's dossier containing "the car she drives, her mother's name, and her work and travel history."

A CBP spokesperson told KNSD "the names in the database are all people who were present during violence that broke out at the border in November," and said collecting this kind of "evidence" is "protocol." Read more from KNSD or take a look at the documents here.