Conservative media outlets and Republican politicians have voiced support for a truck convoy heading towards the US border to protest President Biden’s immigration policies, with over 1,000 subscribers on its Telegram channel dedicated to this protest march.
However, some feel the truckers’ actions could exacerbate anti-immigration sentiment and increase tensions within communities.
In Congress
The “Take Our Border Back” convoy hopes to exert pressure on the federal government by staging a rally near Eagle Pass, Texas – an epicenter for illegal border crossings – on February 3rd. Their website requests “elected officials, military and law enforcement personnel, ranchers, business owners, farmers, bikers, truckers and law-abiding freedom-loving Americans to join our convoy.”
Pete Chambers, former Army Lt. Col Pete Chambers promoted this event via shows hosted by conspiracy theorist Alex Jones and Fox News host Tucker Carlson before they both left their posts at Fox. On their website is also a donation page where donors can make both financial and religious donations towards its success.
But some observers fear the trucker convoy could turn violent on its journey towards the border. The League of United Latin American Citizens issued an alert this week warning participants may use white supremacy’s “great replacement narrative,” known as the “great replacement narrative”, to justify violence against migrants. They cited three mass shooting incidents where gunmen displayed such beliefs before opening fire on innocents.
In the media
As the “Take Our Border Back” truckers’ convoy travels across Texas, Democratic leaders and human rights experts are pushing back against harsh border rhetoric. This comes in response to an escalated standoff between Texas officials and President Biden’s administration over immigration policy issues that will play a pivotal role in 2024 US election campaigning.
The “Take Our Border Back” convoy kicked off its drive on Monday in Virginia and will stop in key locations where illegal border crossings occur across the U.S. This weekend will feature a rally in Eagle Pass hosted by organizers calling upon “active and retired law enforcement, military personnel, Mama Bears, elected officials, business owners, ranchers, farmers, bikers, media professionals and freedom-loving Americans” to join in this effort.
Fox News Channel is dedicating 10 hours and 8 minutes of airtime since Thursday to this story (according to a liberal watchdog, other networks have shown similar coverage). Sarah Palin and Ted Nugent have both given their endorsement, with Lara Trump, President Donald Trump’s daughter-in-law who contributes regularly on Fox, saying she plans on attending rallies as part of this movement.
In the streets
Convoy drivers began in Virginia Beach and are heading toward Quemado with an objective of drawing attention to what they perceive as Biden administration failure to secure the border and to an “epidemic of illegal immigration and related criminal activities that accompany it”.
Lara Trump, former President Donald Trump’s daughter-in-law and Fox News contributor, encouraged truck drivers to participate in the convoy Tuesday on Sean Hannity’s show, telling NewsNation: “People are cheering them on because this is about freedom.”
But some experts worry the protests could quickly devolve into violence. A group has posted calls on social media asking active and retired law enforcement and military, veterans, mama bears, business owners, ranchers, politicians and “law-abiding, freedom-loving Americans” to join. But it remains to be seen exactly how many participants will show up; those who already attended have had their say about their experience.
In the air
As tensions between Texas and the federal government over border policies ratchet up, so too do rhetorical attacks. Last week, far-right radio hosts promoted a “Take Our Border Back Convoy,” inviting “active and retired law enforcement and military, veterans, mama bears, elected officials, business owners, ranchers, farmers, truckers, and bikers” to join.
NewsNation reports that the convoy is off to a slow start, with only a handful of cars at each stop (despite claims by organizers that hundreds of thousands will participate).
The convoy claims it is acting to demonstrate America’s “sovereign right to defend its borders” from an ongoing invasion by migrants, but our fact-checkers have found otherwise. A nearly two-year-old video shared by its organizers falsely as part of this convoy has nothing to do with what’s occurring in Eagle Pass and should never have been included on social media as part of it; we have archived that post here. It remains unknown what the convoy plans next, though its website invites people to join its movement via Telegram.
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