One of the primary agendas of Donald Trump’s administration has been deporting illegal immigrants and the deportation numbers have rocketed ever since he came to power for the second time. Trump even evoked an ancient 18th century law to deport alleged members of a Venezuelan gang despite a federal judge ruling an order against it.
While a huge section of the American population is already finding themselves in extremely critical conditions because of the new deportation polices, accounts presented by Global Crossing Airlines’ flight attendants have now brought forth the horrid conditions in which the deportations are happening.
Global Crossing Airlines is the company that has emerged as a key player in the loose network of deportation contractors known as ICE Air. The charter company, which is also called GlobalX, recently came to the news because it was their flight that carried the alleged Venezuelan gang members to El Salvador.
One of the former employees of the company, who goes by the nickname of Lala, recounted her experience of serving on these deportation flights. While talking to ProPublica, Lala mentioned that after attending these flights for a while, she and her fellow flight attendants were getting used to the inhumane treatment that the deported people were getting. They used to be chained and the flight attendants were advised against making any conversations with them or even looking directly at them.
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However, in a flight bound for Mexico, things went out of hand as a young girl collapsed in the flight. Without caring for the set protocols, Lala rushed to help her with the emergency oxygen bottle available on the plane. As this emergency occurred, the flight was turned back to the US and it landed in Arizona.
The paramedics then came to help and they connected the girl to the oxygen bottles they were carrying. As the child was being taken down the plane, her parents naturally tried to join, but the guards stopped them. This shocked Lala as she said to the ICE Officer in charge, “This is not OK!” Moreover, as the mother of the child was having seizures, it was important for the family to stay together for their wellbeing.
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However, it was made clear to Lala that it was not possible and only one parent was allowed to accompany the child and the other would be deported. As this was shocking in itself, another flight attendant like Lala mentioned that the normal briefing that they got stated, “if a fire occurs in the cabin, if we land on water, don’t check on the immigrants. Just make sure that you and the guards and the people that work for the government get off.”
Another one added, “It was as if the detainees’ lives were worthless.” Most of the flight attendants who talked to ProPublica for giving an actual insight into what it’s like under the deportation flights have left Global Crossing Airlines. Lala has also left as she mentioned that she saw how the little girl’s mother accompanied the child and her father had to get back on the plane. She said, “I cried after that.”
As the Trump administration shows no sign of slowing down with their deportation rates, more such harrowing experiences of people are surfacing. It now remains to be seen if the situation gets any better or if things turn even worse.
