If you think the border is bad now wait until Kamala take over.
During her tenure as the junior senator from California, Kamala Harris, who is now the Democratic presidential nominee and former Vice President, supported fundraising efforts for organizations advocating the abolition of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP).
Harris promoted donations to at least two activist groups during 2018 and 2019 through her social media channels. These campaigns aimed to defund the federal immigration agencies, with the fundraising still ongoing on the Democrat-affiliated platform ActBlue.
In June 2018, Harris took to Twitter to address the public’s concerns about immigration policies. She urged her followers to contribute to organizations aiding families impacted by border policies, linking to an ActBlue fundraiser dedicated to supporting children and families separated by ICE.
One beneficiary of this fundraiser, the Florence Immigrant and Refugee Rights Project, published a poem on X in February 2023 that ridiculed law enforcement agencies, reflecting its stance against federal immigration enforcement. Similarly, the Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services, another recipient of the funds, has been part of efforts to reduce local law enforcement funding, including that for sheriffs who collaborate with ICE.
The Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services had previously promoted a toolkit to help communities challenge local sheriff’s offices, although this specific post has since been removed. Other groups funded by these campaigns included the Asylum Seeker Advocacy Project, La Union del Pueblo Entero, United We Dream Action, and the American Civil Liberties Union.
The second fundraiser Harris supported also included beneficiaries like the Texas Civil Rights Project and the UndocuBlack Network. The UndocuBlack Network has expressed ongoing support for defunding ICE and CBP, citing concerns over these agencies’ treatment of immigrants.
As Harris campaigns for the presidency, her previous support for organizations that advocate for reduced immigration enforcement might pose challenges. In 2021, President Joe Biden appointed Harris as the “border czar” to address the escalating migration crisis at the southern border, which has seen record-high numbers under the Biden-Harris administration. Recent attempts by the Harris campaign to reframe her role in managing the border situation suggest an effort to mitigate criticism regarding her past stances and actions.
