Guest post by Paul Drabik from Chicago
Last Wednesday June 12th, Behind Enemy Lines podcast hosts Terry Newsome and Paul Drabik held another sold out event for a major force in the patriot movement. Former Director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Tom Homan, and his non-profit Border911 were welcomed to Chicago. Homan brought an experienced group including a former border patrol chief, former DEA agent, a couple of former Texas law enforcement officials, and a seasoned journalist.
WATCH THE EVENT BELOW.
On the heels of a massively successful sold out March event held for Mike Lindell, Behind Enemy Lines hosted Border911 to a packed room on the southwest side of Chicago. It was the first stop on a 10 city tour for Border911. Deep in the heart of a traditional Democrat stronghold, members of minority communities gathered to hear about the most pressing issue of our time. Border security and immigration were the main topics of the night. Speakers from Chicago’s African American and Latino community joined in the discussion. Community leaders spoke about their frustrations and the willingness to collaborate with grassroots to take back Illinois from a corrupt political establishment.
Border911 has made it their mission to travel the country and inform citizens about the dangers of an open border and what common sense immigration policy should look like. Chicago was a fitting place to start their tour as the illegal immigration population has become a palpable and transparent issue among members of all backgrounds. A majority of the migrants are being housed in facilities across the city. In May, Gateway Pundit and Behind Enemy Lines reported on the apparent lawlessness and chaos taking place in these facilities. Through FOIA requests, violent crimes such as sexual assault, child abuse, robbery, and battery were rampant. Shockingly there was evidence of human trafficking recovered on a phone of one of the migrants.
Members of Border911 brought a unique perspective to the many in attendance. Rodney Scott, a former Border Patrol Chief, informed the crowd of the approximate 47,000 Chinese who have crossed the border in 2024 alone. Many of these Chinese have been military age men. Scott put things in perspective by noting that during his tenure he never saw more than 1,500 cross the border in a given year.
Another interesting perspective was that of Victor Avila. Avila, a former federal agent for Homeland Security and ICE, spoke about the serious problem of human smuggling. Most are familiar with the concept of human trafficking. Human smuggling, as Avila describes, involved people paying and/or working off a debt to the cartels in order to gain assistance in crossing the border. This operation continues on into the migrant’s residence within the country. Migrants will be monitored and controlled by Cartel operatives in cities across America often trafficking, transporting, and selling dangerous drugs such as fentanyl.
Sarah Carter, a well known journalist and frequent contributor to Fox News, spoke about her experience covering the crisis. She spoke to the fact that this problem went back to her early days in California as she witnessed children being recruited by the cartel gangs in major cities. She warned of these cartels targeting Chicago children.
The Border911 team also welcomed minority community leaders to come up for a discussion about how the illegal immigration issue is impacting their communities. Dr. Shando Valdez spoke of the divisiveness amongst the Latino community that is brought about by the massive influx of illegals taking up valuable resources. Latasha Fields, a homeschool advocate fighting back against government encroachment on the family, spoke about the specific impact of the monopolization of resources that hinders the development of children especially in the African American community. Pastor David Lowery expounded on that message and spoke about the necessity to address the issues already plaguing the minority communities of Chicago. Devin Jones, a Navy Veteran and 18th ward Republican Precinct Committeeman recently opened the first African American led GOP office on the southside of Chicago. He spoke to the specific policy issues brought on by Chicago’s sanctuary city status and how it impacted, not only the community, but the political perspective of his constituents. Jones perhaps echoed the sentiments of many Chicago minorities when he declared, “I don’t care where you came from, if you are here illegally you have to go back home.”
Tom Homan brought a human element perspective to the conversation. With over 30 years experience serving the country and its border protection Homan spoke with a focused anger about the price our brave men and women pay for an open border. Homan detailed the look in the eyes of victims of human trafficking and child sex abuse. Homan’s passion came through as he described the toll it takes on someone as they endure the day to day responsibilities of a border patrol agent. Finally, during the question and answer phase he was asked about the reality of a mass deportation. Fittingly, Homan commented on a potential deportation operation saying, “There has to be a historic deportation operation or none of this makes sense. That’s what the law requires.” If the American people can see to it that we elect a candidate who will bring back a patriot like Homan, perhaps there is hope yet to save the country.