Mocking a minor who died in U.S. government custody. Threatening to throw “burritos” at Latina lawmakers. Portraying ー in a manufactured image ー Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez engaged in oral sex at a detention center.
That’s just some of the vulgar content uncovered on a secret Facebook group containing current and former Customs and Border Protection officers that critics say is evidence of pervasive sexism and racism within the federal enforcement agency.
News of the group’s existence, which was revealed by a ProPublica investigation on Monday, comes amid widespread outrage over how the government is approaching the treatment of migrants at the southern border, including the deaths of multiple people held in U.S. custody, the separation of children from their parents, and reports of inhumane conditions at detention centers.
“I’m concerned that perhaps nobody brought this to the attention of authorities within the border control or that supervisors didn’t act to shut it down earlier,” A.C. Thompson, the ProPublica reporter who broke the story, told Cheddar. “What we were seeing in the group was people talking about incredibly disparaging things regarding women, regarding migrants, regarding other folks.”
“It is concerning that it’s a group this big.” Thompson’s reporting found that the group has about 9,500 members, including those confirmed to be current or former border control officers.
“There are likely some private citizens who are in not in the border control, but we can’t say that for sure,” explained Thompson.
He said he found the group through screenshots sent by sources in the Border Patrol.
The agency, which says that abusive and derisive comments about race, gender, and national origin made on private social media violate its standards of conduct, has now begun an investigation.
“These posts are completely inappropriate and contrary to the honor and integrity I see — and expect — from our agents day in and day out. Any employees found to have violated our standards of conduct will be held accountable,” said CBP Chief Carla Provost in a written statement.
In a statement to Cheddar, a Facebook spokesperson said: “We want everyone using Facebook to feel safe. Our Community Standards apply across Facebook, including in secret Groups. We’re cooperating with federal authorities in their investigation."
Spokespeople for both Rep. Veronica Escobar, who was also discussed disparagingly in the Facebook group, and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez did not respond to a request for comment.
However, Escobar tweeted Monday, “We need greater transparency, oversight, and especially after the reports about the vile Facebook group, we need accountability. No person who has that much disdain for another human being — especially the most vulnerable among us — should have a gun or a badge.”
The ProPublica report was published as members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, including Escobar and Ocasio-Cortez, visited detention facilities on the border.
“What I think it may do is cause some soul-searching and some shake-up at the border control, and at the broader Customs and Border Patrol agency, and some discussion about what is the culture here,” said Thompson.
“A lot of it seems to be in response that sort of a sense that agents feel that they’ve been demonized. But instead of reacting professionally, they’re reacting in highly, highly offensive ways.”
The Biden administration on Tuesday quietly launched its website for Americans to request free at-home COVID-19 tests, a day before the site was scheduled to officially launch.
Just 27% of voters aged 18-29 approve of the job Biden is doing as president, according to a survey from The Economist and YouGov late last year. Santiago Mayer, executive director of Voters of Tomorrow, joins Cheddar Politics to discuss why President Biden is losing support among young voters.
Jesse Lehrich, co-founder of Accountable Tech, joins Cheddar News to discuss it being one year since Trump was exiled from social media and the former President's new platform 'Truth Social.'
Cliff Albright, co-founder of the group Black Voters Matter, joins Cheddar Politics to discuss why he boycotted President Biden's voting rights speech this week, and the push from Senate Democrats to debate and vote on the Freedom to Vote Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act.
Senator Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.) has teamed up with fellow Democratic senator and former astronaut Mark Kelly to introduce the Ban Congressional Stock Trading Act, a bill to essentially end stock trading by sitting lawmakers. From the other side of the aisle, Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) introduced his own legislation to enact something similar. The dueling bills come at a time when it's popular to constrain members of Congress from owning and trading stocks. Karl Evers-Hillstrom, a business and lobbying reporter at The Hill, spoke to Cheddar about the significance of the bills, and what they could mean for lawmakers, their families, and staffers moving forward.
A second Starbucks location in the U.S. has officially voted to unionize. On Monday, the National Labor Relations Board announced workers at the Starbucks store located in the Buffalo, NY suburb of Cheektowaga voted 15-9 in favor of being represented by Workers United, an affiliate of the Service Employees International Union. The New York Times reports votes were tallied in December but remained inconclusive as the union challenged the ballots of several employees it said did not work at the store. A Starbucks spokesperson has said that it may appeal the labor board's decision, which comes as several other Starbucks stores across the country are also pushing to form a union. Danka Dragic, shift supervisor for the second Starbucks store in the country to unionize, joined Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
Earlier today, Minnesota Republican Representative, Tom Emmer, introduced a bill that would prevent the Federal Reserve from issuing a central bank digital currency directly to American consumers. According to the Congressman from Minnesota, requiring Americans to open a fed account to access a digital currency, would "put the Fed on insidious path akin to China's digital authoritarianism." Rep. Tom Emmer joined Cheddar's None of The Above to discuss more.
Sixteen of the country's most prestigious universities have been hit with a lawsuit claiming those schools illegally conspired to eliminate competitive financial aid offers for students. Just some of the schools mentioned include Yale, Brown, Columbia, UPenn, and Cornell. Author of "Who Gets In and Why" and Professor of practice at Arizona State University, Jeff Selingo, joined Cheddar to discuss more.
