Eye-witness account: how Trump imprisoned US residents without due process

[Anonymous]

The photographer who witnessed US residents from Venezuela being sent to prison in El Salvador explains what it looked like as they entered the country. These men are the folks Trump sent to a notorious prison for what could be a lifetime sentence, in violation of orders from a judge who told the Justice Dept to turn around any planes in the air.
Trump and Vance used a 1798 law that's only been used in wartime to deny these people the chance to defend themselves in court.
Politically, Trump was brilliant - he said they were gang members. None of us wants a gang member in the country. But DOJ refused to even tell the judge their names, much less offer any proof that they are gang members.
And the Post says: Robert Cena, an acting ICE field director, wrote in a court filing that “many” of those deported under the act do not have criminal records in the US.
From the Time essay by the photojournalist:
For a Venezuelan plucked from America, it must have appeared dystopian—police and soldiers for miles and miles in woodland darkness....
The intake began with slaps. One young man sobbed when a guard pushed him to the floor. He said, “I’m not a gang member. I’m gay. I’m a barber.” I believed him. But maybe it’s only because he didn’t look like what I had expected—he wasn’t a tattooed monster.
Inside the intake room, a sea of trustees descended on the men with electric shavers, stripping heads of hair with haste. The guy who claimed to be a barber began to whimper, folding his hands in prayer as his hair fell. He was slapped. The man asked for his mother, then buried his face in his chained hands and cried as he was slapped again.

https://time.com/7269604/el-salvador-photos-venezuelan-detainees/

and The Washington Post story about 4 Texans without criminal records who were taken: https://www.washingtonpost.com/immigration/2025/03/18/trump-migrants-venezuelans-deportation-bukele/

[Anonymous]

Truly horrendous and heartbreaking. 😢 I pray they'll release those who have been unjustly imprisoned.

[Anonymous]

Well Venezuela is willing to take back their soldiers now.

[Anonymous]

What happens to anyone who was sent to this notorious prison for a "renewable" 1-year term? And is the US govt doing more of this that maybe we don't know about?
How much are taxpayers paying for this? The $6 million we paid El Salvador was just the imprisonment costs alone for those who were already sent, right?
some more info here -
https://www.npr.org/2025/03/23/nx-s1-5338005/venezuela-resume-accepting-deportation-flights-us
"He followed the rules… I feel we were very naive," she said. "We trusted that the U.S. was going to respect his rights — they don't respect human rights."

[Anonymous]

Basically anyone who the administration doesn't like, is at risk of ending up in an El Salvador gulag.

They started with the "illegal criminals" who, it turns out, are mostly every day folk, some here illegally, some who have green cards, and even a natural born US citizen...but, unless people speak up, they will ship out "liberals" and tesla protestors or people who post anti-Trump rhetoric on a platform like this one.

Due Process is an important tenant of a democratic republic. If we are not demanding it from our leaders, then any one of us could be next.

[Anonymous]

So what will happen when the judge orders the return of the prisoners for trial or whatever they call it? Who does the judge find in contempt? Who is jailed?

[Anonymous]

I wanted to add the hypocrisy of these leaders and their hatred of immigrants.

Trump’s father was an immigrant from Germany, his mother from Scotland.
Trump’s wife is an immigrant from Eastern Europe. She brought her parent with her.
Vance wife has immigrant parent from India
Rubio parents are immigrants from China
Rubio wife’s parents are immigrants from Colombia.
And we all know that Musk is a White racist from South Africa.

Weird

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I wanted to add the hypocrisy of these leaders and their hatred of immigrants.

Trump’s father was an immigrant from Germany, his mother from Scotland.
Trump’s wife is an immigrant from Eastern Europe. She brought her parent with her.
Vance wife has immigrant parent from India
Rubio parents are immigrants from China
Rubio wife’s parents are immigrants from Colombia.
And we all know that Musk is a White racist from South Africa.

Weird

Autocorrect?

Neither of Rubio's parents were U.S. citizens at the time of Rubio's birth in 1971 in Miami.[6][7] They applied for U.S. citizenship and were naturalized in 1975.[5] Some relatives of Rubio's were admitted to the U.S. as refugees.[8]

Anchor baby.
Also Grandpa came without a visa and was almost deported but then paroled.
Melania and Elon both appear to have violated their visa status before they became citizens.
No idea if Rubio's wife was an anchor baby.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I wanted to add the hypocrisy of these leaders and their hatred of immigrants.

Trump’s father was an immigrant from Germany, his mother from Scotland.
Trump’s wife is an immigrant from Eastern Europe. She brought her parent with her.
Vance wife has immigrant parent from India
Rubio parents are immigrants from China
Rubio wife’s parents are immigrants from Colombia.
And we all know that Musk is a White racist from South Africa.

Weird

You missed Trump's first wife from the USSR. She gave the world Trump Jr., Eric and Ivanka.

[Anonymous]

Odd how the media just ignores what was done to Mahmoud Khalil. A couple of Nazis come in, don't ID themselves, don't read him his rights, act like he's resisting when he isn't because they're so full of hate, and threaten to kidnap the pregnant wife, too.

It's almost like the media wants to skip over anything that points to how the first amendment started to be destroyed in the first place: When most of the country enacted boycott laws to appease one particular foreign country, which is a direct violation of 1A. Americans can get fired/not hired/denied govt contracts if they refuse to basically sign away their basic right as an American, so as not to offend Israel. I guess when way too many in the media and gov, prioritize it over America and are willing to destroy the rights of Americans and those w/ LEGAL rights on its behalf, then none of what is happening now, should come as a shock to the very people who CAUSED IT.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The photographer who witnessed US residents from Venezuela being sent to prison in El Salvador explains what it looked like as they entered the country. These men are the folks Trump sent to a notorious prison for what could be a lifetime sentence, in violation of orders from a judge who told the Justice Dept to turn around any planes in the air.
Trump and Vance used a 1798 law that's only been used in wartime to deny these people the chance to defend themselves in court.
Politically, Trump was brilliant - he said they were gang members. None of us wants a gang member in the country. But DOJ refused to even tell the judge their names, much less offer any proof that they are gang members.
And the Post says: Robert Cena, an acting ICE field director, wrote in a court filing that “many” of those deported under the act do not have criminal records in the US.
From the Time essay by the photojournalist:
For a Venezuelan plucked from America, it must have appeared dystopian—police and soldiers for miles and miles in woodland darkness....
The intake began with slaps. One young man sobbed when a guard pushed him to the floor. He said, “I’m not a gang member. I’m gay. I’m a barber.” I believed him. But maybe it’s only because he didn’t look like what I had expected—he wasn’t a tattooed monster.
Inside the intake room, a sea of trustees descended on the men with electric shavers, stripping heads of hair with haste. The guy who claimed to be a barber began to whimper, folding his hands in prayer as his hair fell. He was slapped. The man asked for his mother, then buried his face in his chained hands and cried as he was slapped again.

https://time.com/7269604/el-salvador-photos-venezuelan-detainees/

and The Washington Post story about 4 Texans without criminal records who were taken: https://www.washingtonpost.com/immigration/2025/03/18/trump-migrants-venezuelans-deportation-bukele/

OMG This is atrocious. What will it take to stop this abomination?

[Anonymous]

This administration is monstrous and it’s on all of us that we aren’t in the streets right now demanding justice. I do not understand how we are more energized by Ukraine and Israel than we are by what’s happening in our own country

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Odd how the media just ignores what was done to Mahmoud Khalil. A couple of Nazis come in, don't ID themselves, don't read him his rights, act like he's resisting when he isn't because they're so full of hate, and threaten to kidnap the pregnant wife, too.

It's almost like the media wants to skip over anything that points to how the first amendment started to be destroyed in the first place: When most of the country enacted boycott laws to appease one particular foreign country, which is a direct violation of 1A. Americans can get fired/not hired/denied govt contracts if they refuse to basically sign away their basic right as an American, so as not to offend Israel. I guess when way too many in the media and gov, prioritize it over America and are willing to destroy the rights of Americans and those w/ LEGAL rights on its behalf, then none of what is happening now, should come as a shock to the very people who CAUSED IT.

This and the shutting down and keeping media quiet is all in P2025. Scary stuff if we lose our freedom...thats heil hitler kind of stuff. WAKE UP!!!!!

[Anonymous]

Guess these people are regretting their vote now.



And here's some irony for you:

[Trump vows]... The people of Venezuela are standing for freedom and democracy, and the United States of America are standing right by their side,” the president said Monday in Miami

The ultimate betrayal. "But, I didn't think he meant me.....".

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/trump-vows-new-day-venezuela-n972891

[Anonymous]

It seems Venezuela should take her citizens back to avoid all this.