More detail on the detention of backbackping cartoonist R. E. Burke have emerged, thanks to a report from the BBC. The case has drawn international attention on multiple platforms.
As we reported earlier, Burke was on a four month backpacking trip across North America when she was detained by ICE due to Visa issues after being denied entry at the Canadian border. According to the BBC report, her troubles began when Burke told Canadian immigration official that she was staying with a Canadian family in exchange for doing light household duties – which may have constituted work. The same admission to US border agents probably triggered the same red flags.
Burke was not being paid, but an exchange of labor still constitutes work under the letter of the law.
Immigration experts tell the BBC that once Ms Burke informed Canadian officials of her plans and they denied her entry, a suspension of her visa waiver and detention on the US side was probably unavoidable.
Many countries strictly interpret what constitutes compensated work – even if no money changes hands. And under the best of circumstances, processing within by the US immigration system can move slowly.
Circumstances are far from usual in the US at the moment, however. The Trump administration has stepped up immigration enforcement across the US, so these experts caution that anyone entering the country should be careful to ensure that all their documents are in order and that they are clear about their intentions upon entering the country.
Burke has been detained for 11 days, wearing the same clothes and with little access to outside time or warm blankets. While this seems like a harsh punishment for a young woman who posts light hearted comics on Instagram, it’s where hundreds of people are detained for weeks, months or even years.
She described how she spent six hours at the border, waiting while officials were “trying to determine if what I had been doing in America counted as work”.
She said she was “interrogated” and, despite explaining she was “not paid at all”, it was decided she had “violated” her visa.
Ms Burke said she was being held in a dormitory of 110 people in a “maxed out” immigration detention centre in Tacoma, Washington.
“They wake us up at 6:30am. There is never enough time to sleep. It’s so cold,” she said.
“I wear the same jumper for a week. They’re short or out of stuff, like blankets and extra clothes. I have one towel.”
She added many of the people she had met were “stuck” at the centre, separated from their families – in some cases, for years.
“Everyone is actually really shocked when I explain my situation,” she added.
Gaining Burke’s release has been significantly hampered by layoffs in the immigration department, as well. Burke’s case is a stark reminder that in today’s political climate, the stakes for travelers are higher than ever. Mistakes, even honest ones, don’t always come with second chances.
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