Texas town bans illegal alien children

Houston suburb bans illegal alien children in effort to protect citizens’ health and welfare

League City Councilwoman Heidi Thiess | PHOTO CREDIT: Heidi Thiess via Flikr

LEAGUE, Texas, July 8, 2014 — Suburb of Houston, League City, Texas, bans illegal alien children, including those “other than Mexican” or from “non-contiguous nations”. Galveston County, Texas followed suit not long after the town passed its resolution.

The decision comes in the wake of the deluge of illegal alien children coming across the border with Mexico. Human traffickers, known as coyotes, smuggle the children through the Rio Grande River Valley in south Texas as well as the “Devil’s Highway” in Arizona. “Devil’s Highway” is the nickname used for the immigration corridor between Nogales and Douglas Arizona, through the Coronado and Huachuca mountains. So far, this fiscal year, Texas, Arizona, New Mexico and California experienced more illegal immigrant children coming across the border than in previous fiscal years in their entirety.

The children come under beliefs they cannot be deported due to their age. Once in the U.S., many believe that the kids give legal reasons for expedited legal immigration visas for other family members. Some children come accompanied, others make the trek alone. Many of those accompanied kids come fraudulently accompanied, as coyotes “rent” them to other illegal aliens to provide, what the immigrants are told, a legal basis for political asylum, refugee status or amnesty.

The children bring a rash of problems. Many are infected with parasites such as body lice, scabies and fleas. Others bring diseases to include tuberculosis, polio and rubella. Immunizations for many of those diseases are not commonly available in their countries of origin. Other diseases are picked up along their trip through Central America and Mexico.

Detention centers and processing centers are overcrowded, leading government agencies to seek contractors and volunteers to house the children until officials decide the kids’ future dispositions. These include several church-based charities.

In an effort to maintain the health and safety of their town’s residents, League voted to ban the housing of illegal aliens within their town limits. League City Councilwoman and Raging Elephants Radio talk show host Heidi Thiess proposed the resolution.


League City is considered the first town to pass such legislation within their local ordinances. Some question the constitutionality of the ban, however. The US Constitution states only congress can regulate immigration and establish immigration laws. Furthermore, should a federal agency contract a property owner in League or Galveston County to harbor these children, their authority to do so may be covered under federal preemption. So far, there is no public notice of a federal law suit available.

Meanwhile, President Obama travels to Texas to attend fundraising events including one sponsored by director Robert Rodriguez of Desperado, Spy Kids and From Dusk Till Dawn fame. Texas Governor Rick Perry reportedly refused an opportunity to meet Obama for a ceremonial “handshake” on the tarmac when the president arrives in the state. However, Obama is scheduled for a brief meeting with the governor to discuss the border security and illegal immigration crisis. Several members of congress on both sides of the aisle criticize Obama for not taking time in his trip to tour the border or the detention facilities. Among the critics is Representative Henry Cuellar (D-TX-28) who states that Obama needs to see the conditions and the threat to public health. Recently, Obama called upon Congress to allocate $3.7 billion towards combating this current situation many call a “humanitarian crisis”.