Catherwood LibraryILR School

Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents have continued with enforcing White House administration priorities to detain illegal immigrants, with the latest raid in northeast Texas, reducing the supply of welders by half at a trailer processing plant in Tigertown. Turning raw steel into trailers is hard physical labor involving cutting heavy metal, dragging it into place, and arc-welding it, amidst strident noise and sparks — but Load Trail has always had difficulty in getting American workers to do the welding work, which can result in broken fingers and burns amongst other injuries. 300 ICE agents descended and rounded up over 150 undocumented workers on August 28th, with criminal investigations into the company continuing. Tigertown is a tiny community where several trailer manufacturers have set up shop – all of whom employ unauthorized immigrants to do the work. While the strongly conservative state voted for the current presidential administration in 2016, locals are in agreement that guest workers are needed and are sympathetic to the uprooted welders. In 2018, ICE agents have struck at 7-Eleven stores, a meatpacking plant, dairy and vegetable farms and a feedlot.