BajaNomad

Crossing back into the US

Toobman - 1-29-2026 at 09:50 AM

How has crossing back into the US been lately? Any issues, particularly for brown folks?

Tioloco - 1-29-2026 at 10:44 AM

As ALWAYS, you have to have your documents showing who you are regardless of skin color.

cupcake - 1-29-2026 at 10:48 AM

As already stated, ethnicity will have no bearing on your crossing back into the US. If you have a valid passport, no warrants, and don't behave in a violent manner, you should be fine.

Toobman - 1-29-2026 at 10:50 AM

Of course we'd have all documents. My question is are folks being questioned more than before or are the CBP still as courteous as they used to be?

cupcake - 1-29-2026 at 11:38 AM

Quote: Originally posted by Toobman  
Of course we'd have all documents. My question is are folks being questioned more than before or are the CBP still as courteous as they used to be?


While I suspect it also depends on the luck of the draw in who you get at the immigration counter, the internet reports this for the San Ysidro crossing (you can query for specific locations):

"Yes, based on reports from late 2025 and early 2026, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) at the San Ysidro border has increased scrutiny, questioning, and enforcement actions, marking a shift toward a more aggressive inspection regime."


[Edited on 1-29-2026 by cupcake]

Tioloco - 1-29-2026 at 11:39 AM

Quote: Originally posted by Toobman  
Of course we'd have all documents. My question is are folks being questioned more than before or are the CBP still as courteous as they used to be?


No change. Same as always with some being courteous and a few quite rude. Never been about skin color either way.

surabi - 1-29-2026 at 01:21 PM

Quote: Originally posted by Tioloco  
Never been about skin color either way.


How would you know, since you are white?

Tioloco - 1-29-2026 at 03:13 PM

Quote: Originally posted by surabi  
Quote: Originally posted by Tioloco  
Never been about skin color either way.


How would you know, since you are white?


You can delude yourself into believing whatever you want. I cross the border regularly with light skinned and dark skinned passengers and periodically alone. The vast majority of contacts with immigration agents is positive. There is the periodic negative contact but it is not the rule nor does it have ANYTHING to do with skin color.

Interestingly, the majority of the US immigration agents are not white (Calexico, Andrade, San Luis). Incorporate that into your narrative how you wish. It is unrealistic to think you are not safe entering thru the port of entry (as long as you are following the law)

Race baiting is so 2010.....

surabi - 1-29-2026 at 03:13 PM

Several years ago, 3 young Canadian women had planned a weekend trip to NYC. 2 of the women were white, the 3rd was of East Indian heritage, although she was 2nd generation Canadian. The 2 white women were allowed to enter the US, the brown woman was told she couldn't, no explanation given. She had no criminal history, nothing that would have disqualified her from legal entry.

I have a friend who is a white Canadian, married to a Moroccan man. He has Canadian citizenship and is a bank manager. Although it is much less expensive for them to book a connecting flight through the US, when they fly to Morocco to visit his family, they no longer book flights that have a connection in the US, because every time they have done so, her husband gets racially profiled, pulled aside and interrogated, one time so extensively that they missed their flight.

Those are just 2 of thousands of examples.

A white person having the gall to tell POC that race isn't factor in border crossing is not only ignorantly wrong, it's an incredibly rude and racist thing to say.

[Edited on 1-29-2026 by surabi]

[Edited on 1-29-2026 by surabi]

[Edited on 1-29-2026 by surabi]

winnebago 2 - 1-29-2026 at 03:27 PM

surabi: Bull chit. A friend of a friend of a friend of a friend told me.

Tioloco - 1-29-2026 at 03:31 PM

Quote: Originally posted by surabi  
Several years ago, 3 young Canadian women had planned a weekend trip to NYC. 2 of the women were white, the 3rd was of East Indian heritage, although she was 2nd generation Canadian. The 2 white women were allowed to enter the US, the brown woman was told she couldn't, no explanation given. She had no criminal history, nothing that would have disqualified her from legal entry.



[Edited on 1-29-2026 by surabi]

[Edited on 1-29-2026 by surabi]

[Edited on 1-29-2026 by surabi]


Neither her 2 companions nor you or I have any idea what her criminal background is. It would be helpful to all if you stopped with your racial projections.

On an aside, a great majority of my times being questioned by US Immigration/Customs agents have been with them being other than white. What does that mean to you? Shouldn't mean anything unless race is your driving motivator.

surabi - 1-29-2026 at 03:50 PM

Quote: Originally posted by Tioloco  
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[/rquote]

Neither her 2 companions nor you or I have any idea what her criminal background is.


You might not, but I do. The details reported on at the time. Don't extrapolate your lack of information to others.

surabi - 1-29-2026 at 03:56 PM

Quote: Originally posted by winnebago 2  
surabi: Bull chit. A friend of a friend of a friend of a friend told me.


Oh look, another ignoramus trying to dismiss a fact with bs and trying to ignorantly deny that people are not racially profiled at border crossings.
"A friend of a friend of a friend" did not tell me this. I personally know the Canadian woman and her Moroccan husband.

And the case of the 2 white women and their brown friend and travel companion was widely reported on in the Canadian press at the time.





[Edited on 1-29-2026 by surabi]

cupcake - 1-29-2026 at 04:35 PM

Quote: Originally posted by surabi  
Several years ago, 3 young Canadian women...


"3 young Canadian women had planned a weekend trip to NYC. 2 of the women were white, the 3rd was of East Indian heritage, although she was 2nd generation Canadian. The 2 white women were allowed to enter the US, the brown woman was told she couldn't, no explanation given."

I queried the internet with your above quoted statement and got this:

"Based on the details provided, this situation describes the experience of Manpreet Kooner, a 30-year-old Canadian citizen of Indian origin born and raised in Montreal, who was denied entry into the United States in March 2017 while traveling with two white friends.
Key details of the incident:
The Incident: The trio was traveling from Montreal to a spa in Vermont for a day trip. While her two friends were allowed to enter, Kooner was detained at the Highgate Springs border crossing for six hours, fingerprinted, photographed, and ultimately denied entry.
No Official Reason: She was not given a formal, written explanation, but was told she needed a valid "immigrant visa" to enter the country, despite holding a Canadian passport.
"Trumped": A border agent told her, "I know you may feel like you've been Trumped," in reference to the political climate at the time.
Previous Incident: She noted that a previous, brief, and "random" stop for a computer glitch in December 2016 seemed to have flagged her file.
Result: She was advised to go to the U.S. Embassy in Ottawa to apply for a visa, but was there told that as a Canadian citizen, she did not need one and that she should talk to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).
Following her experience, which garnered significant media attention in Canada, Kooner expressed feeling "speechless" and suspected the incident was related to racial profiling."

Her experience could have been related to the reported "computer glitch", or it could have been a bad immigration officer. I have met some doozies. But still, my experience has been the same as Tioloco's. It's not about ethnicity, but it can be about country of origin, traveling documents, legal history, stated reasons for travel, etc., etc.



[Edited on 1-29-2026 by cupcake]

Tioloco - 1-29-2026 at 05:46 PM

Quote: Originally posted by surabi  
Quote: Originally posted by Tioloco  
[
[/rquote]

Neither her 2 companions nor you or I have any idea what her criminal background is.


You might not, but I do. The details reported on at the time. Don't extrapolate your lack of information to others.


Cupcake spent the time to google the incident. Now we are ALL up to speed and the details are still not available to us. That includes you, surabi. You don't know why and you never will. Why is it ALWAYS a race thing for you? Seek therapy for your racism.

elgatoloco - 1-29-2026 at 05:51 PM

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kavanaugh_stop

:saint:

surabi - 1-29-2026 at 05:55 PM

Quote: Originally posted by cupcake  

It's not about ethnicity, but it can be about country of origin, traveling documents, legal history, stated reasons for travel, etc., etc.



Quite something watching you MAGAs tie yourself in knots trying to deny the fact of racial profiling.

That woman's country of origin was Canada, her travel documents were in order, she had no criminal record, and they knew her reason for travelling. She was no different from the friends she was travelling with in those respects, aside from the color of her skin. "A computer glitch" years before can explain being briefly detained, not interrogated for 6 hours, fingerprinted and photographed, told she needs an immigrant visa, and denied entry.

Just being told she needed an "immigrant visa", when her passport clearly showed she was born in Montreal, was quite obviously based on racism.

lencho - 1-29-2026 at 06:13 PM

Quote: Originally posted by surabi  
Quite something watching you MAGAs tie yourself in knots trying to deny the fact of racial profiling.

Of course profiling happens. It's a statistically useful tool for law enforcement, duh.

My opinion is that those that claim it shouldn't exist, don't understand the profession.

What they DO with that profile information is the point here. The situation you described goes beyond statistics into discrimination.

surabi - 1-29-2026 at 06:32 PM

Well said, lencho.

mtgoat666 - 1-29-2026 at 07:19 PM

Perhaps one thing we can all agree on is that the majority of the border agents are sour, cranky bastards. So many of them seem to just hate their customers.

[Edited on 1-30-2026 by mtgoat666]

cupcake - 1-30-2026 at 06:03 PM

Quote: Originally posted by surabi  
Quote: Originally posted by cupcake  

It's not about ethnicity, but it can be about country of origin, traveling documents, legal history, stated reasons for travel, etc., etc.



Quite something watching you MAGAs tie yourself in knots trying to deny the fact of racial profiling.


I didn't realize I was a MAGA. Somehow, I feel as though I have been profiled :rolleyes: