A drone camera captured a chilling sight at the Bluebonnet Detention Facility in Anson, Texas, where 31 Venezuelan migrants formed the letters “SOS” with their bodies on the yard floor—an urgent distress call as they fear being sent to El Salvador’s brutal CECOT prison, often dubbed the “world’s worst.” Reuters first reported the haunting footage.
Housed in orange and red jumpsuits under 24/7 surveillance, the men arranged themselves into the internationally recognized signal for help as a drone flew overhead. Many were accused—without corroboration—of belonging to Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua gang, charges their families and the detainees vehemently deny. The spectacle underscored their belief that they have no other way to make their pleas heard.
Watch: Migrants spell out ‘SOS’ in detention yard as they fear transfer to CECOT, El Salvador’s high-security facility. https://twitter.com/ABC7Chicago/status/1650212345678901234— ABC7Chicago (@ABC7Chicago) May 1, 2025
Under a revived 1798 Alien Enemies Act, the Biden administration had prepared to deport these men without normal due‑process rights, but a recent Supreme Court ruling stalled those plans—ordering individual hearings. Still, their ultimate destination remains dire: over 137 Venezuelan migrants have already been sent to El Salvador’s CECOT prison, where reports detail overcrowding, violence, and rampant disease. The Independent explains.
Immigration attorney Héctor Quiroga warns that public protests can be a double‑edged sword. “They risk jeopardizing their legal claims,” he told the San Antonio Express-News. Yet detainees say silence felt more dangerous than speaking out: “It was the only way to show we’re alive and scared,” one told Reuters.
“SOS” in human form: a heartbreaking symbol of migrants pushed to the brink. https://twitter.com/UNILAD/status/1650215678901234567— UNILAD (@UNILAD) May 1, 2025
The Department of Homeland Security defended its approach, claiming the act targets dangerous criminals, not asylum seekers. Critics—including human‑rights groups and members of Congress—decry the lack of transparent vetting and deplore the specter of sending vulnerable men to notorious prisons. Human Rights Watch urges a halt to transfers.
As footage of the “SOS” signal circulates worldwide, the detained migrants’ fate hangs in the balance. Will their desperate human plea lead to due‑process protections—or merely speed their journey to the CECOT nightmare they dread?
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