Border Patrol Museum accuses protesters of vandalism

The president of the National Border Patrol Museum’s board of directors said protesters vandalized multiple exhibits on Saturday.

“Today a group of protesters invaded the Border Patrol Museum and defaced all of our exhibits including our sacred Memorial Room,” David Ham wrote on Facebook. “Efforts to prosecute them will be pursued once damage is assessed. This angers me greatly.”

The Facebook group, “Tornillo: the Occupation” livestreamed the protest.

“It was an act of civil disobedience done because we believe there is a humanitarian crisis and human rights violations being perpetuated by a corrupt and broken immigration system,” said Elizabeth Vega, one of the organizers.

Vega is a St. Louis resident and well-known protester throughout the country, especially in Ferguson. She denied vandalizing the museum, but she said the group placed stickers of Jakelin Caal and Felipe Gomez Alonzo, children who died in the custody of the U.S. Border Patrol.

“If this was happening in another country, we would be in an uproar,” Vega said.

The museum is not affiliated with the U.S. Border Patrol, a spokesman said on Facebook. It is the only border patrol museum in the country.

“We house the U.S. Border Patrol history but we are not funded by them or the federal government,” he said in a Facebook message.

Even though the museum is not funded by the U.S. Border Patrol, Vega told ABC-7 that they glorify a broken immigration system.

“I am appalled and ashamed of my country and all the people within that immigration system who are perpetuating these violations,” Vega said.