'Amistad' binds Del Rio and Ciudad Acuna amid migrant crisis
DEL RIO, Texas (AP) — Amistad — Spanish for friendship — binds the sister cities of Del Rio, Texas, and Ciudad Acuña, Mexico.
Each year, the border communities that sit across the Rio Grande from one another come together to celebrate that bond during the Fiesta de la Amistad. Leaders from both sides of the border meet at the festival and share abrazos, or hugs, to commemorate their common history and an agreement between the U.S. and Mexico to build the Amistad Dam and Reservoir in the 1960s.
The relationship shows in many ways, with workers and families typically going back-and-forth between Acuña and Del Rio daily. But that traffic was disrupted for more than a week by the shutdown of the bridge that connects them and serves as a conduit for commerce, culture and community. Officials closed the crossing on Sept. 17 after an encampment made up of mostly Haitian migrants formed around the span. The camp was completely cleared of migrants on Friday, and U.S. authorities announced the bridge would partially reopen to passenger traffic late Saturday afternoon and to cargo traffic on Monday morning.
Some locals have felt the shutdown keenly.
Acuña resident Gerardo Hernández, 51, was told that starting Wednesday, his salary would be cut by 50% until further notice because of the closure. The materials used at the border assembly plant where he works installing car seats come from the U.S. side.
Read more: https://spectrumlocalnews.com/tx/south-texas-el-paso/news/2021/09/26/-amistad--binds-del-rio-and-ciudad-acu-a-amid-migrant-crisis