The Border

Sprinting through the open desert, accumulating burrs and scratches through my sweater and long pants, I began to see differently. We arrived at the wall with our jaws drooping open in search of air and gawking at the structure in front of us. Thanks to the leadership of an ex-coyote (human smuggler) we were able to experience a small taste of the journey across the border that migrants must take to reach the United States.

This week we took a break from work and joined four other young adult volunteers for an educational tour of the border. We stayed at a church just across the border in Agua Prieta. We engaged in conversation with migrants, business owners, and community organizers. Unfortunately the only interactions we had with Border Patrol Agents was the short interactions while crossing, definitely one of the missing pieces of the experience.

The wall itself is quite sight. From a distance it sticks out like a sore thumb, jarring and unnatural. An iron wall does not belong in a desert. It looks a bit silly. Up close it feels a bit different. The bollards rise up sending messages of unwelcome and separation. And yet on the other side the land is the same. Desert landscape as far as I can see on both sides. The land was not meant to be separated.

US vs Mexican side of the wall.

Back in Agua Prieta, we walk along the wall admiring all the murals creatively portrayed on the Mexican side. I am reminded of the architecture of separation I experienced in Palestine. The graffiti covered wall that separates homes from ancestral farmland in Palestine is not all too different from the one that we have built in our own country. In our border lands though we have cut a city in half. Still dependent on one another the cities of Douglas and Agua Prieta have the added complication of a barrier between its people. This city was not meant to be separated.

Top two images are ones I took in Palestine, the bottom three are from the US wall.

The biggest irony I came across during this time was that the only migration that the wall is effective in halting is nonhuman migration. When humans are motivated by fear there is little that stand in our way. Those who chose not to climb the wall or dig under it or cut holes in it go to the desert where there is only a fence. In this way we have driven people into the desert. Many are able to carry enough water and food to make it safely to the US side, but many die.

We talked to many people about this problem. We planted a cross in the place where a young man was found dead a year ago. We participated in a vigil which honored the lives of those who have been found in the desert. And we talked to an artist who is dedicated to making and planting crosses for those who have lost their lives in the desert.

Learn more about death in the desert at: https://humaneborders.org

This Artist, Alvaro Enciso, among several others we talked to inspired hope on the topic. Alvaro insisted that we must do what we are called to whether it draws attention or not. He started making crosses by himself in the desert, and now he travels all over the country with his art talking about the border crisis.

"We do what we can," a member of the Sierra Club told us after explaining the devastating environmental impacts of the wall.

When we were talking to a couple in Douglas, I was encouraged by the way Jack and Linda talked about their life philosophy. "We go somewhere and try to be helpful, but we just make friends." They explained further that only once they have developed trusting relationships with people are they able to understand the needs of a community. The best thing we can do anywhere we go be neighborly and make friends.

And life cannot be without celebration so here are some moments of celebrating through food, Michaela prepping me for med school interviews, and a very cool house portrait. :)