I hiked along the U.S.-Mexico border with two other members of the Samaritans organization on January 21. We were looking for active migrant trails where we could leave water and food for people that might be in distress. The images from three scenes that day have stayed with me.
We started off hiking along a streambed that parallels the border. After an hour of walking, we passed a pool of water and Bob noticed a piece of clothing under the water. We were both intrigued and haunted by that sight.
A few hours later, we found an active trail and followed it south towards the border. We saw occasional footprints made by tennis shoes and then came upon a resting area. A small shrine had been erected beside a tree - a cross, candle glasses, and Bible. There was also a photo of a woman hugging her two daughters. The photo was next to a prayer to Saint Gabriel – “May your divine providence extend over my family so that together we may give thanks to God.”
At the end of the day, as we drove back to the main road, we passed a Border Patrol truck parked alongside another truck with a portable surveillance tower. They were on top of the highest hill in the area – waiting to detect and apprehend people for crossing an imaginary line in the desert in order to provide for their families.
Just a few days earlier, the Border Patrol announced they are going to launch a new program – the “Consequence Delivery System.” Unauthorized immigrants will be classified into seven different categories that will receive varying degrees of punishment – which could include a criminal conviction and being sent back to distant areas in Mexico. One of the unmentioned consequences of the system will be increased profits for the corporations involved in the detention and deportation industry.
I’ve been able to talk with many courageous migrants in Nogales – some on their way north and others who have recently been deported. Their motivation for risking arrest and death in the desert is either to provide for their families in their communities of origin or to be re-united with their families in the communities in the U.S. where they have established their lives.
I believe that a parent’s love for their child is ultimately more powerful than the heartless technology and policies created to enforce inequality and exclusion.
