CPTnet
29 April 2005
ARIZONA/SONORA: Douglas is a boxing ring
"Douglas is the boxing ring for immigration policy" a local humanitarian
told CPTers. Vigilantes, coyotes, drug smugglers and the largest border
patrol station in the U.S. have a symbiotic relationship that, although it
rarely makes the national news, is lived out daily in the community. Few
small towns are affected so much by federal policy, and have so little
voice.
This town saw more then its fair share of national news in April. The
Minuteman Project dominated the news cycle at that time. CPTer Murray Lumley
attended a Douglas Chamber of Commerce meeting that discussed the negative
economic impact of the Minuteman Project on the community. It was reported
locally that Wal-Mart sales were down nearly twenty percent, in part due to
fear of the vigilante violence on the part of the Minutemen in Douglas.
Another event that hit the news happened one evening at the local Denny's
restaurant when a manager accidentally handed a receipt to a Border Patrol
Agent with the words "Border Ass Whole" (sic) printed out in bold capital
case letters. Understandably angry, the Agent immediately sent out a mass
email to the more than 400 agents stationed in Douglas to boycott the
restaurant unless "appropriate action was taken." Within three days, an ad
was placed in the help-wanted section of the Douglas Dispatch for the
position of a Denny's night manager.
Across town at the Hungry Bear, locally owned restaurant, another drama is
playing out. Emelia (name changed), a young local waitress in her twenties
from nearby Agua Prieta, had been dating a Border Patrol Agent on and off
for nearly three years. Emelia did not have documents to live or work in
the U.S., but was able to live and work in Douglas without problems. After
she ended the relationship with the Border Patrol Agent he allegedly beat
her and she has received deportation orders from the U.S. government.
Emelia is challenging the deportation order and continuing to work at the
Hungry Bear. Shortly after returning to work, some Border Patrol agents
began showing up at the restaurant asking Angelita, the owner of the
restaurant, to fire Emelia. Angelita refused, and agents have begun a
boycott of this local restaurant as well.
Having heard this story, CPT along with local community activists, held a
solidarity breakfast at the restaurant. At the meeting the team heard
about Emelia's legal options and discussed how CPT could bring more
attention to her story.
As local business owners continue to slug it out with the Border Patrol, CPT
will continue to support local initiatives that model Jesus and promote the
message of neighbor-loving by drinking coffee and eating bacon and eggs.
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