Borderlands

BORDERLANDS: God will change the politicians’ hearts

April 15th, 2009
in:

We were on the fifth day of the Pilgrimage for Immigrants, 5-10 April 2009, in the metropolitan area of Atlanta, Georgia.  I was having lunch with Joaquin, a U.S. citizen of Mexican descent.  He has been here for twenty years, and lives in the Atlanta area with his wife and four children.  She is Hispanic, a fourth generation American, and their children are all citizens by birth.  Interestingly, he said that English is the first language of his children, although they are all bilingual.  Work is slow these days, and he took the day off for the pilgrimage.  His reason?  To support change in immigration policy so families will not be broken up.  When asked how that could happen, he said, “Politicians do not want to change, but we are praying to God, and God can change the politicians’ hearts.”

U.S./MEXICO BORDERLANDS: Tearing down walls and building community

June 12th, 2008
in:

by Heather Brady

Sorrow and pain are at home here in the desolate landscape of the Arizona desert. Along the borderlands, our Christian Peacemaker Teams delegation walks in the footsteps of the thousands of migrants who make the dangerous journey northward.

Standing still, I close my eyes and feel the burning sun upon my bare skin.
I imagine what it means to be a migrant, to leave everything and everyone you know and love in order to provide for them, to spend days and weeks running and hiding, feet blistered and bloody. Desperate for water, your tongue grows thick with thirst. Cactus thorns stab you as you run blindly through the darkness, struggling to stay with the group.

We hear the story of Josseline Quinteros, a fourteen-year-old girl from El Salvador. Separated from her group, she would wander lost and alone for weeks before eventually laying down, never to get up again.

U.S./ MEXICO: CPT announces delegation to U.S./Mexico Borderlands, 27 May-5 June 2008

January 30th, 2008
in:
Members of CPT's Borderlands delegation will monitor human rights, meet with representatives of human rights groups and government officials, and carry out a nonviolent public witness confronting unjust immigration policies.

ARIZONA/SONORA BORDERLANDS: The subversive handshake

January 10th, 2008
in:
"Excuse me," the young Border Patrol agent interjected, "but did you give or receive anything through the fence?"

"Yes," and then pausing I replied, "I gave and received a handshake."

"Well, my supervisor would like to speak with you. You'll have to wait right here."

"Right here" was alongside the segregation wall of exploitation and fear built by my government. As I waited, I reflected on what had happened just before this fraternal act.