Spring break on the border

In the fall of 2005 a group of students got together to organize a symposium about immigration in Iowa and the United States. The symposium, entitled "On the Move: The New Immigration," took place January 27 - February 1, 2006, at Grinnell College. The purpose of the symposium was to educate the Grinnell community about the local and national issues associated with current Latino immigration to the United States and Iowa, and to develop community-led initiatives to help address the social, political, labor, and human rights challenges faced by recent immigrants.

Approximately 700 students, faculty, staff, and town residents attended the six events of the symposium. The events included the showing of three documentary films: Rights on the Line, Farmingville, and Maid in America. There was a panel discussion which included presentations from Grinnell Professor Victoria Brown; Ray Ybarra, Ira Glasser Racial Justice Fellow; Rep. Kyrsten Sinema (D-Phoenix), Rep. Danny Carroll (R-Grinnell), Max Cardenas '01, and Maria Lira, Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement. There was a debate between Chris Simcox, co-founder of the Minutemen, and Professor Mark Grey from University of Northern Iowa debated how to deal with the influx of undocumented immigrants into the U.S. The final event of the symposium was an activism workshop led by Representative Kyrsten Sinema (D-Phoenix) on February 1. At the workshop, approximately 25 students came together to reflect on the symposium and generate ideas that would translate our new knowledge and understanding of Latino immigration into action. Three main goals emerged: to join members of Latinos en Acción de CCI (Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement) as advocates on existing campaigns; to continue education and outreach efforts directed at the Grinnell community on immigration issues; and to organize a student delegation of volunteers to join humanitarian aid efforts for immigrants at the southern border of the United States.

On March 18, nine Grinnell students embarked on a journey through the southern United States border region to explore how immigration affects the area and to support humanitarian aid and human rights organizations in their efforts to work for a more just immigration policy. We arrived in Phoenix, AZ on March 20 and spent the morning working at a Day Laborer's Center. We talked with the workers and listened to their personal experiences as undocumented workers, mostly from Mexico. The following day we served as legal observers with the American Civil Liberties Union at a corner where day laborers wait for work and where a group of Minutemen have been protesting against them. A group of counter protesters to the Minutemen were also present. We served as a neutral presence and documented interactions between the different groups. It was a great opportunity to witness the intense polarization surrounding the immigration issue.

While in Phoenix we also had the opportunity to work with the No More Deaths chapter to help flyer for the immigrant rights march that was held on March 24th. The group split up and traveled throughout the city, talking with different people and spreading the word. Although we were not able to attend the march because we were no longer in Phoenix, it turned out to be the largest march in Phoenix history with over 20,000 people. Before leaving Phoenix we had the opportunity to go to the State House of Representatives and meet with Kyrsten Sinema to support her work for immigrant rights in Arizona. Our time in Phoenix gave all of us a better understanding of the legal issues surrounding immigration as well as the chance to learn about the experiences of immigrants.

We arrived in Tucson on March 22nd and met with Sylvia and Mike Thorson Smith and Shanti Sellz, and learned about the work of No More Deaths in the region. The Presbyterian Church in Tucson has played a crucial role since the 1970s and continues to be a strong voice for the rights of immigrants and a strong participant in the struggle for social justice. The following day we went out bright and early with the group called Samaritans who work to save lives along the southern Arizona border by providing food, water, and medical assistance to migrants. We went out to collect personal affects left behind by migrants who had crossed the desert. It was probably one of the most intense experiences of the trip. We saw all the things that people had carried across the desert and then were told by the coyote (smuggler) that they had to leave them behind so that they didn't look like travelers. Diapers, make-up, clothes, back packs, water bottles, bus tickets… The area was heavy with a feeling of despair and suffering. When walking out in the desert under the hot sun I could not imagine the intense misery that would drive someone to risk their lives to come to the U.S. in search of a better life. The death of people in the desert is just one part of the larger problem of inequality and oppression in the world.

During our time in Tucson we also helped organize an immigrant rights rally with Border Action Network and No More Deaths on March 24th. It really made us all feel like we were a part of a larger movement. People of all ages and backgrounds coming together demanding that immigrants, regardless of their legal status, be treated like human beings. It really gave us all a sense of hope for the future, especially because there were marches all over the country of hundreds of thousands of people calling for a just immigration policy.

No More Deaths was sponsoring a fast for forty days during the season of Lent in remembrance of all those who have died in the desert trying to cross into the U.S. and in solidarity with all those who are working for the rights of immigrants. We were able to go and spend some time talking with those who had chosen to fast. It was an extremely humbling experience to read out loud some of the 4000 names of people who have died since 1998 in the desert. It really brought in the human aspect into the work we were doing. From Tucson we headed south to Douglas, AZ, a town located on the U.S./Mexico border and we worked with Christian Peace Maker Teams. We focused on the militarization of the border and how this affects communities on both sides of the fence. We talked to community members and learned about how the wall had changed over the years and how the number of Border Patrol officers had grown. We then had the opportunity to actually meet with Border Patrol and learn about how they enforce immigration policy. We got to look more closely at the mechanisms they use to "secure the border." It gave us the opportunity to hear their perspective and learn how they fit into the picture.

Our last leg of the trip was in El Paso, TX. While in El Paso we worked with Annunciation House. Annunciation House, formed in the late 1970s, has the following mission: "In a Gospel spirit of service and solidarity, we accompany the migrant, homeless, and economically vulnerable peoples of the border region through hospitality, advocacy, and education. We place ourselves among the poor so as to live our faith and transform our understanding of what constitutes more just relationships between peoples, countries, and economies." The founder of Annunciation House spoke to us and pointed directly to our privileged position as college students and challenged us to live out what we believed. He told us that actions speak louder that words and that we need to live out the change we wish to see in the world. Every action that we take, every dollar that we spend has an impact on the world and affects our brothers and sisters around the world. We also had the opportunity to meet with Peter Hinde, a catholic priest who lives in Juarez and works closely with Annunciation House. Peter has been involved in Latin American solidarity work since the 1970s and has committed his life to doing social justice. He was able to give us an orientation on how the border played out in El Paso and Juarez and placed it within a global context.

While in El Paso we also had the opportunity to meet with Las Americas, a legal advocacy branch organization of Annunciation House. We learned about the legal procedures for seeking asylum and how especially women and children fit into the immigration laws.

The final project was to attend a symposium hosted at the New Mexico State University in Las Cruses, NM. The symposium was a series of documentary films and panel discussions on the violence against women in the city of Juarez. It was a moving presentation of family members who have lost their mothers, daughters, and sisters. We learned more about the issues of corruption in the city of Juarez and how the border plays out in this intense violence towards women. We were able to conclude our time at the symposium with a candle-light vigil remembering all the women who have been killed or disappeared. This experience brought to light the complexity of border cities and how immigration plays out in such different ways.

This trip was a life changing experience for all of us. We saw how immigration plays out in different areas of the border region. We worked with legislators, non-profits, grassroots organizations, advocacy groups, law offices, student groups, and ordinary people working for social justice. We heard personal stories of undocumented immigrants who had risked their lives crossing the desert to come and work. We met amazing people who are committed to working for change where everyone in the human family is considered. Several members of the group are planning on spending the summer volunteering with No More Deaths; others who are graduating are planning on going back to their home towns to work on immigration issues or going back to work with some of the organizations we volunteered with. Those in the group who are not graduating are planning on coming back to campus to continue organizing around immigrant rights. The experiences we had during this trip affected us all differently, but touched each one of us profoundly. We have grown personally and deepened our commitment to working for social justice.