Faces

from October 18, 2010

Today was a full day. This morning we drove down to Nogalas, AZ, right on the border and home of one of the largest Border Patrol stations in the country. We talked with them about what they do and then we saw the station. I think I've just grown up with a general trust of authority. But, while their goals are noble (security of the country) they are failing. First, they said they wanted to control terrorism and keep WMDs from our country post 9/11. Good goal. But why the US/Mexico border? The terrorists that caused 9/11 were all Middle Eastern (fanatics and most Middle Easterners condemn what they do) and they were all here on legal visas. Going to the detention center at the station was the hardest part. People were packed into cells and agents were so detached while processing them. No one seemed to care (though I think that is the only way to get through the day. If you care, your job will destroy you). When we asked about the blankets a lot of them had wrapped around their shoulders, one agent just brushed it off, saying, "Oh, it's a little cold in there." It just seemed like they forgot these people were human. They had about 100 people detained, caught in the last 24 hours. While we were there, they brought in about 20 more people. One girl looked just like Alejandra (a girl whose home I stayed at this summer). It was hard. They just looked so scared. They treat all of them like felons, but most just want to feed their family.

This afternoon we went to Operation Streamline. This is the government's program to deport in an efficient manner. 70+ people were there. They all had their rights read to them, they pleaded, and were sentenced in an hour and fifteen minutes. They went in groups of five. They only met their lawyers that morning. All plead guilty and now have a misdemeanors on their records. Court proceedings were gone. A lady started cleaning the headphones they use to hear the translators in the middle of people's plea cases. Lawyers walked in and out. It was a mess and if it was a citizen there, no one would allow it. 10 minutes. That's all it takes to be found guilty and go to jail. There was something so inhumane, so mechanical about it. But, they all had faces, had stories, had families, had lives. For everyone there it is just another day at work. We need to ask why these people are coming here and not just treat them as hard-core criminals. We need to make it easier to be legal, rather than patrol for people in the desert. We went through a government check point when driving. "Are you a citizen?" "Yes." "Have a nice day." If we looks Hispanic, we would have had to prove it.