Day 2 El Otro Lado

I think the word of the day was conflicted. Everywhere we went and everyone we spoke to had a different perspective on immigration. But there were a few things that stood out to me:
Everywhere we went immigration was spoken about in the abstract. Rarely could we get anyone to discuss immigrants as people. The dehumanization is painful to see.
The border patrol agents, the Operation Streamline judge, and the defense attorney all commented they "they were just doing their job". And although the defense attorney will be arguing a case in front of the Ninth Circuit court regarding the constitutionality of Operation Streamline, I felt his passion for the case was more about his passion for the law than a desire for justice for immigrants. Maybe for him, it's the same?
The border patrol has thousands of sensors in the ground that can detect the slightest movement. They also use drones, and although they are currently unarmed, they are capable of carrying weaponry. Their cameras have a five mile range. As a nation we may say that our border is not militarized, but it does not feel like it when you are here.
The Santa Cruz river valley, where Tucson lies, has, for 700 years, been a path for human migration. As the borders in San Diego and El Paso have been walled off a funnel has been created in this part of Arizona, making Nogales, Arizona and Nogales, Sonora (Mexico) the busiest border crossing in the southwest. And the most dangerous.

Today we are going to meet a rancher whose property is regularly crossed by migrants. We will hear his perspective and spend time cleaning up artifacts left behind by the crossers.

Here is a link to an article detailing the process of Operation Streamline. http://azstarnet.com/news/local/border/operation-streamline-takes-hard-line-on-illegal-border-crossers/article_35cb6dc5-45e3-55e5-b471-c1dd2a72bc31.html