More Than 235 Die in 2007, As Arizona Border Battle Heats Up
December 30th, 2007 – Arizona Indymedia writes: For the fifth straight year the number of bodies recovered from the Arizona desert surpassed two hundred. While 235 bodies were recovered in calendar year 2007, the number who actually died was likely much higher, their bodies to lie in wake among the thousands of square miles of desert along the migrant trail.
In 2007 the Pima County Medical Examiner’s Office had to open a new building in order to cope with the volume of remains being recovered. While the majority of deaths occurred as the result of exposure to the elements, an increasing number resulted from trauma, including gunshot wounds. In spite of this humanitarian crisis, which Arizona human rights groups such as the coalición de derechos humanos and No More Deaths argue is a direct result of the militarization of the U.S. / Mexico border, border militarization and internal enforcement continue to grow.
On January 1st Arizona’s new employer sanctions law will go into effect, allowing the business license of any company found employing undocumented workers to be revoked. Many fear this will provide another weapon to racist organizations like the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office, with which to target the state’s hispanic community.
In Phoenix, the Pruitt’s Furniture Store boycott is entering its third month. Weekly demonstrations there have grown more heated, as hundreds on both sides of the immigration debate have squared off.
Construction continues on the San Pedro River border wall, in violation of 19 federal laws and a judicial restraining order. Earlier this month a constitutional challenge was thrown out of Federal Court against the REAL ID Act, which provided the Department of Homeland Security the authority to overrule the judiciary and ignore all environmental, cultural and public input laws.
Near the border, fear-mongering and profiteering continue, as rural and indigenous communities are terrorized by DHS surveillance cameras and an occupying army of Border Patrol.
Meanwhile, the death toll of the U.S.’s deadly border policy continues to grow, with no end in sight. Click here for a list bodies recovered in Arizona for the fiscal year, which begins October 1st, and ends September 30th of every year.
Border Crossings/ Cruzando Fronteras
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QXRR4yQ4Gl4
Border Crossings/Cruzando Fronteras touches on crucial issues that surround the increased militarization of the U.S./Mexico border. The United States Border Patrol, now part of the new formed Department of Homeland Security, has a history of abusing its power. Examples of this abuse range from sexual assault to unnecessary use of deadly force. It is also a widely ignored fact that the U.S./Mexico Border divides many indigenous nations such as the Tohono O’odham, Yaqui, and Navajo. This prevents many people from performing and attending traditional ceremonies and activities. Border Crossings exposes the U.S./Mexico border as the true alienator, dividing two nations that have thousands of years of migration history.