Border issues...not so black and white

The water tanks left out in the desert by Humane Borders.

The wall on the border of the US and Mexico, built by the US.

Flag above a water station. In the beginning of July, we took a trip to the border to learn about the issues surrounding illegal immigrants crossing into the U.S. By the end of the trip, I realized just how much more complicated the issue was than I had ever imagined.

Many of these people decide to make the trip to the US in desperation from extreme poverty. They want to be able to help family members survive. I have a friend from New York who told me that in Mexico, he would work for $5 a day. In the US, even working at minimum wage, he was able to send money to support his family in Mexico. These people are not making the trip to try to steal rights from Americans or be crafty and get around the system. Just like us, they care about their families, and will do anything they can to improve the lives of their loved ones.

The trip across the Sonoran desert is long, harsh, and unbearably hot. Most have no idea how much water they will need to just simply stay alive in the desert, let alone while walking the many miles to the US. And far too many die from lack of water. To add to this problem, the US is building a wall along the border. This does not have the desired effect of keeping people from crossing the border, it just forces them into even harsher and more unforgiving terrain where they are more likely to die and their bodies even less likely to be discovered.

Humane Borders is the organization that we traveled to the border with. This organization, run by a church in Tucson, puts out water stations in the corridors that are most traveled by the immigrants to try to prevent unnecessary deaths. The sad fact is that some vigilantes dislike the idea of illegals so much that they tamper with the water in the tanks.

I've learned that it's not about politics, it's about people's lives.