Humanity

I’d say that one of the hardest parts about being in Nogales is how to fully understand how we (No More Deaths) fit into the chaos that has become the Arizona/Mexico. Of course, anyone would feel this way in any kind of situation that involved humanitarian aid in a seemingly foreign land. But to say “foreign” is a fallacy, because we are talking about the problems of people from our home. The people we’ve seen this week could’ve been your neighbor, could’ve been the stranger in the car next to you at the stoplight, could have been a fellow student at school. No one is safe. No family, I should say, is safe. To really feel the experience, of what is happening here, is to understand how inhumane humanity has become.

Yes, there are laws that are in place, documents that need to be submitted, and “rules” to be followed, but what’s become absent from our democratic system is the human soul. During my time here in Nogales, through translating in a clinic and interviewing migrants, I came to realize the humanity of this border. It was families trying to get back home, sons going to mothers, brothers finding brothers, and children finding parents. It was humans, seeking to find what we all most desire in life: connection, unity, and family. What you’ll find here is what you expect; a mess of exclusive red tape created by the rich politicians that run our country, and an ugly wall. But what you’ll experience here is the reality of our actions as a country. I cannot share, with words, the painful plight of the migrant; I can only feel it in my bones. Knowing fully well, that I am part of their story, as they are a part of mine, as you- reader of this blog- are a part of theirs, as they are a part of you. We are human beings, made up of similar matter. That is reality; that is the truth of the situation. We are humans. No border can hide that.