More than politics

When the crisis at the border began to heat up last year, WORLD’s Addie Offereins headed south to see the situation for herself. Most news outlets focused on the unprecedented surge of illegal crossings and Washington’s response. But Addie wanted to find out how the influx affected the people closest to it. Her story, “Shadow of death,” in this issue, details what happens to the many immigrants who don’t survive the journey and the toll that takes on the local communities left to bury the dead. It’s an example of how the reality of a black-and-white political issue is a lot more gray on the ground.

Most people think of immigration as a political issue. But it’s personal along the border. How did you see that dynamic play out among the officials and volunteers trying to identify immigrants who die crossing the border? The people I spent time with share a deep love for their borderland communities—the melding of languages and cultures, the spectacular sunsets over miles of scrubland, and the unbeatable tacos. Immigration touches each of their jobs in some way. The deaths and desperate situations they encounter, sometimes on a daily basis, take an emotional toll. Though they fall on different sides of the political aisle, they are united around bringing closure to the families mourning a missing loved one.

Even though this is a personal issue in south Texas, the solution to the problem remains political. Did anyone you met seem hopeful about a long-term fix? Like the rest of the country, they disagree with one another on the best way to solve the problem. But they uniformly resent Washington politicians who use the immigration crisis as a political football instead of listening to local concerns. It’s a demoralizing cycle. Congress hasn’t passed comprehensive immigration reform for more than 40 years. So they aren’t expecting any immediate answers. One rancher refused my interview request because he said it wouldn’t change anything.

What’s one thing about these border communities that you wish more people knew? As a central Texas resident, I didn’t understand the borderlands’ unique culture until I visited Eagle Pass for the first time last year. Every day, many people cross the bridge to work in the Mexican sister city of Piedras Negras. They share languages and food and celebrate their friendship with an annual parade—something that isn’t captured in most media coverage about the border crisis. Most residents don’t want border enforcement that shuts down this decades-long relationship. But they also oppose policies that enable smugglers and put their two communities at risk.