This summer, ten youth and 4 adults from Voices that Challenge went on a Borderlinks immersion trip to the border of Arizona and Mexico to learn about the plight of the Mexican people who immigrate to the United States across the hot, dry desert. The experience encompassed hearing about the stories of the people as well as learning about the policies that have pushed people to want to go to the United States.

During the trip we had many opportunities to talk to people who are directly affected by the situation. We spent three nights with Mexican families and heard their stories and ate wonderful Mexican meals. We meet with people who are trying to help the migrants including Tommy Basset, who lives in the U.S. near the border and volunteers his time to help people; the Christian Peacemaking Team, who are holding a weeklong vigil and fast next to a vandalized water station. And we visited a "No More Deaths Ark of the Covenant Camp" who provide safe havens in the desert for the immigrants.

Through these visits, we heard the horrific stories of migrants traveling through the desert for 2 or 3 days with only one gallon of water and how they change their clothes and leave the discarded clothes right in the desert. We actually saw a shirt in the desert. It was small, probably for a younger male. That really hit me. It was like, wow, people really are crossing the desert and dying. Tommy Basset told us about how people like him leave out water bottles for the migrants and invite them into their homes despite it being against the law. Then he told us that there are vigilantes that slash water bottles and sit in watch towers and call the Border Patrol when they spot migrants. It is striking to see the symbolization in this. Water is a symbol of life, particularly in the dry desert which can be a symbol of death. People like Tommy Basset are giving the migrants life while the vigilantes slash the water bottles, ultimately killing life. It is quite distressing.

We also meet with people who taught us about U.S. policy and how it affects the Mexican people. Ultimatly the policies lead many Mexican people to want to go to the United States to work so that they can make enough money to take care of their families.

Our group visited Steward, a Manquila that produces iron products for the electronics industry and heard about salaries that Mexican factory workers make which is between 5.00 and $15.00 a day. Then to help put things into perspective, we did an enlightening excise called living on a Manquila Salary. We had to buy dinner for everyone in our group with ten dollars at the local supermarket. All in all we did fairly well, but it was very difficult. We learned that all the prices in Mexico are the same as in the United States, but the people make much less money. The next day Francisco Trujillo (Kiko), the Borderlinks Mexico Director who has fifteen years of experience working in the Manquila Industry, spoke to us about NAFTA's effects on Mexico. He told us that with NAFTA, corporations from the United States can open factories and businesses in Mexico. They make products, pay low wages, send the products back to the U.S. and sell them there. Therefore, money does not stay in Mexico, ultimately hurting the Mexican economy. He also told us that local Mexican businesses are hurt. For example Mexican restaurants lose business to McDonalds and other U.S. based fast food restaurants. Again all the profits from U.S. owned fast food restaurants go back to the U.S. and does not stay in the Mexican economy. I think NAFTA definitely needs to be reevaluated and changed.

Overall this experience was eye opening and left us with many opportunities to help all the migrants who try to cross the border by going through the desert as well as all the Mexicans who have to live in poverty because of the low wages in the Manquilas and the effects of NAFTA. Some of us are going to try and go help out with the No More Deaths Camp next summer. Others want to try and bring fair trade to their schools and parishes. We also will work on legislative advocacy to help people who live in poverty in Mexico by working to revise NAFTA. We also can work on issues to help people who have, immigrated to the United States. There are laws that we can change such as the DREAM act which will help undocumented students in the United States go to college. And we can pressure our government to allow undocumented workers get driver s licenses. We will definitely keep all the Mexicans and the organizations that help them, or hurt them, in our prayers.

Katie Schwermer
St. Pius X Church