Borderlands - Day 4

We met an ecumenical group of local clergy and sisters holding weekly prayer vigils outside the immigration courtyard in downtown El Paso. Clergy from California and St. Louis also joined to support.

We crossed into Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua, Mexico. We explored global migration, root causes of displacement, and clarified misconceptions about migration.

We visited a historical site, where Daniel, a local historian, gave an engaging account of the Mexican Revolution, which ended Porfirio Diaz’s dictatorship. American citizens—mercenaries, journalists, and spectators—helped the rebels win. This narrative deepened our understanding of the enduring cross-border culture and community, which the media often misrepresents. Similar relationships exist along many southern and northern borders.
At the site, on the other side of the border and the border wall, we saw former “National Defense Areas” converted into military installations and noticed Border Patrol and military vehicles along the wall.