Journal Entry #5

Through watching the documentary, “Bodies on the Border,” one is able to see the impact that the border has on the lives of many.  Through the documentary, it has been noted that nearly, 2,200 bodies have been found on the U.S/Mexican border, this is the number of deaths that have occurred to people that have embarked on the journey to find a “better” life, a life they were never able to even begin because of the treacherous course they had to endure.  This documentary has evoked a lot of emotion considering that I come from a family who has crossed the border through “el cerro,” multiple of times. Through these experiences, my mother has told me the struggles that she has endured in doing so, months prior to my birth and once soon after. I am grateful for the fact that my mother was one of the few fortunate that made it out alive, but sad to know that our communities literally risk their lives for the sake of a better future. The fact that the border has been militarized simply because politics state it is the best alternative for this nation is upsetting, especially when so many lives are lost in the process. In comparing this documentary with Flower in the Skull and Concha’s story, it related heavy due to the way the characters in the story are seen as having Opata ancestry. Much like the people of color attempting to cross the border, the Opata were historically seen as inferior and therefore have been violently displaced. Policies and laws that prohibit the migration of certain communities have been historically linked to the experience of the oppressor, such policies serve to oppress communities who are simply trying to live their lives. In seeking to find a “better” life, they may leave to find no life at all, and that is the sad truth of the way our borders have killed off many of our own due to this country’s neglect and inability to accept what isn’t “known.”