JE #8 Murder, Misogyny, and U.S. Immigration Policy

Prior to taking this class, I was somewhat familiar with the Juarez femicides but I did not know as much as I do now. Entry Denied provided great historical background with the discussion of immigration laws and Desert Blood connected everything together by using the story of Irene and her traumatic experience. Personally, my main concern with these murders is WHY, why are they happening and what do the perpetrators get out of committing such a heinous crime. In chapter 5 of Lubheid's book, we read that the author initially thought that these rapes were happening as a way to keep women out, as a border defense strategy. I would have thought the same thing because how else can you justify such a violent act. But once you actually look into specific cases of these murders, a lot of the girls who are raped by border officials are not deported but surprisingly released. Lubheid formulated a very interesting analysis that provides an explanation for these crimes. If not to keep women from crossing the border, then "rape is a technology for the violent reproduction of gender and sexuality hierarchies, norms, and identities" (129). Unfortunately, we live in a patriarchal society and the fact that so many rapes and murders go unnoticed fuel the hierarchy of sexism and even homophobia. Both Desert Blood and Bordertown left me speechless and shocked. With Desert Blood I loved that it was a mystery novel because I literally could not put the book down, I wanted to keep reading even though some parts were almost painful to read. Bordertown gave me the same reaction because it is one thing to read about the Juarez femicides and another to actually have a visual representation of what we read.