Journey For Border Justice Dec 13th, Day 13 Nogales Military Rifle

I'm returning from our time in Nogales Mexico with a heavy heart after witnessing where 16 year old José Rodriguez was murdered by border patrol shooting him 16 times in the back, thru the border wall into Mexico.

And this is what a see maybe three blocks from where this happened.

Window display in toy store on main drag in Nogales Arizona.

Really? Fuckin really? WHY???

Journey For Justice Dec 13th, Day 13 Walking Tour Nogales: 4 Shelters to provide for thousands of refugees

We go to the two 'best' shelters in Nogales, Mexico.

The first I mentioned previously is a shelter built by the jesuits and is a $10 million dollar building that houses up to 150 refugees both adults and children. Even at this shelter, children are not allowed to play outside or they are in danger of being groomed and then stolen. We do not take pictures so we do not inadvertently put refugees into harms way - whether that be from ICE or border patrol, or cartels, coyotes, 'traffickers'.

The second shelter of the best is a converted bus depot. When we arrive, our guide asks Anna, the womon who staffs this shelter, if she can hand out pieces of candy to the children from the bag of candy she has brought. Anna says only if there are 30 pieces, one for each child.

Anna tell us that operating tour buses around Mexico used to be her family business but four or five years ago, when the refugee 'problem' was exasperated to such a dreadful inhuman level, her family decided to do something about it. So they moved their buses to the side, and turned every inch of their depot into a shelter for refugees.

There are no grand structures here but there is the tiny, cement-floored office space and then other small areas forming 4 walls and a ceiling, cobbled together with a variety of found materials from cinder blocks to sheets of cardboard and/or metal. We stay at the edge of this shelter, standing around on the dirt as the refugees look curiously at us. Their homes are small enclaves without heat - remember it went down to 27 degrees last night - nor running water let alone sewerage.

But the buses have bathrooms and sometimes space for people to gather.

Presently 30 children at being 'housed' here along with their mothers and some fathers or grandparents as well.

Most of the refugee womyn are involved in embroidery, art, and making bracelets in order to make a little money. They have to come up with $25 u.s. dollars a week in order to stay here, although Anna says she doesn't kick anyone out, especially womyn with children.

The other shelters are often worse than sleeping on the streets, one of the womyn tells us. We don't go to those and don't want to imagine. There is no shelter in Nogales on the other side of the border - not until Tucson which is a good hour north.

Journey For Justice Dec 13th Day 13: Walking Tour Nogales Deported Muralist

This is a mural inside one of the four shelters for refugees in Nogales Mexico. This one was built by the jesuits for 10 million dollars. At most, it can house only 150 people, including children. They are only allowed to stay two weeks.

Here they are processed, fed at least once a day, minor health services and an one immigration lawyer on site. There are some classes for children also.

Look carefully at the feet of those in thus mural and see the other details of the toil and reaping of asylum seekers.

It was painted by a man who was living here, on the u.s.ofa. side, working, having a child, building a life, for over 14 years before being snatched up and deported.

Also know that the nuns who work here, probably recruit here, will not allow birth control information - let alone birth control itself - to be dispensed. Furthermore, they will not allow even self-defense classes for womyn to be taught here.

Journey For Justice Dec 13th, Day 13 Nogales: Walking tour Border Wall

Art installation on the Mexican side of our border 'wall'

Journey For Justice: Dec 13th, Day 13 Shredding Humans: Look Carefully

Look carefully - this view is from the Mexico side.

On the u.s.ofa. side there are at least 4 feet wide by 4 feet tall of barbed wire on the ground. Then across the top of the wall double strands of barbed wire, and a few feet below another few strands of barbed wire.

Why? Because we want any human who has somehow figured out how to climb a 30 foot vertical fence and leap over will die a painful death cut to shreds on barbed wire.

Our great country.

Also read the missives painted on this side of the 'wall'

Journey For Justice Dec 13th, Day 13: Nogales: Rock, Youth, Semi-automatic Gun

This is our 'wall' viewed from the Mexico side of Nogales & the place where a u.s.ofa. man standing on u.s.ofa. soil shot through the bars & sent 10 bullets into the back of the back, neck, head of a 16 year old kid walking down the sidewalk in Mexico who had accompanied his grandmother to her home & was returning to his home.

Look at the height of this wall - at least 30 feet. The border patrol man claims the youth had thrown a stone at him, making him feel unsafe so he retaliated & shot him.

We allow a child to be shot when law enforcement feels threatened by a stone thrown over a 30 foot fence or maybe in between the what 3" [if that] opening between columns?

Even more egregious, according to the FBI investigator, José Antonio Rodriguez was on surveillance cameras walking without any evidence of a rock.

The border patrol man was found innocent of murder - twice.

We met with Jose's mother who says there has been no justice for her child. The pain & sorrow & guilt & shame I feel is overwhelming. Yet she graciously thanked us for coming & for not forgetting her son nor what the u.s.ofa. police did to him.

Journey For Justice Dec 13th, Day 13 Nogales: Walking Tour

We stayed at the Quality Inn International Hotel on Grand Ave in Nogales - rather I stayed in the parking lot and Marina bunked in with other caravners as it was 27 degrees last night and she is more suspectible to the cold than I am.

This hotel is under new owners but it has always been the gathering site of the SOAWatch and Puente actions to bring awareness of what is happening here on the border. First of all, the largest immigrant detention center in Arizona is less than 3 hours north. I'm betting from Eloy to Florence there are several prisons taking over square miles of that part of Arizona. It's horrific.

The other first of all are all the awesome, committed volunteers and organizations that are working tirelessly to assist human survival in these harsh, cruel, mean policed and militarized areas. And those incredible determined and brave individuals who were able to secure asylum - and even those who were imprisoned - who are willing to return or stay to try to share their stories and try to help others.

We are joined this morning by a womon volunteer who takes us on a walking tour of Nogales, Mexico.

Our first stop, as we trudge along the Mexico side of our 'wall', is an elementary school that faces the wall so the children see steel beams & barbed wire daily. Yet the beautiful murals on their walls along with the fierce defiance painted on the border wall contrast brilliantly and hopefully.

Journey For Justice Dec 13th, Day 13 Nogales: $4 million a MILE - your tax dollars at work

One (more) thing we all need to understand is that those people who decided to build 30 foot fences with double and tripple strands of barbed wire over and around and under it and who swear these fences will "protect" our border - they also decide that this is not enough, not nearly enough. They have all kinds of 'modern' techno devices - not to mention men with guns that have a beginning base pay of 80 to 100 thousand dollars - to sense body heat, vibrations, face recognition, highest tech visiblity. And for what? Do not even begin to believe the bold-faced lie that they are trying to eliminate drug trafficking let alone the selling of human bodies.

If they gave a toss about drug use and violently exploiting womyn and children, they would make stiff penalties for such.

Makes one wonder if all this high tech isn't for their use to find those drugs and valueless people.

This is what a surveillance blimp looks like - we saw them along the journey here but this one is over Nogales, where the 'wall' cost $4.1 MILLION dollars a MILE! Your tax dollars at work!