Thursday, June 10, 2010

El Paso and the Border

(climbing up on my soapbox) Please indulge me because I feel I have to delve a little into the politics of my city due to the recent shooting by a Border Patrol agent of a teenage Mexican national.  The 15 year was killed and apparently as a result of a rock assault by a group of Mexican nationals.  The video from CNN is disturbing to say the least and I won't be linking to it from here.

My city (I'm a military dependent transplant) is wonderful.  Our sister city of Cd. Juarez Mexico is amazing with wonderful, hardworking, beautiful people.  The cat and mouse game of border crossing has gone on since the border was established, but for various reasons it has become very violent. As a teenager in El Paso it was a right of passage to go to J-town and raise a little hell.  Can't do that anymore because you could easily die, just standing on a street corner.  Never fear though, teenagers still go, afterall they are immortal.  That was always my worry at the high school level of teaching, was everyone going to come in on Monday.

I used to live about a mile from where the shooting happened and I have actually seen Border Patrol agents chase people, on foot, down I-10 East.  I'm very torn about the issues here.  Do I believe we have a right to secure our borders?  Do I think people have a right to come to America for a better life?  Is this an unwinnable situation?  These questions are rhetorical.

Here is what I KNOW: we have, between the two cities, over two million people who are for the most part good, honest people who just want a little slice of a good, solid life and to celebrate the goodness that is life. So I just want to emphasize how much I love this goofy, wacky, gorgeous part of the globe and wouldn't want to be anywhere else, but we are all apprehensive and more than a little sad.

Beading will be back tomorrow!

Peace to all and love to everyone!

5 comments:

Lanyardlady said...

It's nice to read something good about an area that gets a lot of "bad press." You said it well.

Lanyardlady said...

Nicely said. Good to read something positive about an area that gets a lot of "bad press."

tattytiara said...

Hello, just hopped over from Cathryn's. Really glad I did. We hear so much about the border conflicts, and it's always really enlightening to hear about the first hand perspectives of people who actually live there. You words on the issue contained an exceptional amount of affection and compassion, though. That was so heartening.

Cathryn said...

Having lived not too far from the "border" myself--I know alot has changed since then. We used to travel down to Cuidad Juarez for shopping and the like.

I'm with you on the thoughts about this "border" war. What a lot of people don't realize is that these areas and cities and towns along the "border" has a long history of crossings to visit family, friends, work, and medical needs. Now we want to "control the influx." *shakes my head* If the American people only knew the truth about how our country IMPORTS non-citizens to do the work we won't do or won't do without money and benefits--it might change the tune of the nation to finding a workable solution--instead of guns and bullets and death.

Great post!

Cathryn said...

Elizabeth, I wanted to let you know I kept my promise about blogging about your giveaway! *grins at you*

How do you feel about Arizona's new immigration law? I'm in a double-bind twisty reaction to that myself.