Category Archives: Human Rights, Migrant Death

Talking about the project itself

Texas brush

Seek to do good but do no harm

Human Rights, Migrant Death, Reflections

Do No Harm is a central ethical value in anthropology and in philanthropy. However, it can be difficult to predict every challenge one may encounter when working as an anthropologist in philanthropic or humanitarian contexts. Anthropologists must continually reevaluate their work to ensure that it does not harm the communities in which they work. While anthropologists, like my team, never intend harm, we must always be mindful of the unintentional consequences of our work. Exploring the topic of “Philanthropic Harm” provides some important points for us to consider as we work in these volunteer humanitarian crisis situations. As I depart for my 13th trip to the Texas Borderlands spanning the past decade, these are some of the questions I ask myself:

Are we diverting resources? We are visiting a mass disaster situation that our colleagues are faced with year-round. Are we disrupting the normal patterns in a way that diverts time, energy and resources to us and away from the main goal of saving lives? Are we truly participating in actions that are best for the community or wasting the time and resources of our community partners with each trip?

Team members performing a line search
Systematic Line Search

Are we reinforcing the status quo? A common critique of humanitarian and philanthropic work is that institutional philanthropy supports causes that serve the elite. Are visiting and volunteer forensic scientists perpetuating dominant power relationships? Are the motivations meant to serve them and their institutions rather than the communities they claim to serve?

Can we even predict the unintended consequences of our actions? There are many reasons why good intentions can go wrong, and the probability of this occurring increases with the increasing complexity of the situation. Knowing the politically charged and sensitive nature of this work, we must always try to predict how our actions potentially have unintended outcomes.  

Team members cleaning water stations
Cleaning barrels for redistribution

Are we being culturally insensitive with our actions? A common critique of humanitarian work is that the volunteers impose their own sense of values on the community instead of being sensitive to the particular situation in which they are working. Am I fully preparing my students to step away from their own preconceived biases and perspectives in order to better serve this community?

These are just a few of the questions I ask myself each time we prepare for a trip to the Texas Borderlands. At what point have we peaked in our contributions? Because after that it is only about us and what we are getting from these experiences. Critically reflecting on our experiences and paying careful attention to our environment and actions allows us to begin to assess some of these questions. At this time, we are eager to begin our trip early tomorrow morning. We will continue to update the blog daily while we are there. Thank you for your support and for following our journey!

~KEL

The Tourist Returns…

Environment, General, Human Rights, Migrant Death, Snapshots, , ,

Less than a week already! I am so thankful to have been chosen to be on this team once again. In my last blog post, I wrote about leaving Texas feeling like I was leaving with unfinished business, and I have thought about that since that day. The work done by the UIndy Beyond Borders Team is something I am so grateful to be a part of, and I am very ready to get back to work.

My last pretrip post was more about packing and food and very superficial things, simply because I didn’t have the experience or knowledge to even want to speak on what the next week would entail. Now, I am honestly worried about much different things. Of course, I still worry about packing the right elements for this trip. Texas heat in May is not for the faint of heart. I’ve been a part of many band camps in the Louisiana heat, and I am still worried about the heat. I’ve been trying to recall any advice from old coaches of how to keep cool, how to best stay hydrated, and how to fight off the swarms of mosquitos. I have not forgotten the hazards of hidden cacti and everything being sharp, but my biggest worry is rooted in the emotional perils that come with this work.

Texas ranch land
Brush

In January, we mostly encountered evidence of people passing through the areas we were searching, whether that was as recent as the night before or as long ago as us finding fully rusted cans as the evidence. We do this work to try and bring closure to the families who may have lost someone on this dangerous journey. After the trip in January, I feel as though I am so much closer to this cause than ever before. It’s very easy when working to compartmentalize the emotional and harder parts of the job, but I know this trip will impact me harder than ever before. Being more knowledgeable of the humanitarian crisis occurring at the US-Mexico border makes every step you take to find someone’s loved ones, to give help to those in need, to educate your community mean so much more than it ever had before. The more I learn about it, whether that is through reading about it, hearing someone’s personal account, or talking to those also involved in this work, the more I feel motivated to do everything in my power to help those affected by this crisis.

I’m looking forward to seeing Eddie and Don and everyone else who we worked with previously. By the end of the trip, I considered everyone a friend on top of being a teacher, a leader, and some of the most amazing people I’d ever met. Our team this May is made up of Dr. Latham, myself, Olivia, Jordan, and Austin. I am excited to see how we grow over this trip not only as teammates but friends as well.

See ya soon, Texas! Izzy

Road surrounded by brush

Destination: Falfurrias

Community, Human Rights, Migrant Death, Reflections, Snapshots

It’s hard to believe that in just a few short days, I’ll be heading back to Texas. With all of the hubbub of wrapping up the semester, the trip has managed to sneak up on me and is just around the corner. I couldn’t be more excited, though. I have all of my supplies, and I’m ready to pack my suitcase!

As a returning team member, I have some idea of what to expect, but I also know that each trip is unique and has its own triumphs and challenges. Having gone in January, I think the biggest change is going to be the weather. We were lucky on the previous trip to have pretty mild weather. Going in May, however, is going to be extremely hot and humid. Looking ahead at the weather, we’re going to be working in sunny, 95+ degree days. Just keeping moving is going to be challenging, but what we are doing makes it worth it.

We were also lucky with our environment on the previous trip. The mild weather kept most of the snakes and insects hidden away, and the plants were still dead-ish. This trip is most likely going to be chock-full of slithery snakes, biting/stinging/itching/sucking creepy crawlies, and plants that want to stab you. I firmly believe in the motto “everything in Texas wants to kill you.” I can’t say I’m looking forward to the interactions I’ll have with these things, but I just have to remind myself that everything I’m facing is only for a few hours a day, and I have all of the supplies I could need to face them. The migrants aren’t so lucky. They’ve traveled for days or weeks with little in terms of supplies, and no idea of knowing when and where they will finally end up.

This trip will be a little bittersweet in terms of team members. While I’m sad that Alex and Tanya won’t be on this trip with me, I’m excited I get to work with Jordan and Austin and experience another trip with Izzy. The team dynamic plays a vital role in how successful we are during our time in Falfurrias. Our previous team was a close-knit, well-oiled machine, and I have high hopes that this team can be the same. We get along well on and off campus, and I hope our friendships translate well in the field.

I am also eager to see Don and Eddie again! They are truly awe-inspiring individuals. While they approach the migrant crisis from two different angles (law enforcement vs humanitarian), they do so with the same goal in mind: save as many lives as possible and bring home those who perish along the way. Their dedication and passion for what they do is incredible. I wish everyone could meet and work with them in the ways we get to. We’ll also be reunited with Melissa (and Oakley!) and the guys from Remote Wildlands Search and Recovery. Working with them was a blast, and they also taught me so many things. I’m excited to see and work with all of them again!

Just as with the previous trip, I know the memories I make and experiences I have on this trip will change me and last a lifetime. What we do is just a very, very, very small piece of a much larger picture. I couldn’t be more ready to go!

~ Olivia