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Looking Back

Community, Human Rights, Migrant Death, Reflections

We’ve been home for a couple of days now, but I feel restless. I want to go back and continue working. Knowing there are migrants needing to be identified and families anxiously awaiting news on their loved ones while I sit on my couch and binge Netflix doesn’t seem right. While I’ve recovered physically, my emotions are still all over the place. It is hard to rationalize why society has gotten to a point where we treat and judge people based on nothing beyond the fact they were not born in the same place as us.

Team members taking measurements at the cemetery

This Beyond Borders trip was vastly different from the previous ones I have been on. There was a different emotional toll than that experienced when we search ranchland or fill water stations. Not to say that either of those activities is easy or enjoyable, but seeing the bodies of migrants tossed in hastily dug holes like trash, and oftentimes with actual trash, hits in a different way. It doesn’t take much to have even the smallest bit of compassion or human decency, yet these migrants are looked down upon and treated appallingly for the simple reason of being born in a different country or to circumstances beyond their control. It frustrates and saddens me and makes me question a lot of things.

Team members digging at the cemetery

It is easy to villainize one person or another for the crisis, but, unfortunately, there is no easy solution and there is no single person to blame for what is occurring. There are many differing opinions and political discourses surrounding immigration and the US/Mexico border, but that will not stop migrants from crossing, with some perishing along the way. Funeral homes and cemetery workers are overwhelmed by the sheer number of migrants they end up in charge of. They are doing their best, but, at some point, they start to become desensitized to the atrocities they are seeing. This does not excuse what is happening to these migrants, but it is important to realize that this is a multi-faceted, complex problem with no simple solution.

Two team members removing dirt from a burial

As long as there are people such as Dr. Latham, Eddie, Don, Dr. Spradley and the Operation Identification team, and many other individuals and organizations who are taking the initiative and trying their best to give migrants and their families closure, I choose to believe that compassion and decency still exist. I wish we were never even needed down in Eagle Pass, but I am glad we were able to aid in the excavations and, hopefully, help provide some of the dignity and compassion these migrants, and all humans, are worthy of.

Working on this project with this team was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and I am thankful for the opportunity to be a part of it. After my experiences with Beyond Borders, I am only more determined to use my education and abilities in humanitarian settings in order to help those who have been wronged in any way I can. I’m sad that this is most likely my last trip with Beyond Borders, but I’ve cherished every moment.

~ Olivia

Jan 2023 Team

Returning Home

Human Rights, Migrant Death, Reflections

We are back home now and everything feels surreal. It feels like just yesterday I was stressing about what to pack. Now I find myself trying to process a slew of emotions that are entirely new to me. It was disheartening to see so little care demonstrated for these individuals. It’s strange to come home, knowing that because I was born on the other side of a made-up line that neither I nor anyone I know will likely be treated that way. 

View of Mexico from the US side of the border
View of Mexico from the US side of the border

I find myself continually thinking back to our fifth day at the cemetery when a visitor came to see where their family member had been buried. I had no concept of what they were feeling but I still found myself hating the global circumstances that allowed it to happen. No one should have to go through what this family is dealing with. Hearing their story and getting to witness them grieve puts all of our work in a new perspective. For me, it reemphasized the importance of what we are doing but it also made it feel like a tiny thread in a tangle of large and complex issues that we could never hope to untangle. 

Team members working at the cemetery to locate and uncover burials
Team members removing dirt from a burial

I am in awe of those we met who have made human rights efforts their lives work. These are incredible, selfless people who have dedicated their time and sometimes risk their well-being because they care deeply for all people. There is a lot there that I hope to emulate in my own life. I thought on this trip what I learned would be equal parts archeology and personal growth. Now I find that my transformed mindset and emotional growth far outweigh the former. I have learned so much and hope to continue learning even though I am home again.

Kaitlyn

Returning From Eagle Pass

General, Human Rights, Migrant Death, Reflections
Sunrise at the cemetery

Our trip to Eagle Pass has come to an end. Though I traveled to Texas last May and was able to experience one facet of the crisis occurring along the border, what I experienced on this trip was wholly different. To see the way migrants are being treated, thrown into a haphazardly dug hole, often with trash, is beyond horrific. The treatment of these individuals was something I naively was unsuspecting of. Going in, I thought I would most likely see awful things, but humans do not deserve to be treated this way, regardless of the situation. However, I did not expect to see what I did.

Two team members removing dirt from a burial

Many of the atrocities occurring at the border are not something people are able to fathom while so far removed from the situation. Experiencing it firsthand does not allow me to fully comprehend how these acts are able to occur and what the motivations are for those closely involved. However, I hope to take what I have experienced and share it with others so that I can bring awareness of what is happening to these individuals to those who may not know.

The situation at this cemetery, among many others, is terrible, to say the least. However, seeing so many different groups of people coming together to attempt to mend the situation and get the word out about what is occurring at this location was heartening. There were reporters there, from Texas as well as Mexico, to provide accounts of these circumstances. To see another group like Texas State University work as passionately in this situation as we did was great. It was also nice to see our team come together and work so hard and efficiently for something we all care about so strongly. We functioned very well together, and I feel we were able to complete a significant amount of work during our time in Eagle Pass.

Team members taking measurements at the cemetery

Traveling back home causes a lot of complex feelings to rise to the surface. It is difficult to see what occurs to these individuals and to hear what they went through and then return to my everyday life. I am incredibly privileged to be in the position I am, which can be challenging to contend with when I see what many migrants face. I strive to continue to utilize this knowledge to spread awareness and communicate with others about this crisis. Though this trip was difficult physically and emotionally, I am extremely grateful I was able to experience it and learn the many lessons I did. These lessons not only contribute to my education and application of forensic practices, but more importantly, they contribute to my growth as a person, and I am thankful for that.

– Jordan