U.S. communities that lie along the border with Mexico live a reality that is essentially different from the rest of the country. U.S. immigration policy has transformed the region into a militarized zone where the U.S. Constitution and international law are selectively applied. By failing to recognize and affirm fundamental civil and human, U.S. immigration policies and efforts to “secure” the southern border have had dire human consequences, from the ever-increasing tally of migrant deaths on the border to the systemic violation of the civil and human rights of border crossers and those living in border communities.
In the summer of 2005, the Border Network for Human Rights (BNHR) and the Border Action Network (BAN) launched an unprecedented consultation within border communities in Texas, New Mexico and Arizona where those border policies and practices, and its impacts, were placed at the center of the discussions. By then, and as a result of those community dialogues, it became clear that border communities critically questioned the content, form and process to shape border policies by Congress, the Administration and Washington-based institutions, who essentially left out the voices, opinions and perceptions of border communities.
One critical outcome of this border community consultation process was the understanding that effective and responsible border enforcement policies should comprehensively integrate national security, community security, economic development and respect for human and constitutional rights. Border residents believe that national security and the protections of rights are not mutually exclusive, but are both essential elements for building better immigration and border policies.
By the spring of 2006, the Border Network for Human Rights and the Border Action Network, with the support of the Latin America Working Group, converted the community consultation results into a series of nearly 40 policy recommendations. These recommendations, which dealt with issues such as border operations, fencing, military at the border, law enforcement misconduct, community security, detention and deportation, became known as the Guidelines for Alternative Border Enforcement Policies and Practices.
At the same time, in each of the border states, the groups began to share the Guidelines with local elected officials, law enforcement, faith, business and other community leaders. These discussions revealed that nearly every sector of society within border communities shared similar frustration with border enforcement policies that undermined the essential interdependence between cross-border towns.
In the summer of 2006, Border Network for Human Rights and Border Action Network brought together several individuals and institutions from Texas, New Mexico and Arizona to create the US/Mexico Border and Immigration Task Force. Members of the Task Force are local elected officials, community organizations, academics, lawyers, faith, business and community leaders of border cities and counties.
The primary role of this Task Force is to bring together the opinions, expertise and insight of the several sectors of our border society to present policy recommendations and testimonies on the current immigration reform debate. Moreover, the Task Force attempts to present a new “border vision” that comprehensively integrates border security, human rights and civil rights, accountability, community security and regional integration. In October of 2006 the Task Force took its first step by endorsing and improving the Guidelines for Alternative Border Enforcement Policies and Practices.
In November 2006, the Task Force traveled to Washington, D.C. to present these policy recommendations to congressional offices and White House officials. During that trip, the Task Force was asked by key congressional offices to provide specific legislative language. A full document with policy ideas and legislative recommendations was developed by the Task Force and submitted to congressional offices in December of 2006.
In June 2007, an important delegation of nearly 20 members of the Task Force, led by Co-chairs, El Paso County Attorney Jose Rodriguez and Santa Cruz County (AZ) Supervisor Manny Ruiz, traveled again to Washington, DC to reinforce the inclusion of their border policy guidelines in the immigration reform debate.
Task Force members had a busy schedule. In just two days they met with Democratic Majority Leader Rep. Steny Hoyer, with the office of the Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, AZ Senator Kyl, with six US Representatives personally (Reyes, Grijalva, Giffords, Rodriguez, Pearce, Gutierrez), with more than 10 other congressional offices, with key congressional committees and subcommittees (Judiciary, Homeland Security, Border Affairs, Immigration), with White House officials, with high level DHS officials, with the Border Patrol Deputy Chief, with D.C.-based advocates and with media representatives.
By mid-June the work of the US/Mexico Border and Immigration Task Force already had an impact. Several of their key recommendations made it to the final version of both the Senate Compromise bill and the STRIVE Act in the House, including the creations of the US/Mexico Border Review Commission, the Report on Border Deaths, the Border Patrol Training Review, Local Community Consultations, and the Office of Detention Oversight, among other provisions. This was, indeed, a major achievement for the Border Task Force. None of those provisions would have been included in the two bills without the efforts and political assertiveness of the Task Force.
The week following the Task Force trip to D.C., the US Congress and the current administration showed their inability to carry out a serious discussion on immigration reform. While Congress stalled on any comprehensive-approach to immigration, the administration forged ahead with the enforcement-only and enforcement-first legislation.
Given this trajectory, the role of the Task Force is as equally important as it was during the immigration reform debate. While D.C. is largely focused on presidential polling, the border continues to be a battleground among candidates and is still a focal point of national policy, with or without the promise of immigration policy reform. As such, the Task Force can continue to impact the border policy debate and urge the inclusion of the Guidelines in national policy.
In the meantime, the Task Force and the Border Human Rights Collaborative (Border Network and Border Action) decided to utilize the political window of opportunity to expand the vision for national security, community security, human rights, accountability and bi-national economic integration. The groups decided to convene the “Border Policy Conference” in November 2007 to bring together all the members of the Task Force plus other key community leaders and sectors along the US/Mexico Border to elaborate the Guidelines and develop a forward-thinking vision of border communities and the types of policies that are relevant.
The conference will be followed by a professional report that is distributed nationally in concert with a communications plan that will inject their messages, vision, and concrete solutions into national media and into the public dialogue. The expectation is that by the time Congress is ready to come back to immigration reform in 2009, they will have transformed how they think about the border and the types of policies needed in the region.