JAYFORCE

‘Tijuana is now a city that only receives deportees. People no longer come from the south to cross the border, because the immigration policies have become more stringent. 9/11 brought about an atmosphere of increased security at the border. The border was seen as an issue of national security. The recession generated a very high unemployment rate. Because of this economic situation, immigrants were stigmatized and seen as the cause of unemployment. Raids and deportations began to increase. In the end, immigrants became the scapegoat for this economic situation.’

The transcript above is from this episode of Vice: “Life in the Deportee Slums of Mexico.” Makes sense immigrants had nothing where they were. It’s why they leave to go somewhere and get something. It also makes sense that there is some ‘cost’ in doing so. Now, if you leave nothing… pay the cost (whatever that may be), get caught and deported. Where do you go? What do you come back to? Would it be accurate to call that ‘Hell on Earth’… or at least Purgatory? Watch the video.

‘About 40 percent of Mexican immigrants deported from the US are sent back through Tijuana. Many of the deported border crossers have established a makeshift shantytown inside a dry, concrete riverbed where the Tijuana River once flowed—called El Bordo.’