For some, supporting the construction of a 700-mile border wall on our nation’s southern border is simply a solid political move to show that one is “hard on immigration issues;” Obama, McCain, & Clinton all supported the Secure Fence Act of 2006 because it represented comprehensive immigration reform to the publich. Sadly, true comprehensive immigration reform such as Obama’s Dream Act or McCain’s S. 2611 bill named “Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2006” were ignored at the time and have been all but forgotten in the Presidential debate of late.
For others the wall means a radical change in life. For some, it means their ancestral homes will be lost. For others, it means their downtown will be gutted by an unsightly, environmentally destructive barrier. For others, it means that some of our nation’s most endangered and rare species will no longer have a home. Others will lose access to the few wildlife refuges and parkland that they currently have along the Rio Grande corridor. Still others look at an 18-foot high barrier lacking sufficient environmental impact studies and see a natural disaster waiting to happen.
As Hurricane Ike takes aim at the Rio Grande Valley, my prayers are with the good people of South Texas. I pray that the hurricane will spare the lives and livelihoods of my good friends in Brownsville and Donna, Mission and Pharr, McAllen and Rio Grande City, Harlingen and Port Isabel, Weslaco and Alamo. I also pray that our entire nation would look at this area long enough to see the people on both sides of the river who will live in fear every year they lack levees but get walls.
For up-to-date information on the hurricane’s progress and trajectory, please visit: http://www.badchili.blogspot.com/ , http://current.pic.tv/2008/09/10/hurricane-ike-paints-bullseye-on-texas/ , or the Brownsville Herald website at: http://www.brownsvilleherald.com/
Smart Borders 