Borderlands

For those who don’t know it, one of my interests is the US-Mexico border. Last weekend, a professor and myself took some students to investigate the towns of Sasabe, Arizona and Sasabe, Mexico in the Altar Valley. (Go find it on a map…pic below).

In Sasabe, AZ, there are maybe a few dozen residents with a single store (that has EVERYthing—literally…mattresses, shoes, pork & beans, curling irons, Fruit Loops, you name it!) and post office; ranching is the main form of livelihood. In Sasabe, Mexico we estimated the population to be 3,000 to 4,000 people. The main form of livelihood in Sasabe, MX is anyone’s guess...the town is not much to speak of, as this photo shows.

One thing that IS present? The ever-watchful eye of “Big Brother”. The US Border patrol has a real, on-the-ground fence (see pic), mobile watchtowers (see pic), and a virtual fence that looks like a radio tower but is actually a sophisticated surveillance system, complete with 24/7 Pinkerton security!

The US-Mexico border is a fascinating study region. And students enjoy telling their friends on the drive home (on their cell phone), “Yeah, dude, I’m just coming back from Mexico…” Too fun!!

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