React & Act

In the decade since 9/11, the border that separates the United States from Mexico has become a political and social battleground. Politicians, the media and people who live – and die – along the 2,000-mile stretch from San Diego to Brownsville, Texas, have brought persistent pressure and attention to the region. It is a flash point for national security and sovereignty, illegal immigration and human rights, law enforcement and livelihood, drug trafficking and the demand that drives it. Running through much of the debate is the fence that intermittently contours the boundary lines. 

Center for Investigative Reporting and California Watch reporters Andrew Becker and G.W. Schulz are looking for stories of the fence from both sides of the border. They want to hear from people who live with or whose lives have been affected by the barrier, such as multigenerational crossers, "border rats," landowners, immigrants, migrant workers, artists, humanitarians, religious workers, law enforcement and even smugglers. The stories can include oral histories, legends and myth. Photographs that accompany these stories are welcomed and encouraged.

Share your insights with us in this Public Insight Network query and help inform our reporting. Everything you share within the Public Insight Network is confidential unless you give us explicit permission to publish it.

In the Eastern Coachella Valley, where California Watch has previously reported on serious public and environmental health hazards, residents are joining together to build a park and garden within St. Anthony's Mobile Home Park. With aid from Pueblo Unido and Kounkuey Design Initiative, community members and volunteers will gather every Sunday to build the park and plant the garden. Community News Editor Ashley Alvarado will attend June 10. 

Paired with the Coachella Valley Housing Coalition, KPCC immigration and emerging communities reporter Ruxandra Guidi will host a town hall-style meeting examining the environmental, economic and health impacts of dumpsites in the community of Mecca and the larger Coachella Valley. In the vein of California Watch reporter Bernice Yeung's reporting on the political and fiscal neglect of unincorporated communities in the area and contributor Patricia Leigh Brown's on the harsh environmental health realities many residents face, the discussion will include an evaluation of where garbage – some hazardous – is dumped and why, as well as a look at the effects of that dumping on communities such as Mecca. Promotores Comunitarios del Desierto Associate Director Eduardo Guevara will help guide the community meeting. The event is free and open to the public, but RSVPs are required. Complete them here.