Maintaining a base camp in Arivaca, on the land of writer, poet and naturalist Byrd Baylor, No More Deaths (NMD) conducts morning and evening searches for migrants in distress. At a migrant aid station in Nogales, Sonora, NMD volunteers provide daily services for hundreds of recently repatriated migrants.
The group is motivated by what they say is a failed United States border policy which funnels migration away from ports of entry into treacherous desert terrain.
According to records compiled from county medical examiners by the Coalición de Derechos Humanos, the remains of 124 people have been recovered in Arizona since last October. Many of the deaths are due to exposure and hyperthermia.
NMD made headlines in 2005 when federal officials arrested Daniel Strauss and Shanti Sellz for evacuating severely dehydrated immigrants requiring immediate medical attention. The arrests stirred up an extensive community campaign which declared "Humanitarian Aid is Never a Crime."
The charges were eventually dropped.
The organization is now garnering attention for littering - charges based on volunteers placing sealed gallon jugs of water along heavily traversed migrant trails.
Last year, Dan Millis was cited for littering just days after discovering the body of a 14-year-old girl on the Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge (BANWR). Millis refused to pay the $175 fine and a federal magistrate found him guilty, but did not impose any fines.
In response to that verdict, BANWR manager Michael Hawkes said in a July 10, 2009 interview that the court "may have sent the wrong message to these folks. I don't know, but we told them we have no tolerance for that."
Hawkes is responsible for protecting 118,000 acres of land purchased in 1985 by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. The goal of the purchase was to restore native grasslands and provide habitat for native pronghorns and masked bobwhite quail. Thousands of migrants cross through that area each year.
Volunteers continue to make water drops, driven by their concern for migrants who cannot logistically carry enough water to make the three day trek through the Sonoran Desert until they reach their destination.
Last December, federal officials ticketed Walt Staton with littering when he placed water containers on BANWR land. Staton refused to pay the fine and in June, a federal jury convicted Staton of "knowingly littering." Sentencing is scheduled for August 11 and potential penalties include up to a year in prison and up to a $10,000 fine.
In June, NMD appealed to several federal officials - including BANWR manager Michael Hawkes and Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar, whose agency supervises national wildlife refuges - to work together to prevent death and suffering on the refuge.
Hawkes indicated a willingness to meet virtually through email, but also expressed a zero tolerance policy for plastic water jugs on the refuge. Volunteers then announced a plan to conduct four water drops along Arivaca road, which traverses the refuge.
On July 9, ten federal agents from four agencies met the water droppers and their supporters.
At each of four stops, a small group carried jugs of water and left it on the refuge. Locations were selected based on GPS data. Federal officers cited thirteen volunteers for littering when they refused to remove the jugs of water from the refuge. All thirteen have an initial appearance on September 2 at the federal courthouse.
Hawkes says he doesn't know if he can work with NMD and other humanitarian groups after what he says was grand standing.
Hawkes may have to, as Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar invited representatives of No More Deaths to a July 21 meeting in Washington, D.C. According to the No More Deaths website, NMD cofounder Gene Lefebvre says, "The Secretary was supportive of the issue and his staff is working to find a solution."
Visit the following websites for more information on this & other border issues.
Buenos Aires Wildlife Refuge:
www.fws.gov/southwest/refuges/arizona/buenosaires/index.html
Coalición Derechos Humanos: www.DerechosHumanosAZ.net
Department of Interior: www.DOI.gov
Humane Borders: www.HumaneBorders.org
No More Deaths: www.NoMoreDeaths.org
Tucson Samaritans: www.SamaritanPatrol.org
US Customs and Border Protection: www.CBP.gov
Fairvoice
