Cameron Park is one of 196 colonias in the county of Cameron, in Brownsville, in the most southern tip of Texas. The county shares its border with México, which is one of the descriptors that qualifies it as a “colonia,” according to the State Department’s website.
On my first visit, Cameron Park seemed familiar, not because it reminded me of a specific place but because of its characteristics, mostly as an impoverished or distressed community. I recalled my first teaching assignment as a bilingual elementary teacher in 1971 in Edgewood ISD in San Antonio, a Texas school district known to be among the poorest in the country. I had many questions then that I have for the Cameron Park community: What’s it like to grow up in a colonia? What do the children see and how does it filter into their lives? What lessons do they learn and do they think about a future when they will leave the colonia?
Cameron Park’s general character is not unlike what I had experienced, where the children and their families’ faced numerous daily challenges, such as street flooding due to poor drainage facilities, unlighted, poorly maintained streets, and generally, a intense level of poverty as reflected in the poorly constructed and run-down homes. The Edgewood community was known as the “barrio.” As a teacher, poorly paid in a less than adequate working environment, I could have sought to become employed elsewhere, but I too felt compelled to give back to the community, especially because of its unique needs. After four years of teaching, I chose to pursue advanced degrees, and even so, I decided to develop my professional career as an educator, working with communities just like Cameron Park.
My academic inquiries and research on how best to educate children and their families whose educational needs are often ignored or misunderstood have served as the basis for just about everything I’ve done professionally. In one of the service learning projects, I brought together university students from various state and out-of-state institutions with community members in small rural Maya-speaking town outside of Merida in the Mexican state of Yucatán. In an informal yet communal sense, we formed a “center of learning,” using language and culture as an exchange mechanism. We learned from one another; our group, ranging from 17 to a dozen within the three-consecutive summer timeframes, taught English to the interested community members (upon their request); and, in turn, they taught us Maya, and aspects of cultural and social practices that we could participate, at least as participant/observers. The more we learned from one another, the more we became “integrated” as a community.
My background as well as my professional work is central to the theme of this narrative. Without the specific lens I wouldn’t be able to understand the deep layers of context and the outcome of my narrative would be very different.
The two-part narrative begins with my interview with the Tutorial Center director, then, I focus on my perception of the community, including descriptions or observations, and a photo gallery.
A Visit to the Center – The Heart and Soul of the Community
I made an arrangement to visit the neighborhood Tutorial Center one afternoon in the fall of 2014, and noticed that the building was one of several in the Catholic Church complex. My first conversation with Angela*, the Tutorial Center’s director, was at first quite formal, but we soon realized our common interests in working with community-based learning projects, and our formality quickly turned to the urgency of “knowing,” and building “la confianza.” I asked only a few questions, and Angela responded with an impressive comprehensive narrative, as if on cue, filling in the information, even with only a few basic prompts. The exchange of dialogue with familiar and unfamiliar responses, underscored the need for what researchers call the “overlapping data collection and analysis” (Huberman and Miles, 2002, p. 15), specific to the methodology used in qualitative research. The information shared by Angela was for the most part “known”, however, the filter by which I perceived the data was laden with auto-ethnographic knowledge and experiences. Angela related a brief personal history, from the time she begin elementary school, graduated from high school, married and became a wife and mother. Her roots are firmly planted in Cameron Park. Building “la confianza” is essentially an important part of the process in learning about the community. There is a method, style, and strategy for collecting and analyzing the data. But the basis for working together is a matter of triangulating pieces of “knowing”, and filtered interpretations make connections, along with the multi-dimensional aspects of “knowing” derived from the lives and work of key players, such as Angela.
In my work as a researcher and teacher, I often begin my investigation(s) not with questions of what I don’t know, rather I find the common point of entry into what I and the community members do know. Thus, our understandings overlap as we create the context, narrative, and inquiry of frames that enrich our quest for what we’re seeking. As I reflect upon my conversation with Angela at the Tutorial Center I focus on the following information and questions:
The Tutorial Center’s main function is to assist children with their school assignments, although it also serves as an information hub to help parents navigate through the social and academic rules of schools and how they can best help their children succeed. The children need specific assistance since most of the time they are behind in their schoolwork and their lack of English is oftentimes a barrier to academic achievement. The volunteers who serve as their tutors, work within boundaries that keep them focused on the task at hand, translating the directions to English and helping them complete their work. But the overall needs of the students, academic or otherwise, are not addressed and thus, while homework assignments may be complete, the problem of academic underachievement is unresolved. There is substantial evidence that the Tutorial Center is a vital part of the community; the schools recognize their work and inform parents of their tutorial services and the community members actively participate in the Center’s activities according to their needs and interests. However, certain questions loom incessantly in my attempt to understand, so I look closer at the Center’s work with the community.
For example, what role does the Center play in helping children not only succeed in their school assignments but in achieving overall school success? How are the students and their parents’ attitudes toward school shaped by their participation? Are the schools doing their part in helping the children, or are they satisfied with providing them with information on services they can access outside of school, e.g., referring them to the Center?
The fact that the children I observed at the Tutorial Center struggled with their assignments due to their lack of sufficient academic English points directly to the language-in-education policy in their schools (nearby schools are Gallegos and Burns Elementary Schools). As I examine language use in the community of Cameron Park, their perceptions are clearly noted in their narratives on how schools opt for using predominantly English throughout the curriculum regardless of their students’ native language, mostly Spanish, and in spite of their abilities to choose to implement an appropriate bilingual education program. The children’s (and their parent’s) circumstance in regard to language (and culture) is an example of how students whose native language is not English consistently struggle to succeed in school despite their motivational push (centrifugal factors), while the schools enforce the use of English to the extent that children’s native language resources are depleted and their motivation to succeed wanes (centripetal factors). The “language” conflict influences the way the Tutorial Center and indeed, the community, respond to the needs of children.
How does Cameron Park maintain its efforts and abilities to work within a restrictive language environment, helping children and their families succeed in the English language world of school while instilling cohesiveness among families and the community, culturally and linguistically?
Use of Contextual Factors as Lens of Understanding
Angela’s description of her views for understanding the community from her role as both resident and Tutorial Center director enables us to create an expanded cultural landscape. Her involvement in the Catholic Church’s traditional practices is an example of how she combines the personal and the social with the needs of the community. Upon her invitation, I was able to participate first-hand in the annual celebration of the Virgin of Guadalupe held at the church, next to the Tutorial center. The event began with a group procession led by a decorative float with a few children sitting among bright colored Christmas lights. A group of about 50 community members walked behind a simply decorated float toward the church entrance, chanting hymnal phrases. The block-long procession included parents and their children, adults of all ages, and a couple of disabled adults in wheelchairs. Once inside the church, the narrator behind a podium welcomed everyone, and proceeded to the presentation of an enactment of the story behind the Virgin of Guadalupe, which is well known among the parishioners as a symbol of faith and adoration. The children acted with dignity and respect as required by the roles of Juan Diego, the youngster who saw the miraculous apparition of the Virgin of Guadalupe, the little girl about 10 years-old that played the Virgin, and the church dignitaries that at first doubted Juan Diego’s story. The story ends when Juan Diego displays the proof of the Virgin’s apparition, the cloth encrusted with the Virgin’s image and the bunch of red roses, heretofore unknown to produce in the dry, desert region where it took place. It’s a story that reminds the faithful that by believing their faith will deliver them from their problems, illnesses, indeed, even from their hopelessness.
Angela’s role was integral in helping children actively participate in the church’s event. As Director, she also guides the Tutorial Center in becoming an extension of the various community events that perform social and religious functions. By learning about the Center’s roles, by participating in the religious event, walking with the procession, taking photos and making observations, I became closer to understanding the “heart and soul” of the community, and wanting to learn more about their beliefs, perceptions, dreams, and visions for their community. Even so, I feel as though I have more questions today than when I arrived; each one challenging my understanding of the best ways to work with children and their families.
The Community’s Entrepreneurial Economic Activities
A six-square block survey of Cameron Park’s entrepreneurial activities produces a photo album of working residents in an array of businesses that bear the markings of a people that are self-sustaining, resourceful, and creative. Along the busy four-lane street that serves as one of the city’s thoroughfare and Cameron Park’s west boundary, several businesses stand out among others located inside the community. A sprawling restaurant with a large parking lot stands in one of the corners. Then, a row of small businesses closely follow each other: an optical eye wear store, a kick boxing fitness center, a beauty shop (a total of four shops), an adult day care center, a restaurant with cyclone fencing tightly fitted in the front area, a car garage and shop, a tire store, a laundry, a tortilla factory/taquería, a learning center/day care and thrift store, a panadería (bakery), an insurance company, a meat market, a boat repair shop, and a taquería with an air/water pump station. Even though the businesses seem to maintain economic vitality, these are uniquely different from those across the major street, which are of a higher capital status and economic level. On the “other side,” (outside of the Cameron Park boundary) these seem to have an upgraded capital as evident in their buildings and façade. Perhaps, there is also a sense of separateness by business owners on the “other side” as they compete with each other’s businesses. For example, the day care center on the “other side” boasts in large lettering that their business is “LICENCED.” There is no such labeling in Cameron Park’s day care center.
The residential streets of Cameron Park are named “calles” (streets in Spanish), with the “Ave”. listed in front of the name, such as “Ave. Carlos”, and “Avenida Eduardo.” Almost every house is encased within a four-foot or higher cyclone fence, perhaps, to keep out possible delinquents, but in full view of passersby are the owners’ materials, furniture, appliances, tools, etc. Indeed, every third or fourth house in some way or another displays their work or business, or the residents may prefer to leave or remain them outdoors. Fences are conveniently used to hang clothes in a garage sale fashion. Every block has a house or two with a variety of clothing and goods for sale, the kinds that one buys at a thrift store. A drive-inn style paletería (frozen treats) has a poster menu of items that the driver can select from and then, move through the store to purchase their selection. Now, residents don’t have to wait for the “paletería” truck with its “Hello!” song to make its way through their street to buy their favorite paleta. Other drive through businesses carry different kinds of items, such as beer, wine, snacks, and even mixed drinks, such as the “mix sencillo” and the “bomba.” Certain houses are most likely “repair shops” as evident in the number of small engine and appliances, such as lawn mowers, refrigerators, bicycles, etc.
The businesses seem tailor made for the community. The supply/demand dynamic is not consequential, but the manner by which they’re organized is not well structured or planned. There are businesses that may not have the full support of the community members. For example, there are three or four large fireworks stores in the area, perhaps, more than what the community actually needs. The drive-inn stores within the residential area may not bode well with members that perceive the alcohol consumption among the youth as extremely high and dangerous. A couple of local restaurants or taquerías may “play politics” by displaying the large campaign posters of certain politicians alongside their business names, obscuring the intentions of both the owners and the politicians. The noise levels may be highly elevated due to the businesses such as car repair garages and those with 18-wheelers and other large vehicles.
Cameron Park community members seem actively engaged in the work ethic that symbolizes the “American Dream.” If it seems within reach, the residents will strive toward its obtainment. Even if their entrepreneurial efforts pay off, there is evidence that many residents remain in the community for a very long time. Many homes are in the process of remodeling or repair, and new construction sites signaling the building of new homes are seen throughout the community. Not every entrepreneurial activity is a sound investment, however, the energy or spirit that propels the hard-working members is vibrant, and self-determination is evident to succeed past the obstacles and barriers that they encounter every day.
Challenges
Whereas the challenges of Cameron Park seem obvious just as they are in a similar community environment, the solutions are not easily forthcoming without knowledge of the history of the colonias.
In the 1950’s, the State established the colonias, so called because their counties were within a 50-150 mile proximity to México, for the sole purpose of creating a living space for people whose annual income was below the poverty line, lower than the State average of $16,700 (see the State Department’s website). The land earmarked for this initiative was deemed “agriculturally worthless,” and/or in a flood plain, in an unincorporated subdivision. The plots of land were divided and the only way to purchase a plot was with a contract of deed. This was a financial arrangement whereby the buyer could not resell the property until it was completely paid off. The buyer was left to his or her own resources to build the home, and in order to hook up the water the building must meet the standard inspection codes. Thus, families lived in subnormal conditions for extended periods because of financial retrains, which left them trapped in a situation that was extremely difficult to overcome. The community photo gallery that follows reveals the consequences of this plan that can only be described as an outrageous example of greed on the part of the developers, and the result of the irresponsible and negligible decisions made by county and State administrators and officials.
Through their own volition and hard work, the residents of the colonias have been able to procure the basic utility services as well as paved streets and streetlights, however, this is an on-going struggle for Cameron Park and many other colonias that still lack these services. The most alarming of the problems is the lack of wastewater infrastructure and potable water which without proper installments and oversights can result in the discharge of waste in flowing water that can end up in the Gulf of México, and the risk of tainted drinking water on the health of the families.
It appears that Cameron Park has developed into a community that understands the importance of working together, of building community relationships, and in working with the youth that they recognize are at once fragile and vulnerable, yet strong and motivated enough to create a better future for themselves, their families, and their community.
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For Further Reading
Shirley, D. (2002). Valley interfaith: Organizing for power in South Texas. Austin: University of Texas Press.
Ward. P. (1999). Colonias and public policy in Texas and Mexico: Urbanization by stealth. Austin: University of Texas Press.
Shirley’s book chronicles the work of Valley Interfaith community organization in the Rio Grande Valley of South Texas who for fifteen years addressed issues related to improving housing conditions health care, unemployment, and school reform. Shirley’s research encompasses related local and regional problems that have heretofore lacked sufficient investigation, particularly in the parallel development of both community organization and school reform. Using the case study approach he chose three school communities to build quite thorough and comprehensive perspectives of Valley Interfaith’s collaboration with various community and school leaders. Each case includes an insider’s dealings with the various institutions – the local schools, State educational rules and policies, the political landscape both local or regional and state, as well as the cultural and economic characteristics of the selected communities. Shirley’s scholarship is broad and comprehensive and his study produced a wealth of information about the Valley Interfaith organization’s work and the communities and schools that they impacted on a short and long-term basis.
While Shirley’s insightful study provides the reader with a detailed and panoramic view of the various dynamic relationships between and among community members and school personnel, his research methodology is focused on the Valley Interfaith’s goals, strategies, and accomplishments.
Ward’s book, Colonias and public policy in Texas and Mexico: Urbanization by stealth, serves as a reference volume for information seekers of colonias on both sides of the US/Mexico border. The book is a product of an elaborate research project conducted by the LBJ School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin. Readers will acquire an in-depth perspective of a myriad of issues and factors associated with social, health, and economic well-being of the residents. Readers should know that his numbers have changed since the publication 17 years ago: there are now about 400,000 residents not 300,000, a total of 2,294 colonias, not 1,500 colonias; along the 1,248 miles not 868 miles on the northern side of the US/Mexico border in Texas.
*Angela is not her real name but used here as a pseudonym for privacy protection purposes.
References
Huberman, A.M., & Miles, M.B. (2002). The qualitative researcher’s companion. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, Inc.
Here is an excerpt from the article written by Maria Rigou:
”One of the residents, Nidia Mireles, is the first in her family to attend college. Nidia is pursuing a mathematics teaching degree from the University of Texas at Brownsville, and is an active member of the Brownsville Border Youth of Proyecto Juan Diego.”
See more: http://www.equalvoiceforfamilies.org/a-student-fights-for-youth-and-families-in-the-rio-grande-valley/#sthash.UEvISG1d.dpuf
This is a story about Carla’s journey from a struggling student in elementary school to a successful student in college.
My first interview with Carla Guadalupe Reyna was on April 7, 2015. At the time she was a 20 year-old Brownsville native who was soon to graduate from the University of Texas at Brownsville with a Bachelor’s degree in Kinesiology. Since then, Carla graduated and additionally, has completed the course requirements to become a Physical Education teacher and is currently preparing to take the State exam.
Early Schooling Experiences: Language as an Impediment and as a Resource
Prior to enrolling at Gallegos Elementary School in the Brownsville School District in the third grade, Carla spent three years at another Brownsville elementary school (Pre-K to first grade) where she learned in a total Spanish language environment, and at her second school, another elementary school in Brownsville, for a year and a half. It was in her second school that her education changed drastically since the instructional support in Spanish that she had depended on was completely absent. Instead, the academic language of instruction was completely in English. Without the Spanish language support, Carla struggled to keep up academically and at the same time she strived to learn English. When she enrolled in Gallegos Elementary School midway through the third grade, Carla was behind in her reading and language arts subjects due to her insufficient English language skills. The Spanish language had become merely an oral communication tool in the academic world since she concentrated on learning academic English.
Carla had to re-take the reading portion of the State mandated test in the third and fifth grades. Undoubtedly, the problem was that she didn’t know enough academic English to be successful in tests that were completely in English and at a more advanced level than she had learned thus far. Carla participated in tutorials during school and after school, reading books such as Charlotte’s Web, and completing computerized Accelerated Reading programs. She admits that the tests made her extremely nervous and felt stressful and pressured. Even so, Carla was an excellent student that was often praised by her teachers.
The third grade was especially stressful, recalls Carla. She was in an all-English pull-out program where she and eight others were given lessons on English reading specifically designed to help in passing the State test. Not knowing why she was selected made her anxious, and she had the worst fears about her abilities. She also thought that it was because she and her family spoke only in Spanish at home. She eventually passed all of the State tests.
Middle School and Beyond
While in the sixth grade in Middle School, Carla had an English teacher that was extraordinarily helpful. She consistently tutored Carla even in the seventh and eighth grades when she had other English teachers. The teacher was also the Chess Club coach so Carla continued playing chess, a game that she had learned while at Gallegos Elementary School. Joining the chess club at Gallegos was an after-thought since she had two choices: either sit in the cold gym floor every morning for almost an hour waiting for classes to begin or spend the hour in the library learning and practicing chess. Her decision paid off since she eventually won an award in her first chess tournament in the fifth grade. More interesting was the fact that Carla was able to teach her father how to play chess. They played regularly, and still do, sometimes spending hours on a Saturday morning, which her mother has difficulty understanding. Her father has become an excellent player, and very proud of the fact that he can occasionally beat his daughter, a chess champion.
Carla’s practicing and studying in her English and reading classes were also productive since as she recalls, she passed the reading portion of the State test in Middle School by applying the study techniques she had learned so well. She would read each question twice, then, summarize the story, paying close attention to the main ideas and the details. Then, she would answer the questions. She was very proud of the fact that she received a “commended” score on the reading State test when she was in the eighth grade.
Carla enrolled in Spanish courses as electives in the sixth grade and then again, in the ninth and tenth grades. Eventually, she used her Spanish language abilities to complete the Spanish Advanced Proficiency tests and receive college credit in a high school dual enrollment program (Early College High School). Ironically, what had interfered with her academic advancement in her early schooling became a resource that she later used to reach her goals of completing college-level course work in high school. Learning English was an enormous task and she understands the challenge of the need to continuously improve upon her skills, but she recalls that she could never have given up her Spanish, “how could she?”
Becoming Resourceful: Socialization as a Key Aspect of Academic Success
Carla’s parents were supportive of her education to a substantial extent, but their limited schooling experiences in México and lack of English skills posed barriers in their involvement at Carla’s school. Her parents were concerned over her seemingly slow process in learning English, especially when her older sister and cousins were increasingly communicating in English. Her mother was told by one of her teachers that they should watch more English language movies at home. At Gallegos, Carla felt uncomfortable participating in English language lessons including reading, which affected her academically. However, the Spanish language support that she received from her teachers and her classmates was invaluable in that she was able to acquire knowledge as sometimes needed, and most importantly, become resourceful, both academically and socially. Even though all of her lessons were in English, Carla had access to Spanish throughout her years at Gallegos. Her memories of the attitudes toward her native language by school staff and classmates throughout her education in elementary school were positive. There were no incidences where she was told directly or indirectly that she should not speak Spanish to her classmates, and her teachers often translated the English to Spanish to aid in comprehension. Thus, working cooperatively on academic tasks with her classmates became an important social basis for learning, starting in the second grade when she would solicit help on translating words and phrases from her classmates who excelled in English. Carla engaged in peer support throughout her schooling, but it became even more essential when she was in the Early College High School, and she and her peer support group met regularly. She credits peer support as one of the main resources for her academic success.
Would Carla been as successful in completing high school and earning college credits if she had not attended the Early College High School?
The decision to attend the Early College High School was difficult. She had to make a decision in the eighth grade on whether she wanted to enroll at Rivera HS where many of her friends and her sister were expecting to attend or the Early College HS. She recalls the letter she wrote to the Early College HS explaining her decision to attend, and yet, she wasn’t completely sure whether it was the right decision. After deliberating, she asked her father to mail the letter and afterward, felt it was the best decision.
She has no regrets. She recalls the support she received from her teachers as well as her peers. They worked together, becoming socialized in the academic world of higher education, and by graduation she and her classmates had accumulated a huge chunk of credit semester hours that practically amounted to the first two years of college. Carla had a strong sense that she would eventually pursue a college education. The fact that the Early College HS was a great opportunity that she took advantage facilitated her goal, but she was determined to attend the university and would have done so with or without the Early College HS. However, she can’t speculate how differently it would have been without the support and resources she received at the Early College High School.
Conclusion
Carla was able to reach her academic goals and as a result, the numerous decisions she made can be perceived as the “right” ones. Her entire educational journey clearly shows her work and aspirations as that of an excellent student. Even though she struggled and experienced failure, she was able to persevere and dedicate her life to pursuing her educational goals.
But stories of success are always rounded off with those of students that were not so successful, who “gave up” or were “pushed away” by the insurmountable problems that seemed unresolvable. Clearly, from Carla’s journey we can surmise that the absence of support by teachers and others dooms a struggling student’s chances for succeeding in school. There are many lessons to take away from Carla’s journey. However, an important one is that no matter how difficult the process in learning academic English, one doesn’t have to give up the Spanish language to succeed; Carla’s well-developed bilingual skills attest to that.
Photos
Carla teaching her young neighbor how to play chess.Carla’s family during a 2014 Pan American Intercollegiate Team Chess Championship.2009 Regional Contest, 3rd place winner.Chess game with Carla and her father.
Why My Undergraduate Students Represent the Hope for a Better Future
My responsibility as a professor at a university on the US/Mexico borderland, the Brownsville/Matamoros border, was to facilitate my undergraduate students in acquiring knowledge and understanding in the art and science of teaching young children to read and write, to think critically and creatively, and to lead them toward a perception of themselves as effective teachers and agents of change.
In the year and a half as a full-time professor I took on the charge of working with my students, presenting my best foot forward with 45 years of teaching experience, and most importantly, getting to know each one as individuals and aspiring bilingual teachers.
Any kind of development, especially educational and psychological, defies specific standards of measurement to assess progress, but as many teachers will agree upon there are different ways to determine how much and what specifically students learn.
To be specific, I followed a simple plan but a critically-focused process in my investigation: I selected a few collections of my student papers and used them to discuss questions about them – who they are, why they want to teach, and how they plan to develop their “teacher role.” Without any pre-determined measurement notions, I chose an unfiltered dialogue framework, using my own experiences and perceptions as guideposts and springboards to elaborate on my responses.
How did you learn how to read?
This question asked my students about their earliest memories about how they begin to decipher meaning from texts and to any extent the contextual basis for their learning to read. Since their responses were in an essay format, I chose the most common and salient factors, which I organized in order to create a discussion thread. For the most part there were no surprises in their narratives, although some of their experiences were specific or unique to living on the border unlike anywhere else in Texas.
Before Entering School: The Role of Parents and the Availability of Books
I collected a total of 25 essays and from these I selected 19, which in my opinion contained the most vivid insights into the question of how they learned to read. Only three did not respond to the extent to which parents played a vital role prior to their entering school and whether they had access to children’s literature. But, of the remaining 16 essays, six students’ narratives relayed positive experiences concerning the availability of books that they could enjoy and were read aloud to them by their parents, usually their mothers. However, ten students wrote about how there were no books or other reading material in their homes, and their parents did not read to them. Some explained how their parents were too busy working to take time to read to them, and that the economic situation was so dire they couldn’t afford the luxury of buying books. Whatever the reasons, the students seem to understand the impact of social, economic, and educational factors that surrounded them and in most cases didn’t fault their parents but rather focused on their abilities and experiences that helped them overcome their problems.
Early Schooling Experiences: In Spanish and English
All of the students have Spanish as their first language. I wanted to know in which language they learned to read in school and how they learned English.
Twelve of the 19 students said that they learned to read in Spanish, their native language. But only four explained that they had learned to read in Spanish upon entering school in the Brownsville schools, while one of the students stated that she had taught herself. Seven students related their learning to read in Spanish due to their schooling experiences on the Mexican side of the border. Two students had spent their entire elementary schooling experiences in Mexico. One of the students described how she and her mother lived in Matamoros and crossed the bridge to Brownsville every day for six years. Her mother would drop her off at her school while she went to work and then, picked her up after work, usually getting home passed 6 PM. The remainder five students had completed a year of kindergarten or in one case, attended school in Monterrey, Nuevo León for three years.
The four students that had learned to read in Spanish in the Brownsville schools described their instruction as traditional and very brief, an average of one year. Usually, the Spanish language instruction helped students learn the basics of letter and sound recognition but very little on building comprehension skills.
All students had a common experience once they enrolled in the U.S. schools: they were required to learn to speak and read and write in English as quickly as possible. So, even though a handful of students received a very basic Spanish language reading instruction, everyone had learned the basics of English language reading by the end of the second grade. Usually, the common instructional method by which they learned to read was the Phonics Approach. But, most of their accounts included descriptions of an emotional, difficult, even traumatic process. They felt overwhelmed with the pressure of learning to speak in English, and even read and write it at the same time.
How did they accomplish this seemingly impossible multiple task? Several students credited their teachers for their extraordinary assistance in helping them. But there were friends or neighbors who also helped the students. One described the Summer School program and its invaluable resource. Some of the students benefitted from the computerized reading programs with their built-in motivational and incentive strategies. Even though most of the students’ parents were unable to help them in English they were instrumental in motivating them to do well in school.
But in each narrative I recognized a sense of determination to succeed in spite of the barriers or problems. Their conscientious-driven efforts seem to transcend their plight and even give way to the realization that they could do something so much better than what they experienced to improve the educational conditions for other children. Indeed, they felt empowered in their upcoming, new professional role as bilingual educators.
Consider the following excerpts from their narratives that point to their earliest memories on learning to read, and the language, cultural, and social contexts for which they had to adapt and/or negotiate. (English translations in parenthesis.)
*A1: Yo recuerdo cuando era niña yo no leía nada porque ni había libros en mi casa. Cuando cumplí cinco años mis papás decidieron ir a otro estado llamado Oklahoma porque aquí en el valle mi papá no ganaba mucho dinero. (I remember as a child I didn’t read because there were no books in my house. When I turned 5 years-old my parents decided to go to another state called Oklahoma because here in the valley my father didn’t earn enough money.)
A2: Ya que por venir de una familia humilde de los barrios de Matamoros estaba rodeado entre tanta ignorancia y entre la famosa pandilla del barrio Kerroli, la cual tenía abundancia de pandilleros metiéndose mugrero y haciendo de las suyas en el callejón donde pasé los primeros 9 años de mi vida. (Since I come from a family with humble beginnings in the barrios of Matamoros, I was constantly surrounded between ignorance and the famous gang from the Kerroli barrio, which had frequent occurrences of violent gang activity, where I spent the first nine years of my life.)
B: Yo no hablaba inglés. Mucho menos lo leía. Mis padres son de México y ellos en ese entonces no hablaban el inglés. Mi primera lengua hablada fue el español.
Muy a menudo tengo la misma conversación con mi madre de qué solo Dios sabe cómo yo aprendí el inglés. (I didn’t speak English. Or, much less read it. My parents are from México and at that time didn’t speak a word of English. My first language was Spanish. A frequent conversation I have with my mother is about how only God knows how I learned English.)
C: Mis recuerdos son de que en mi casa no había libros para leer pero si me contaban muchas historias del pasado. (My memories are that we didn’t have any books to read at home but I was told many stories about the past.)
D: En mi casa mis padres solamente hablaban español así es que no comencé a hablar inglés hasta que comencé la escuela. (At home my parents spoke only in Spanish so I learned English when I started school.)
D: En ese entonces tenía una vecina que estaba estudiando para maestra en la universidad, y tenía hermanitas de mi edad y siempre nos daba clases y se ponía a leernos libros, actividades o simplemente nos ayudaba con cosas que no entendíamos. Eso fue una gran ayúdame para mi desempeño con el inglés y con la lectura. (At the time, I had a neighbor who was studying to become a teacher at the university and had young sisters about my age and would teach us lessons, reading books, activities or just helping us with the classwork. That helped me a great deal in my learning English and with reading.)
I1: Mi mente podría haber entendido las cosas de diferente manera pero claramente recuerdo mi maestra casi gritando detrás de mí forzándome a leer. Me gritaba y agarraba mi dedo apuntando a las oraciones que debía de leer. (I might have remembered things differently, but I can clearly remember my teacher yelling at me, forcing me to read. She would yell and grab my finger pointing at the sentences that I was to read.)
I2: Yo me acuerdo que lloraba de niña porque por mas esfuerzo que hacía no podía aprender pero la maestra nunca se dio por vencida. (I remember crying as a child because no matter how much I tried I couldn’t learn, but the teacher never gave up on me.)
K: Yo aprendí a leer en español primero porque español era mi primer lenguaje. En mi casa se hablaba español siempre. Yo aprendí el inglés en la escuela, pero no recuerdo cuando. Lo que si recuerdo es que mis clases eran en ingles desde primer grado. Solo recuerdo que estuve en español mi primer año de escuela (kínder), y empezando primer grado todo fue en inglés. (I first learned to read in Spanish because my first language is Spanish. At home we spoke in Spanish at all times. I learned English at school but I don’t remember exactly when. What I do remember is that all of my classes were in English starting from first grade. I remember I had Spanish language instruction in kindergarten but starting in first grade everything was in English.)
M.I: Yo fui nacida en México. Mi primer idioma fue el español. Mis padres no tuvieron la fortuna de poder tener suficiente estudio. Mis padres crecieron muy pobres y tuvieron que empezar a trabajar a una temprana edad para poder ayudar a sus padres para que hubiera aunque fuera frijoles y tortillas todos los días. (I was born in México. My first language was Spanish. My parents didn’t have the good fortune of a good education. My parents grew up in poverty and they had to work at a very young age to sustain their parents so that they could at least have enough food. at least beans and tortillas on the table everyday.)
M1: The entire 1st grade for me was difficult. I was having a hard time reading so my Mom sent me to summer school and that is where and when I learned.
M2: I hope to some day help children who are having trouble learning how to read in English. It is one of my goals in life to do that. My parents and teachers changed my life completely. I would love to help someone the same way.
N: Cuando yo aprendí a leer en inglés mi experiencia fue terrible. Yo no sabía hablar en inglés. Mi mama hablaba puro español y mis hermanos le hablaban en español también. En la clase mi maestra no quería que fuera su estudiante porque yo no entendía el idioma. (When I learned to read in English my experience was terrible. I didn’t know how to speak in English. My mother and my siblings spoke only Spanish. My classroom teacher didn’t want me as her student because I didn’t understand the language.)
Lessons Learned
The students seemed to have learned an insurmountable amount of lessons as children growing up in a milieu that made specific demands on them in various aspects, including the border context where two different countries are literally joined together geographically but socially, culturally, and linguistically are quite distant from one another. Most of the students traversed across the border various times for different reasons, but in each case their crossing was mental and psychological as much as physical.
I asked them about what they learned from their early schooling experiences and how they would apply these to teaching; the following are some of their responses:
A: Lo que si se y no cambiara es que la literatura me ha hecho crecer culturalmente y mentalmente. (What I would change would be to increase the use of literature in the classroom – that will help them develop culturally and mentally.)
C: Like I mentioned before when I was growing up books were not at my disposal at home, maybe because my parents were not aware of it benefits and back then times were very different. Nonetheless, I did learn to read in school and I am very thankful for those few teachers I had who didn’t give up on slow readers like myself, I learned to gradually read at my own speed and I now enjoy reading as a hobby. Overall, the way I learned to read was perfect for me, and now it’s my turn to pay it forward and continue helping students including my kids how to continue reading and keep striving for more.
C2: Estoy segura de que todos los niños de primaria necesitan buenos maestros para que les ayuden aprender bien el L1 y así después cuando aprendan el L2 lo aprendan bien. Tras las malas caras que yo pase cuando era pequeña, eso me motivo a querer llegar a hacer maestra bilingüe y así enseñar bien a los niños a aprender bien las cosas que necesitan saber en la etapa de primaria por ejemplo el leer, escribir , aprender los colores, planetas, los diferentes anímales, etc. (I’m sure that elementary school students need excellent teachers that will help them learn in their first language so that when they learn their second language – English – they will learn it very well. Even though I had bad experiences when I was a child, nevertheless I’m motivated to become a bilingual teacher and teach my students what they need to learn, for example, to read, write, learn their colors, the planets, animals, etc.)
I: Ella creía que yo podía y no se equivoco. Al igual que ella yo quiero que mis estudiantes aprendan todos por igual ya sea que eso requiera de mas esfuerzo de unos mas que otros por que todos son diferentes y aprenden diferente. (My teacher believed in me and she wasn’t mistaken. Like her I want all of my students to learn equally well even though it means that with some students it will require more effort because everyone is different and they each learn differently.)
MI: Espero que en recordar mi propia experiencia, me ayude para hacer una maestra comprensiva con ese tipo de estudiantes y para animarles que así como yo pude superar el idioma, ellos también lo podrán hacer si le echan ganas. (I hope my past experiences will help me become a comprehensive teacher of students whose experiences are similar to the ones I had so I can motivate them, and just like I was able to overcome my language difficulties, so can they become successful.)
M: Pero ahora pienso que es bueno que los niños aprendan español primero y después el inglés. Lo que ayudaría mucho a los niños es que los papas empiezen a leer con ellos desde chiquitos, para que se vayan imponiendo con los libros y leerlos. Leer es muy importante en nuestras vidas, todo en este mundo se hace con leyendo cosas. Hasta ahorita siendo estudiante de universdad incluye leer miles y miles de libros. (But, now I think that it’s better that children first learn in Spanish, then in English. What can really help children is if the parents read to their children from very early in their lives so they enjoy literature and begin to read. Reading is very important in our lives and everything we do in this world requires reading. Even now as a university student I have to read thousands and thousands of books.)
N: Aunque fue difícil y aterrorizante mi experiencia de cómo hablar y leer en inglés, lo pude lograr. Creo que pudiera ver otras formas de poder aprender, pero por eso quisiera ser maestra para poder enseñarles a los niños de una manera más eficaz. (Even though it was difficult and tortureous to learn to speak and read in English, I was able to do it. I think there are other ways to learn and that’s why I want to become a teacher – to help my students learn more effectively.)
How will they measure up to becoming the very best teacher that they aspire?
My immediate reaction after reading their narratives is that their early schooling experiences have left a profound effect on their self perception as teachers, specifically on a wide array of social, cultural, and language aspects of teaching and learning. Their approach to working with children is based on not only their experiences as border crossers, second language learners, and living in economically stressful life but as independent learners who have developed skills such as self-reliance, resourcefulness, and self-confidence. They have strengthened their resiliency and understand how children, in a survival mode, mature at an accelerated rate.
What are the most pressing problems that bilingual teacher’s face in today’s schools?
The final question was created as a platform by which the students could elaborate upon their own vision of the problems as they perceived them and become critical in the way that they would address these.
C: I feel that there is not enough high quality bilingual programs for students at this time in all our schools. Some schools don’t even offer the programs, and being so close to the border I feel it’s a need. How are these students expected to learn? For us the bilingual program is English/Spanish and further up it can be any other language with English. A huge factor that also plays a huge role is social economic standing of students, not all students have that strong support at home to continue motivation at home. Teaching is a job from public schooling but what about home, who picks up the pieces there. It has to be a continuous role, learning cannot be placed on a back burner. It takes commitment from both home and school.
D: The biggest problem I believe bilingual teachers have today is that children haven’t yet mastered their first language when they are already trying to learn their second language. By living in the border I have seen first hand how children have a little bit of difficulty truly mastering either Spanish or English and they tend to speak a little of both or mix them up. I believe in order to learn a second language you need to have a good foundation and have mastered your first language in order to move on and be able to speak, read, and write the second language.
I: I would work hard to make sure to make my classroom is truly bilingual. I would work hard to make every lesson in Spanish and English. I would also try to make sure to make my classroom fun and not put too much pressure on the students with the standardized testing.
Conclusion
Although the students were free to express themselves accordingly, and indeed, their responses are widely revealing, the fact remains that there are so many questions surrounding their perceptions, experiences, and so many about them personally. Their young voices seem fresh and determined, and what we know is that they have had extraordinary experiences and are fueled with visions and ideas for improving the education of children.
What we don’t know is how long they will continue to work as bilingual educators and how they will change as they work in the educational system that is continuously changing and not always in a positive manner, and how their view points will change, and will they follow a career path that will lead them to leadership roles?
What I know about the students is that they are truly the best hope we have for the future our children, indeed, much more beyond that. We can build a better future provided that our work with students as future teachers is relevant, genuine, sincere, and rooted in the very best quality educational curriculum.
As I ponder upon these and other questions, I reflect upon my own experiences and the changes I made during the course of my career. I was 19 years old when I begin my educator career. I worked as an aide at the same time participated in Teacher Corps, a specialized federal program whose goals were to produce teachers for a vast explosion of students whose first language was Spanish. I remember the awe-inspirational moment when I realized that I was going to become a bilingual teacher to teach children like myself when I started school – without knowing a word of English. It seems even more incredible that I have worked as a university professor for over thirty years preparing students to become bilingual educators. Indeed, I feel very fortunate to have a real connection to the students, not only because of my professional training and experience, but because of our personal experiences and our backgrounds as children whose parents brought them to the United States from México for a better life.
However, even though I was born in a border town (Ciudád Juárez) and grew up in border cities on the Mexican side (Nuevo Laredo and Reynosa), my early schooling experiences began in the south central part of Texas. My students have deep roots in the border area where they have lived most of their lives. These experiences have shaped them in ways that I still struggle to understand completely. And, perhaps, that is the nature of our border life: the border is a classroom of life and in an organic, chaotic and immensely interesting way, we are constantly learning.
* Students’ names are not disclosed for privacy purposes.
-Revisiting the ten months (from August 30, 2013 to June 22, 2014) of website posts and other news during my volunteer work with the South Texas Human Rights Center…
Background
In the late 1990’s the escalating number of migrants crossing the US/Mexico border through California and Arizona marked a new level of concern, engaging the public in protesting the undignified manner of treatment toward the deaths of migrant border crossers and their loved ones. However, in due time the Department of Homeland Security stepped up their efforts and resources that forced the migrant crossers to create new routes toward more dangerous, inhospitable terrains. Thus, the influx of migrants through the South Texas’ semi-arid, prickly, dense brush land increased, and so did the number of deaths.
According to the South Texas Human Rights Center’s history noted in their website, the initial steps began in the summer of 2012 when Los Angeles del Desierto, a non-profit organization from Arizona, contacted the Houston United and the Prevention of Migrant Death Working Group and relayed the reports received from families that their loved ones had disappeared, particularly in the Brooks County area. However, the 2013 report, Searching for the Living, the Dead, and the New Disappeared on the Migrant Trail of Texaswas pivotal in mobilizing activists to take action in deterring deaths among the migrant crossers in the South Texas areas.
In May 2013, a community forum was held in Houston, TX, specifically to address the tragic deaths of migrant crossers in Brooks County. Emanating from the discussions amongst various activists was a plan to install water stations in areas where the migrants have been sited. These water stations consisted of a large “steel barrels” filled with several gallons of water. Another important goal sanctioned by participants was the establishment of a South Texas Human Rights Center in Falfurrias, TX, in Brooks County. The Center would engage in the intake of calls from families or friends who had not heard from their loved ones. And, the most complex of all tasks became the most important: to locate and identify the dead migrants and notify their loved ones.
The selected posts listed below which I wrote and published in the Center’s website, include commentaries to aid the reader with background information.
The South Texas Human Rights Center: goals and objectives (published in 8-30-13)
The 2013 report, Searching for the Living, the Dead, and the New Disappeared and its findings and significance (published in 9-6-13)
Humanitarian Organizations That Save Lives: No More Deaths and Los Angeles del Desierto: descriptions of the organizations and their contributions to the tragic circumstances of migrant deaths (published approximately in 10-8-13)
Deaths in South Texas: Nameless Graves, Disappearances, and Lack of Humanitarian Aid: a summary of migrant deaths and locations of their remains as well efforts by various agencies and consulates to resolve the identification of corpses (published on 10-8-13)
Preventing Migrant Deaths in Brooks County: how the 9-1-1 calls from migrants are processed, and the roles of the Border Patrol, the Sheriff’s office, and the ranch and landowners (published in 10-20-13)
Participants Read the Names of the Dead and Missing Ceremony: a group of several supporters convened at the Rothko Chapel in Houston to bring about awareness and respect for the dead and missing migrants (published in 11-3-13)
Webb County Medical Examiner Works to Identify Migrants: the article is based on an interview with Dr. Stern in Laredo, TX (published in 5-22-14)
University Teams Exhume Unknown Migrants’ Remains in Falfurrias Cemetery: forensic science students from Baylor and Texas State University work with professors to exhume the remains of migrants who have never been identified (published in 6-14-14)
University Professors Lead by Example: the article features the extraordinary work by the university professors (published in 6-14-14)
University Students Learn Life-long Lessons: photo gallery of the students demonstrate their hard work and dedication (published in 6-14-2014
Recovering Bodies, Unraveling Dark Secrets: About 50 Remains of Unknown Migrants Excavated From a Falfurrias Cemetery: this post was not published in the Center’s website because of its controversial comments aimed at the conflicts between the landowners/ranchers and the human rights of the migrants. However, it was published in another online news website. (Published in 6-22-14)
Final Remarks: the concluding comments focus on the complexity of our work as activists and supporters and the struggles in our continuing work.
Posted on August 30, 2013
The South Texas Human Rights Center
The South Texas Human Rights Center is an humanitarian community-based center dedicated to the promotion, protection, defense and exercise of human rights and dignity in South Texas.
The MISSION of South Texas Human Rights Center (STHRC) is to end death and suffering among migrant border crossers along the United States/México border through community initiatives.
The 13 counties serviced by the STHRC include:
Brooks, Cameron, Duval, Hidalgo, Jim Hogg,
JimWells, Kenedy, Kleberg, Nueces, Starr,
Webb, Willacy, and Zapata.
The South Texas Human Rights Center is seeking donations to create and install “water stations” in areas where migrants are likely to trek and get lost. The water stations consist of a barrel with several gallons of water that will be placed and maintained in private properties in collaboration with the land owners.
An example of the water station.
Posted on September 6, 2013
Report Finds Texas Has the Most Deaths of Border Crossers
Living, the Dead, and the New Disappeared on the Migrant Trail in Texas, was written and published by Dr. Christine Kovic, a professor at the University of Houston-Clear Lake in collaboration with Houston United/Houston Unido. The summary findings lists a total of 271 deaths, which are recorded as migrant deaths for 2012, the highest number among the border states of California, Arizona, and Texas. According to the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol, most of the deaths, approximately 129, were concentrated in Brooks County, located in the center of the 13-county South Texas area, 70 miles north of the US/Mexico border. The Rio Grande Valley recorded the most deaths with 150, followed by the Laredo area with 90 deaths. This area consists of dry, harsh terrain known as South Texas plains and brush country with grasses, thorny brush, and cacti, and that has extremely hot and humid temperatures during the extended summer months.
“Migrant deaths have become the metrics of a failed border security policy.”
The major goal of the report is to call attention to the crisis and the dire need to take action to prevent more deaths among migrants crossing the US/Mexico border.
A key recommendation includes the installation of “water stations,” which the South Texas Human Rights Center is undertaking.
Acknowledgements listed in the report include a “special thanks” to María Jiménez, Tom Powers, Pat Hartwell, Gloria Rubac, and Stephanie Caballero, Alejandro Zuñiga, and Mesias Pedroza.
Also, the Texas Civil Rights Project, Eduardo Canales, Board President with the National Network of Immigrant and Refugee Rights, and Rafael Hernández, Director of los Angeles del Desierto/ Desert Angels.
Each pushpin in the map below indicates where the remains of migrants were located.
Posted on October 8, 2013
Humanitarian Organizations That Save Lives: No More Deaths and Los Angeles del Desierto
South Texas Human Rights Center is dedicated to saving the lives of migrants at risk of dying as they dangerously cross into the semi-arid, brush country of South Texas from México.
Other non-profit, humanitarian organizations involved in similar missions are No More Deaths/No Más Muertos and Los Angeles del Desierto, described in the following paragraphs.
Funded in 2004 by a group of community and faith leaders in southern Arizona, No More Deaths has the mission of ending death and suffering along the state’s US/México border. Their goals and objectives specifically describe their humanitarian mission to provide direct aid as needed, to witness and respond to social injustices, engage in consciousness raising, and encourage in as many ways possible a humane and just immigration policy. Staffed by volunteers, the organization established camps called the Arks of Covenant in areas where migrants were most in need of humanitarian assistance. But, in 2008, following the arrests of 3 volunteers who were transporting migrants to hospitals, the organization was adopted as a ministry by the Unitarian Universalist Church of Tucson, Arizona. The volunteers were eventually exonerated.
Investigative Reports
No More Deaths compiled and published a report that documented the abuses of migrants by Border Patrol Agents within a two-year period of 2006-2008. The report titled Crossing the Line: Human Rights Abuses of Migrants in Short-term Custody on the Arizona and Sonora Border, published in 2008, lists 345 complaints, described by the migrants, documented by staff members, and notarized, following a protocol supported by academic and legal processes. The complaints were numerous but were organized according to type and severity of the abuses. The worst ones were described as verbal, physical, and sexual abuses; failure to provide needed medical treatments; failure to provide and deny food substance; failure to respect basic dignity of the migrants; separation of family members, failure to return personal belongings to the migrants; and failure to inform migrants of their rights. The 112-page report describes the abuses in detail, which Border Patrol representatives rejected and/or denied these, claiming they were false or erroneous.
Three years later, No More Deaths published another report with new claims of abuses; this time 30,000 abuses are documented, however, many of the same kinds that had previously been reported. The 2011 report is titled, A Culture of Cruelty: Abuse and Impunity in Short-term U.S. Border Patrol Custody , and along with a numerous abuses, the authors also cited 1,063 incidents of migrant detainees not receiving due process. For example, their rights were violated; they were treated as criminals rather than charged for civil immigration violations; and were not given an opportunity to access a lawyer. This report underscores the need to advance the cause beyond identifying the issues to specifically articulating the steps to eliminate the abuses. Without taking action that resolves the problems, “the border will never be secure while human rights are being trod upon.”
Los Angeles del Desierto
Los Angeles del Desierto (Angels of the Desert), founded and directed by Rafael Larraenza Hernández and Monica Larraenza, is a “non-profit, humanitarian, search & rescue group made up of volunteers.” Although their headquarters is in San Diego, California, their search missions take them into the desert regions between the US and Mexican border. The organization coordinates their search and rescue efforts with the Border Patrol, The Department of Homeland Security, the Mexican consulate, Sheriff’s Department, and the Department of Forestry. They leave food and water that may provide essential relief to migrants, especially if they have become lost. Their goal is to save migrants whose lives are in danger. Their work also includes counseling and assisting repatriated migrants at the border entry gate in Tijuana, México to find their way back home.
Los Angeles del Desierto refrain from enforcing immigration laws since their mission is primarily humanitarian.
Posted on October 8, 2013
Deaths in South Texas: Nameless Graves, Disappearances, and Lack of Humanitarian Aid
In light of recent reports on the escalating deaths of migrants in South Texas’ brush country, efforts have begun to address the myriad of issues regarding the tragic circumstances. Investigative reporter Mark Collette addressed some of the most pressing problems in the Corpus Christi Caller-Times in a special section on Immigration. Some of the newspaper article’s important information is described below.
The Need for a Central Record Keeping System
Very recently, Brooks County, which has the most reported migrant deaths, implemented a new policy of sending the body remains to the Webb County Medical Examiner in Laredo in charge of performing autopsies. However, other surrounding counties have different ways of handling and processing unidentified corpses. The Border Patrol has been an important source of information for compiling the number of confirmed deaths and approximate locations of where the remains were found. However, since the remains are found in private lands, Border Patrol officials are unlikely to divulge the exact locations. The following map shows the four ranches in Brooks County where the most deaths occurred within the last couple of years (2011-2013): Laborcitas, Mariposa, Cage, and King.
Interactive Map of Migrant Deaths
The Corpus Christi Caller-Times collected information on migrant deaths from 2011-2013 and used an interactive map to show the approximate locations of where the remains were found. The map displays all of the identifiable information, however, many of the remains are simply unknown. In an effort to identify the missing migrants a Baylor University forensic anthropology team has exhumed 55 remains from the cemetery in Brooks county where the corpses were buried. Their efforts will help identify some of the remains, especially the ones that have been reported “missing.”
The Missing or Disappeared
The families or friends of the “missing” or “disappeared” are often unfamiliar with the process for reporting missing persons. The Corpus Christi Caller-times lists the following contacts where the identifiable information on the missing persons can be registered.
Brooks County Sheriff’s Office:361-325-3696
Webb County Medical Examiner’s Office:956-722-7054
NamUS provides free DNA testing and other forensic services, such as anthropology and odontology assistance. NamUs’ Missing Persons Database and Unidentified Persons Database are now available in Spanish.
Posted on October 20, 2013
Preventing Migrant Deaths in Brooks County
Falfurrias, TX – Brooks County is situated in the center of the 13-county area identified by the South Texas Human Rights Organization as the hotspot for migrant deaths. Falfurrias, the largest town in the county is a headquarters for the Border Patrol and the County’s Sheriff’s Office, plus a privately operated detention center. Thus far, in 2013, 80 migrant deaths have been reported in Brooks County, in an area comprised of private ranch lands about 956 square miles. Within a 12-month period, 3,100 juvenile migrants were “captured” and apprehended as they trekked through the South Texas dry, harsh brush terrain from the Mexico/Texas border. About 63 “walkers” or individuals carrying backpacks, turned over 12, 000 pounds of marihuana to Border Patrol officials. In a 2-day period, 1,000 pounds of marihuana were confiscated. Their activity log also includes hundreds of “rescue” missions, although their primary purpose is to capture and apprehend migrants for illegal entry into the United States.
But, the cooperation and the coordinated efforts between the Border Patrol and the Sheriff’s department have not been without immense challenges. According to Chief Deputy Urbino (Benny) Martínez, the overwhelming issues or problems in working with undocumented migrants is particularly strenuous due to the lack of resources in their department. Thus, the need to work out a close partnership plan with the Border Patrol, much of which is navigated through uncharted areas of procedures, legal matters, and protocol. This is not an easy feat by any means, according to Martínez.
Chief Deputy Martínez
Brooks County Sheriff Department
Sheriff Rey Rodriguez heads the department with Benny Martinez as Chief Deputy. About 40 staff members have various roles and responsibilities within the department, including the county jail. Their tight budget is a source of frustration since they must address local or domestic problems as well as those associated with the migrant influx. Although burdened with a proportionately large number of migrants, Brooks County is not a “border county,” thus, is not eligible for specific additional funding, like Cameron County, for instance, that reported seven deaths last year.
Border Patrol Help Station
The Border Patrol has installed 4 Help Stations, one in each of the four major ranch properties. These include a five-gallon water jug and a “beacon” where the distressed migrant can call for help. However, the Sheriff’s department receives 90% of the emergency calls made from the migrant’s cell phones. Once the calls are registered, both the Border Patrol and the ranch owner are notified. Whereas the beacon signal is directly sent to the Border Patrol and readily identifiable, locating the source of an emergency phone call requires specific knowledge of the area. This task falls in the hands of Lionel Muñoz, a staff member with the Sheriff’s Department who uses the Google Earth app to pinpoint the coordinates and identify the most likely area where the distressed migrant may be found. Only two or three agents from each the border patrol and the sheriff’s county office are dispatched to the migrant’s location. Once the migrants are found, the Border Patrol assumes the responsibility in processing their deportation. Migrants who require medical treatment are transported to Kingsville’s medical facility about 35 miles north and then, brought back to the Border Patrol station in Falfurrias. Besides the one in Falfurrias, next to the Sheriff’s Office, other detention centers are available in nearby La Villa and Corpus Christi. (Read more about the “outdated immigration detention system” here.)
Leonel Muñoz
Migrant Deaths in Brooks County
Some reports of migrants that appear dead or ill are called in by Homeland Security agents aboard helicopters pursuing migrants on the run. But most of the migrant corpses are found by the ranch owners or their workers, usually precariously. Sometimes they’re drawn to particular sites such as the pathways often used by the migrants, or by a flock of scavenging birds circling above their target. Ranch owners are reluctant to allow just anyone in their property citing legal concerns in which they may be held liable for injuries or deaths. (Read about a related case, Rodriguez v. Boerjan.) Federal and county officials are obligated to inform ranch owners of their presence in their property before they’re allowed into the property. When migrant deaths are discovered both the Border Patrol and the Sheriff’s Department are summoned to the deceased person(s). However, the Sheriff has the major responsibility for processing the corpses or their remains.
Just recently, Brooks County established a policy whereby unclaimed remains of presumed migrants are sent to the Webb County Examiner’s Office in Laredo. Dr. Stern, the medical examiner, conducts identification tests, including DNA assessments that may assist the Sheriff’s Department in locating the decease’ family members or friends. The remains are transported back to Brooks County where they are temporarily stored in a designated area in the Howard Williams Funeral Home.
The Sheriff relies on particular invaluable institutional resources to facilitate in the corpses’ identification process. For instance, Baylor University, a private institution in Waco, Texas, has offered to conduct forensic analysis on skeletal remains. Professor Baker, a forensic anthropologist, engages her students in conducting on-site analysis, and provides an exceptional service to Brooks County without adding to their financial burden. Another important resource is Texas State University in San Marcos, which provides a “body farm” facility to process and store unclaimed corpses that have been exhumed from the cemetery in Falfurrias. Thus far, only half of the hundred or so corpses in the cemetery have been exhumed and processed for identification purposes.
Identifying the Corpses and Notifying the Next of Kin
Perhaps, the most challenging task for the Brooks County’s Sheriff is to identify the corpses and notify their loved ones. Of the 80 corpses collected this year, only half have been identified. The Sheriff’s office maintains the records of the deceased, however, since their resources are limited their efforts fall short in matching the identified corpses with the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System. The identification process is hampered by the fact that many of the migrant victims are from Central America and Mexico and family or friends are unfamiliar with the system or process in order to locate their missing loved ones.
The South Texas Human Rights Center
The Center’s main office in Falfurrias is across from the Courthouse. According to Eduardo Canales, the Center’s coordinator, an important goal is to coordinate services and activities with the county and local communities. Besides serving as a key source of information and as a communication hub, the Center will coordinate efforts with the County and Homeland Security to prevent migrant deaths and assist in the process of identifying corpses of the deceased and notifying the next of kin.
Eduardo Canales in front of the Center
Posted on November 3, 2013
Participants Read The Names of the Dead and Missing Ceremony
José Fernando Torres
Rothko Chapel, Houston, TX – José Fernando Torres led the reading of the names of the dead or missing migrants during a solemn ceremony at the non-denominational Rothko Chapel on Saturday, November 2nd. But Torres didn’t read the name of his wife who has been missing for 20 months. Instead he offered a plea of hope that she would return home to their two young children. She was last heard from when trekking through the harsh South Texas area, near one of the ranch houses. But, she suddenly disappeared as if the earth swallowed her.
A total of 29 participants read the 200 names; five at a time. After the reading, the group assembled in the outdoor patio, eating and drinking the traditional Día de los Muertos hot chocolate and sweet bread. A small basket served to collect a donation of $120, which will aid in the efforts of the South Texas Human Rights Center to prevent migrant deaths.
The South Texas Human Rights Center gratefully acknowledges the staff members of the Rothko Chapel who made the special ceremony possible. We are very appreciative of their kind and generous assistance.
Posted on May 22, 2014
Webb County Medical Examiner Works to Identify Migrants
Dr. Corinne Stern’s lab and office overlooks a scenic view of a scaled down brush country typical of the topography of South Texas on the outskirts of Laredo in Webb County. The building is about a mile from the main road, next to the volunteer Fire Department on a dirt road. The drab, neat building in the style of old Mexico serves as the destination of migrants’ corpses found in Brooks County (see South Texas map). They had traveled by foot for miles, having crossed the Mexico-Texas border from various starting points including Mexico and Central America.
Dr. Corrine Stern
Forensic Laboratory
Webb County Lab
Dr. Stern’s “patients” met their fate from “natural” causes, for example, dehydration, heat stroke, and snake bites. In the case of many migrants whose bodies were recovered from the Rio Grande River in Webb County, the cause of death was drowning. In this part of the river, the water is deep and its currents strong, making the crossings more perilous than further south.
Dr. Stern’s job is to examine the corpses’ identifiable markings and any other pieces of artifacts (clothing, for example) in their possessions that would help in the identification process. Sometimes, valuable information is hidden underneath the soles of the shoes, or in secret cavity in leather belts. She meticulously examines every inch of the subject, holding true to her professional standards as evident in a Latin phrase written on an old piece of paper, framed, hanging in her office: Mortui Vivis Praecipant (“Let the Dead Teach the Living”). She brought the sign from New Orleans, while working there as an Examiner in the Reserves, right after Katrina hurricane plagued the city.
The information is entered in the “Missing Migrants” binder, which is used to corroborate data from other sources, mainly family members searching for their loved ones. If there is a probable match between the corpse and the family member, DNA samples are collected thus facilitating the identification process. Even so, all corpses’ DNA samples are collected eventually. Unclaimed bodies are held in the Lab’s morgue for 60 days before transferred to a funeral service for burial.
Dr. Stern’s office receives numerous calls from family members asking for any information that would lead to the whereabouts of their loved ones. The Mexican Consulate in Laredo also receives inquiry calls. In Brooks County, the Sheriff’s office assists in the identification of missing migrants, but their scope of assistance is extremely limited due to lack of resources.
Before contracting with Dr. Stern’s Office in August, 2013, Brooks County officials transported the corpses found within their boundaries to Elizondo Mortuary in Mission, TX. Unclaimed corpses were buried in the Falfurria’s cemetery (see photo gallery). Both Texas State University in San Marcos and Baylor University in Waco have lent their assistance and resources: the Baylor team has thus far exhumed 62 of the approximately 130 unknown or unclaimed corpses from the Falfurias cemetery, and transported these to Texas State where they are stored and processed for identification purposes.
Corpses that are decomposed down to their skeletal remains are transported to Forensic Anthropologist, Dr. Harrell Gil-King at the University of North Texas in Denton. Dr. Gil-King’s analysis serves to further identify the remains.
All information collected from various sources is entered into a national database, the United States Justice Department’s the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System.
The search and identification process is particularly complicated by the fact that many of the loved ones’ families live outside of the United States. The consulate offices are helpful to a certain extent. However, the migration factors have changed in the last decade or two. There are as many border crossers or more from Central America as there are from Mexico. Texas is now the leading border state with the most migrant deaths (see related article), yet the resources are unequally distributed, leaving offices such as the Brooks County Sheriff with very limited means by which to assist in the identification process.
The South Texas Human Rights Center has as one of its main goals to facilitate County officials in their work with migrant deaths.
In addition STHRC has worked with the Border Patrol and ranch owners in installing 21 water stations in an effort to prevent deaths among border crossers due to dehydration.
The STHRC headquarters in Falfurrias, coordinated by Mr. Eduardo Canales, works with the local community as well as the national and international agencies to provide assistance in assuring that the rights of migrants are respected and protected.
Examining clothing for identification clues.
Mary Wickstrom, Assistant
Posted on June 14, 2014
University Teams Exhume Unknown Migrants’ Remains in Falfurrias Cemetery
Sacred Heart Cemetery, Falfurrias, Texas: For the second consecutive summer, a team of forensic scientists and their students from the Baylor University and the University of Indianapolis participated in exhuming the remains of unknown migrants from the Sacred Heart Cemetery in Falfurrias, from June 1 – 11. Dr. Lori Baker and Sgt. Jim Huggins, from Baylor University, and Dr. Krista Latham from the University of Indianapolis engaged about 30 graduate and undergraduate students in the process of searching and unearthing a total of 50 human being remains. The students signed up with Dr. Baker in a course that combines biology, anthropology, physical science and other related fields of study. With shovels of all sizes, gloves, small brooms and other tools, the students and professors worked persistently and methodologically to remove the soil, probe, locate the remains, and transfer each in a body bag, carefully catalogued and reported in notebooks and photographed accordingly. Very little is known about the migrants; only that they were border crossers and met their fate while trekking through the Brooks county’s rough, semi-arid,thorny brush terrain, and perhaps, coupled with the scorching summer heat took their lives one way or another. The teams’ main goal is to identify the corpses or their remains, and ultimately match them with their loved ones.
At the outset, the team members were aware of the lack of information on the number of “unknown” migrants and where exactly they were buried. According to the Sheriff’s Department staff member Leonel Muñoz, the burials date back to 2005, but there may be even older remains since the plot was also used for pauper burials and its initial construction dates back to the 50’s. Last summer, Dr. Baker and team members exhumed about 60 corpses in another section of the cemetery, so they were prepared for the unexpected. At the time the corpses were buried, funeral homes that provided burial preparations didn’t thoroughly and correctly examine the corpses, thus their identities were literally buried and forever forgotten. Until, Chief Deputy Benny Martínez recognized the problem.
Jessie Degollado and Dr. Lori Baker
Dr. Krista Latham
Sgt. Jim Huggins
Chief Deputy Bennie Martínez
Sheriff’s Chief Deputy Martínez runs his department on a very tight budget due to the allocation formula of State and County funds that favor counties closer to the Mexican-US border. (Brooks County is in the central area of South Texas’ 13 counties.) His strategy of searching and procuring resources paid off when he was introduced to Baylor’s Dr. Lori Baker by a San Antonio journalist, Jessie Degollado (with KSAT-TV). Ms. Degollado had met Dr. Baker about 10 years ago and was familiar with her work in exhuming corpses in Del Rio, TX. In the summer of 2013, Dr. Baker and the Forensic Team began the exhumation project, and their return this summer was largely due to its initial success.
Reuniting Families Project (RFP)
Dr. Lori Baker founded the consortium, Reuniting Families Project in 2003 with the purpose of recovering the remains of unidentified individuals, many of who were border crossers or migrants, from cemeteries along the México/US border. The RFP scientists (Dr. Lori Baker, Sgt. Jim Huggins, Dr. Krista Latham, and Dr. Kate Spradley from Texas State University conduct forensic anthropological analysis on the remains, including DNA samples, and enter this information into national databases that can ultimately lead to the identification of the deceased and the notification of this finding to the closest relative. Whereas the analyses of the remains are eventually available, especially the DNA, there is a lack of sufficient databases by which to compare and match the DNA. Even though some cooperation with Mexico’s Secretaría de Relaciones Exteriores, Ministry of Foreign Affairs has produced a database system (System for the Identification, Reunification, and Localization of Individuals or SIRLI), a frustration persists in producing sufficient matches between the missing and their loved ones. (See 2005 Press Conference with Marco Antonio Fraire.) The number of calls by family members looking for their loved ones is overwhelming for an ill-equipped and understaffed agency. Additionally, an increasing amount of Central Americans are amongst the deceased and a consistent cooperative strategy between the countries and the US agencies has yet to fully materialize. (Other resource link: “Exhuming Immigrant Remains: Reuniting Families Program”)
Working in the Right Direction
Despite the information gaps and the paucity of resources, the process undertaken by the University Teams for identifying the human being remains of migrants is a significant step in the right direction. After the exhumation phase of the project, Dr. Baker and team members and students return to their prospective universities to analyze the recovered remains and proceed with the identification and reunification processes. With their help and expertise, the “unkowns” buried in the Falfurrias cemetery may at last be reunited with their loved ones.
Sheriff Rey Rodríguez, Dr. Lori Baker, Eddie Canales
Posted June 14, 2014
University Professors Lead by Example
Sacred Heart Cemetery, Falfurrias: Dr. Lori Baker and Dr. Krista Latham engage students in the exhumation of unknown migrants’ remains through demonstration and guidance.
June 3, 2014: Dr. Lori Baker demonstrates the procedure from the point where the remains have been located to storing and preparing them for transport.
Dr. Krista Latham works indefatigably in exhuming corpses while working with the students.
Posted on June 14, 2014
University Students Learn Life-long Lessons
Sacred Heart Cemetery, Falfurrias, TX: During the 10-day period (June 1-11), undergraduate and graduate students worked diligently to exhume as many human being remains as possible as part of the Forensic Project coordinated by the Forensic Scientists Team, their professors, Dr. Lori Baker, Sgt. Jim Huggins, and Dr. Krista Latham. The field work is part of their summer course in forensic anthropology that leads to their particular degree in a related field. Some students are Biology majors, others are interested in the criminal investigation aspects. But in this project, all students participated in every aspect of the scientific process.
The students were divided into four teams and rotated duties and responsibilities that included taking measurements, digging with hands, shovels, dustpans, etc, and recording and reporting. They were constantly reminded by their professors and peers to drink plenty of water.
What was their game plan? One student’s response was that there was no plan since they didn’t have any specific information in regard to the number of unknown migrants buried in the designated plot and where they were buried. So, they started digging, probing, exploring, until they recovered the remains, a total of 50. Once they located a bag of remains, they worked carefully to ensure that all of the remains were left intact.
The heat and exhaustion were barely tolerable, but some students became ill and were taken to the emergency hospital in Kingsville. In all there were a few students that required emergency assistance, and three trips to the hospital. One student had a back injury while others suffered from dehydration. Their work began each morning before daybreak and by noon the heat forced them to break for the day.
The exhumation attracted a steady flow of visitors and media personnel. The students were clearly in a fishbowl and everyone who witnessed their work were equally impressed by their diligence, hard work and dedication, not only for the project’s success but for their own development as scientist; and hopefully, gained an insight into the tragedy of how border crossers risk their lives trying to cross into the United States, and yes, die in the process.
Recovering Bodies, Unraveling Dark Secrets: About 50 Remains of Unknown Migrants Excavated From a Falfurrias Cemetery
Note: This is the final post published on the subject. Due to the controversial comments, particularly about the South Texas Property Rights Associations whose members are ranch and landowners in the area, I chose to publish the article in another online news site rather than the South Texas Human Rights Center’s blog.
June 22, 2014, Falfurrias, TX: When students from Baylor University and the University of Indianapolis took on the task of exhuming bodies from Sacred Heart Cemetery for the purpose of lab-testing the remains and identifying and reuniting them with their loved ones, the lessons they learned were far beyond the science of forensic anthropology that they had expected. Actually, they expected the unexpected.
Baylor University’s Dr. Lori Baker and Sgt. Jim Huggins and their team of almost 30 students, and the University of Indianapolis’ Dr. Krista Latham and her team of 5 students spent 10 days digging out remains from a cemetery plot designated for the “unknowns,” presumably the remains of migrants found in various parts in Brooks County in South Texas. As part of a partnership with Brooks County Sheriff’s Office, the university teams would exhume the bodies as a service agreement and as a means by which to provide a “hands-on” learning experience for the students completing an undergraduate or graduate degree in forensic anthropology or a related field. The university teams had exhumed 62 bodies last summer and had anticipated exhuming as many or more this summer.
The teams worked diligently, consistently, and tirelessly from daybreak to noon, when the humidity and heat finally took a heavy toll on their wellbeing. In all, three students and a faculty member (Dr. Baker) had to be taken to the emergency hospital due to dehydration and in one case, a back injury.
After plotting off the work area, their digging and probing were at first instinctual. “There was no game plan,” one of the students commented. No one knew exactly where the bodies had been buried. The bodies, or remains thereof, had been literally dumped into the cemetery pit. Sometimes two bodies were buried together. Upon finding a “body,” the plastic coverings that held the remains were extremely degraded prompting Dr. Baker to scoff at the irresponsibility of those in charge of burial arrangements. The students quickly learned of the lack of any kind of rules as to the depth and breadth by which bodies were laid, thus they probed in every direction that might lead them to a body. In one case, they found a green “shopping bag,” that turned out to be a bag with the name of the funeral/burial service, literally a body “bag” holding the remains inside a plastic covering. They also found trash such as a beer bottle and can, and plastic gloves. Regardless of their condition, the bodies were pulled out carefully and in a dignified manner placed into a larger body bag. Every action was recorded via photographs; every important aspect was measured and analyzed and entered into a database; the careful, solemn manner by which each body was handled seemed to compensate for the callous and indignant burials that each had received.
Certainly, the conditions of the bodies and the manner of their burials were sufficient to cause outrage and consternation. However, just beyond the city limits of the Sacred Heart Cemetery, a brief two miles outside of the small town of Falfurrias, to the east, west, and south, is a vast area of sparsely populated, brush and mesquite tree terrain that unwittingly serves as the County’s morgue. The bodies that the university teams pulled out of the cemetery were found within the 990 square mile parameter of Brooks County. These were the remains of the migrants who had perished as they trekked through the rugged fields, dodging danger at every turn. They died from dehydration or from a rattlesnake bite. They became lost because they were left behind or trying to hide from the Border Patrol. No one knows exactly how each one died. The corpses were accidently found by ranch owners or their staff while working in their ranch detail. Unlike the bodies that were recovered from the cemetery, the remains of many unknown migrants have yet to be recovered. To date, no efforts have been undertaken to deliberately look for remains throughout the walking areas used by migrants in Brooks County or another county in South Texas.
The exact total number of migrants who have lost their lives while crossing the migrant trail in Brooks County varies depending on the source. A U.S. Border Patrol source has an amount recorded of 511 deaths in the Texas-Mexico area just for the fiscal year 2012-2013, a number exceeding all other totals from the border states (Arizona, California, New Mexico). In Brooks County alone, 129 bodies (Prevention of Migrant Deaths Working Group of Houston United) were recovered during the same fiscal year. However, these figures represent the number of corpses that have been recovered, excluding the current numbers that are reported on a regular basis. The question of how many corpses have not been recovered from the spoils of the migrant trails in South Texas looms as large as the vast South Texas wilderness.
The Colibrí Center in Pima County, Arizona, in conjunction with the Medical Examiner’s Office has recorded 800 cases of unidentified migrants recovered from the Arizona-Mexico border. The Colibrí Center, whose sole mission is to help in identifying the human remains in a comprehensive reliable manner, has a databank of 1,500 missing persons that have been reported by their family or loved ones as “last seen crossing the border.” The Brooks County Sheriff’s Office as well as the Webb County Medical Examiner’s Office (in Laredo, TX), each report that they receive numerous calls each day from people looking for their loved ones that went missing somewhere in South Texas. Although the exact number is unknown, from various anecdotal accounts, there exist hundreds of bodies of unknown migrants that have yet to be recovered.
The question persists: Why isn’t there a concerted effort to look for missing migrants whose remains are purportedly along the South Texas migrant trails?
Since the migrant trails are situated in private lands, everyone, including the Border Patrol is strictly prohibited from trespassing. Thus, when the Border Patrol or Sheriff responds to a call, they must first obtain authorized permission to enter the private premise. In some cases the landowners are eager to cooperate and have pre-authorized the agents to enter their property at any time. However, there’s a strong anti-immigrant sentiment among the landowners, some of whom are more concerned over the litter left behind by the border crossers, such as empty water bottles and food wrappers, than about any unrecovered corpses.
The South Texas Property Rights Association, headquartered in Falfurrias, is one of the dominant non-profit organizations that “protect the rights of property owners in South Texas.” Their mission is to “educate the public of the rights of property owners,” and their message in regards to immigration issue is that they are concerned about a “disturbing trend of massive illegal immigration” in their properties and that “these types of trespassers, along with the potential for terrorists, … were seen as a threat to the safety and security of South Texas properties.” It is not surprising that many landowners, who in large part reflect the ultra conservative stance of the STPRA, disregard the lives of the migrants, dead or in periled conditions, and have little interest in participating in any kind of rescue or search activity that may lead to saving lives, let alone recovering bodies. Additionally, many landowners defend their “right” to enforce trespassing laws by using the example of an ongoing case that involved accidental deaths of border crossers in a car chase.
At the local and regional front, lawmakers who have recently learned about the efforts of the Sheriff’s office in collaboration with two universities have chosen to concentrate on the irregularities and negligence on the part of the funeral companies. According to the Houston Chronicle article (by Christopher Sherman), State Representative Terry Canales (D-Edinburg) contacted the Department of Public Safety for assistance on the matter, while the State Senator from Corpus Christi, Chuy Hinojosa has called for a “criminal investigation.” However, the true nature of the problem is far beyond what was discovered in the Sacred Heart Cemetery. South Texas Human Rights Center, a non-profit organization attempts to address the issue of migrant deaths by installing “water stations” throughout the migrant trails. But the resources are limited. Federal and related agencies that are better equipped to focus on the problem of migrant deaths and these and other related problems can channel their work toward resolving the issues. The availability of resources is often hinged on how resources are allocated. Without a focus on saving lives or recovering hundreds of migrants who have lost their lives and whose scattered remains are left undiscovered, the problem will prevail and worsen.
Perhaps, the dead have finally raised their long forgotten voice, and their memories are slowly becoming the stories that must be told and heard.
Photo Gallery of the Unknown Remains at the Sacred Heart Cemetery in Falfurrias, TX.
Cameron Park is one of 196 colonias in the county of Cameron, in Brownsville, in the most southern tip of Texas. The county shares its border with México, which is one of the descriptors that qualifies it as a “colonia,” according to the State Department’s website.
This is a story about Carla’s journey from a struggling student in elementary school to a successful student in college.
The 13 counties serviced by the STHRC include:
