Bodies missing in the desert: another migratory drama in the United States

In the United States, the arrival of Joe Biden to the presidency two years ago caused significant migratory movements on the southern border. many migrants wait for an opening after the repressive policies of the Donald Trump years. And hopes have been renewed for some these days, with the trip of the Democratic president to Mexico, after a visit to the border last Sunday.

In 2022, more than 2.4 million people were arrested by the US Border Patrol and 1.6 million in 2021. More and more migrants are losing their lives on this perilous journey. About 853 travelers were found dead last year on the American side. Others are missing.

In California, Arizona and Texas, civil organizations are searching for the bodies of these missing migrants in the desert and are fighting to have them identified and returned to their families.

Vicente Rodríguez founded the Californian organization Águilas del Desierto 10 years ago. Once or twice a month, his group of volunteers makes expeditions into the Arizona desert and various border regions. These are search and rescue operations.

“Actually, we mostly look for the dead. Sometimes we find missing migrants who are still alive, but more often we find dead people. Last year we found 22 bodies, and the year before, 28,” he explains.

Águilas del Desierto also carries out an important work of prevention on the Mexican side. Its members visit the many reception centers for immigrants along the border to warn those who would like to cross the border of the risks they face.

“Lack of water is a major cause of death for these migrants, along with the long distances they have to travel. In Arizona, they sometimes have to walk up to 100 miles. And the heat can reach 110 degrees,” he says. Vincenzo Rodriguez.

treacherous river

The number of migrants who drown in the Rio Grande, which on the Mexican side is called Rio Bravo, is also steadily increasing. Those who know the area say that it is a treacherous river, which under its apparent calm hides violent currents.

In recent years, immigrant organizations have realized that often the found dead were never identified, as Maureen Meyer of the US NGO WOLA reports: “In South Texas, in particular, there was neglect. More bodies were found each time and everything was in chaos. Some were buried in mass graves. It is now civil society working to identify them, not the authorities.”

The South Texas Center for Human Rights has launched a program of exhumation of corpses sent to mass graves to be able to identify them. Eduardo Canales, its director, denounces the indolence of the authorities.

“We learned a few years ago that Brooks County, where we’re based, doesn’t take DNA samples from these cadavers, even though they’re required to do so by law. And that county is a death row for felons.” migrants. In Texas, each county does what it wants. It’s really a disaster,” she says.

The challenge of identifying the dead

In this region of extreme southern Texas, more than 200 bodies of migrants have been found in the last two years. Eduardo Canales accuses Governor Greg Abbott of cutting funds for identification and redirecting them to border security operations: “It is ridiculous to force migrants to come by river, through the desert, when they come here to work” , He says.

Refugees from Central and South America have virtually no chance of applying for asylum in the United States, which has blocked the system.

Their desperation pushes them to these dangerous crossings, according to Maureen Meyer: “This strategy of sealing the border and all these police measures push migrants to take alternative, longer and riskier routes, and let themselves be taken away by traffickers, at the cost of their life”.

Current immigration policies have a human cost: last year 853 people died trying to cross the border.

Source: RFI

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