Tohono O'odham Activist Speaks Out

With communities spanning the Arizona-Sonora border, the Tohono O’odham nation has been directly impacted by the surge of border enforcement operations and divided, literally, by border fence construction. In February 2008, a group of Tohono O’odham tribe members embarked on a six month trek across the United States - from Alcatraz Island to Washington, DC - to raise awareness about the harm caused by border fencing on their tribal lands.

Ofelia Rivas, an O’odham woman and border rights activist, participated in this journey. At a recent event in Washington, DC, she shared her firsthand experiences of how border security operations and fencing impact her neighbors and broader community, as well as disrupt religious ceremonies, block, migrating animals, and damage the border environment.

“We cannot walk on our land even to get some food without helicopters following us, without border patrol people interrogating us and asking us for our documents,” Ofelia stated. “We came to make a statement that we will not tolerate the wall.”

Ms. Rivas shared how preparations for border fence construction have destroyed land where O’odham’s burial grounds are located. “Our main concern is of how they [Border Patrol, homeland security officials] would come and disrespect our remains that they have dug up and how much destruction there is on the land...the border patrol driving anywhere they want to go on the land.” She continued, “The bones…were my people.” She added “All of these conflicts that were made, we were not invited to the discussion table. We have never been invited to the discussion table to say that we have people buried along this area (Arizona-Sonora border), that we have protected sites along this area. We have never been invited to talk about these issues."

The wall has also affected the animals and their environment by preventing them from crossing the border and disrupting their natural migration patterns. Mountain lions and jaguars have been pushed into border communities. “It’s changing the migration habits of the animals. We have seen animals in the land that normally we don’t.”

Often times, those who oppose the border fencing find it difficult to speak out. Ms. Rivas was arrested and interrogated for simply taking a photograph of the fencing while standing in her own yard. “They said that I was interfering with the work of the border patrol,” Rivas said. “I was taking pictures of them coming into my yard and when I left my yard and went down the road, which is when they got me. I was actually in my mother’s yard when they did that.” These tactics by the Border Patrol have created a culture of fear in the community. Despite the challenges, Ms. Rivas and other Tohono O’odham plan to continue their struggle for just and sensible border enforcment policies.

—Aarendy Gomez (Photo Credit: Jessie Palatucci)