USA. Arizona. Sasabe. July 2024.
Plastic bin of water bottles stocked by Tuscon Samaratins who provide food, water, and shelter to migrants who’d crossed the harsh and often violent Sonora desert to await US Border Patrol for processing. Migrants pay Mexican cartels for passage through “their” territory often suffering extortion, rape, and abandonment. Some are also subject to violence and intimidation of US-based militia groups who “tour” the region and poison or steal water supplies. Numbers of migrants seeking safety and a sustainable future had sky rocketed in recent years causing US presidential candidates from both parties to cater to a public sentiment for “stronger security” fueled by right-wing rhetoric. Some 7 million migrants were arrested illegally crossing the U.S.-Mexico border under President Biden.