Dear friends, Over the past two decades, a human rights crisis has been unfolding along the US-Mexico border and along migratory routes from Central America to the United States. According to Border Patrol records, which includes 2022 estimates, 9267 men, women and children have perished at the border since 1998. As documented in our Spotlight report and digital map, migrants are perishing from heat, drownings, car accidents, or being trafficked in vehicles without ventilation as they attempt to cross through isolated areas or circumvent checkpoints dozens of miles away from the borderline. Militarized migration management systematically pushes migrants, with no channels to obtain visas, to their deaths. At NNIRR, we remain steadfast in our fight to visibilize this crisis and will continue to advocate for rights-centered migration governance that makes migration regular and safe. Just last week, we brought together families of missing migrants, forensic teams, civil society organizations, academics, and international organizations for the convening “Migration, Borders and Human Rights: Transnational Strategies from Civil Society to Save Lives and Locate the Missing.” The convening allowed us to take stock of gaps in search and rescue operations at the border and to identify barriers to locating, identifying, and repatriating migrant remains. This is a monumental task for our small team at NNIRR, and we need your help. We will be sharing our findings on a series of webinars on December 10th. We hope this data and testimonies create an opportunity for broader civil society organizations to scrutinize and denounce the lethal consequences of militarized border controls. In solidarity, NNIRR. About NNIRR: The National Network of Immigrant and Refugee Rights (NNIRR) works to defend and expand the rights of all immigrants and refugees, regardless of immigration status. NNIRR works collaboratively with communities and organizations to highlight the impacts of immigration enforcement on migrants and border communities and promote human rights-centered approaches to migration and border governance. |
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