“For a long time, a big proportion of the American public said that border security was their most important issue. People are starting to realize what that means in terms of the violence entailed.”
Border barriers on the river could be fatal during floods, say Laredo landowners, a reflection on desert narratives and the U.S.-Mexico border, and become a sustaining member of The Border Chronicle today, get some cool, new merch, and help us hold those in power accountable.
As federal officials fast-track billions in border wall construction and floating buoy barriers, local leaders and residents say they’re in the dark, and fear the worst.
The personal, financial, and environmental costs of a border wall in Big Bend, locals revive opposition after Trump's announcement of a refinery in Brownsville and the Rio Grande Valley fights back after ICE shooting and raids, plus The Border Chronicle is seeking new paid subscribers!
It's been nearly two months since we moved from Substack to our new independent site. We hope that you are enjoying the new look of The Border Chronicle. Todd and I launched this publication in September 2021, because after years of reporting on the U.S.-Mexico border we saw the huge gaps in coverage. No media outlet reported on the border as a region, and from the perspective of the people who live here. Instead we are bombarded with disinformation, and reporting that lacks context or history.
Prime example is the proposed border wall construction in the Big Bend in Texas. It's an absolutely breathtaking section of the border with wide open deserts and skies and the Rio Grande coursing through stunning canyons. To imagine a wall being built there is almost too much to comprehend. It physically pains me to imagine it. For the last several weeks there has been much confusion about what the Trump administration intends to do in Big Bend. So we went straight to Sam Karas, a reporter with the wonderful Big Bend Sentinel to get the lowdown on what's happening from the people who live there and know best. Todd's Q&A with Sam covers a lot of territory, and it's exactly the kind of reporting we like to do – it not only gives you the most current, reliable information, it also gives you the deeply personal, environmental and financial stakes of what it would mean if the Trump administration goes through with its plans.
This week, we also published two other important pieces from the Rio Grande Valley (see below) by Pablo de la Rosa way over on the other side of the Texas-Mexico border. I highlight this work because I'm hoping that you will support The Border Chronicle and our mission to serve and connect the communities of the U.S.–Mexico border through rigorous reporting, and arts and culture coverage rooted in border communities. We are a very small independent publication, based in Tucson, that relies on you —our readers— to continue. A reporter's salary is roughly 1,000 paid subscribers. We currently have 1,200 paid subscribers – think what we could do with 2,000 paid subscribers! Please consider supporting our work today as a paid subscriber for just $6 a month or $59 a year, or donate to The Border Chronicle. We can't do this without you!
— un abrazo from Tucson, Melissa
Pablo De La Rosa
Todd Miller
Pablo De La Rosa
Also check out this amazing piece by Mexico-based investigative reporter John Gibler in the debut of Now Voyager a new literary journalism publication:
Border barriers on the river could be fatal during floods, say Laredo landowners, a reflection on desert narratives and the U.S.-Mexico border, and become a sustaining member of The Border Chronicle today, get some cool, new merch, and help us hold those in power accountable.
Were you wondering what was going on with Mexico's right wing? And what Argentina's disappeared have to do with the U.S.-Mexico border? You've come to the right place.
We've got new merch! Pedro Rios documents the gradual walling off of Friendship Park in San Diego, and Amy Juan on long-distance running and resilience for the Tohono O'odham plus more from across the borderlands.
A year of military buildup on the border, walling off the Rio Grande Valley, and Caroline Tracey's debut book launch in Tucson.
Independent news, culture and context from the U.S.-Mexico border.
