NEWS
For Immediate Release
[December 5th,2013]
Contacts: People Helping People in the Border Zone Media Team
Arivaca residents will rally to petition Border Patrol for the removal of the checkpoint on Arivaca Rd.
Rally kicks off campaign against the ongoing militarization of the Arivaca community
Amado, Arizona – On Sunday, December 8th at 2pm, Arivaca residents will arrive at the Border Patrol checkpoint on Arivaca Road en masse to peacefully deliver a petition. The petition authored by Arivaca residents calls for the immediate removal of the U.S. Border Patrol interior checkpoint, due to its negligible deterrent effects on immigration and the acute burden it places on the local community. Approximately one third of community residents, as well as several local businesses and organizations have signed the petition. Residents have formally invited Border Patrol Tucson Sector Chief Manuel Padilla to the checkpoint to receive the signed petition from the community.
Lying approximately 25 miles north of the physical border between the U.S. and Mexico, the BP checkpoint was first introduced in 2007 as a temporary security measure, but has been functionally permanent for the past 7 years, stopping and examining all who leave the area. The petition cites a number of negative impacts that the checkpoint has had on local life. These effects include: the regular profiling and harassment of local residents, the unlawful and sometimes aggressive searches of resident’s vehicles, diminishing tourism and property values in the area and the concerning long-term impact of children growing up interacting with armed agents at the checkpoint on their way to school.
Many residents have had upsetting and disturbing experiences at the checkpoint, such as one local woman who was detained at the checkpoint on her way to a doctor’s appointment. The woman, who had recently experienced a heart attack was held for over an hour in the hot sun, not permitted to sit, and denied water. As a local business owner, her store has also suffered from the decline in tourism caused by the checkpoint and she will be forced to close her doors at the end of the month. You can read more about resident’s experiences at the checkpoint here or view a video about living with BP checkpoints here.
The action will launch a campaign against the continual and escalating militarization of the Arivaca community. Participants hope that their efforts will speak to other border communities as near as Tubac and the Tohono O’odham Reservation, and as far as Falfurrias, Texas who also endure the negative impacts of Border Patrol inland checkpoints and border militarization.
WHAT: Rally to Deliver Petition
WHEN: SUNDAY December 8th at 2 PM
WHERE: Gather at noon at the Arivaca Community Center for a 1 PM Caravan or at 1 PM in the Cow Palace parking lot to converge on the checkpoint on foot from both sides at 2 PM
WHO: Arivaca community members and supporters from Amado, Green Valley, Tubac, Tucson and the surrounding areas.
