As Arivaca residents, we have been organizing for the demilitarization of the borderlands. We believe that only the protection of human life and investment in our communities can transform the border crisis. We call for an end to the military approach to immigration policy. We believe in human rights and dignity for all.
To uphold this vision, we call for the immediate removal of all inland Border Patrol checkpoints. Checkpoints surround our community. We cannot leave to attend school, go to work, or visit with friends and family elsewhere without being stopped by armed Border Patrol agents. We are asked to verify our citizenship and are at times subjected to questioning, profiling, warrantless searches, verbal harassment, and physical abuse by Border Patrol agents.
By placing checkpoints on all roads between 25 and 100 miles into the US interior, migrants and refugees are forced into long journeys on foot through the Sonoran Desert. Checkpoints not only lock down our communities–they directly contribute to the documented deaths and disappearances of thousands of people across the southwest borderlands.
As a community, we have petitioned the US Border Patrol to abolish all interior checkpoints.
We independently monitor Border Patrol checkpoints to deter abuse and collect data. Read our Checkpoint Monitoring Report.
We hold vigils and protests at area checkpoints, calling for their immediate removal.
In partnership with the American Civil Liberties Union, we have taken legal action again the violation of our right to monitor Border Patrol’s activities at the checkpoints. We have also helped to provide testimony about the harassment and abuse of border residents at checkpoints.
