The Land of Open Graves: Living and Dying on the Migrant Trail

The Land of Open Graves: Living and Dying on the Migrant Trail
ISBN-10
0520282744
ISBN-13
9780520282742
Category
Social Science
Pages
384
Language
English
Published
2015-10-23
Publisher
Univ of California Press
Authors
Michael Wells, Jason De Leon

Description

In his gripping and provocative debut, anthropologist Jason De Le—n sheds light on one of the most pressing political issues of our timeÑthe human consequences of US immigration policy.Ê The Land of Open Graves reveals the suffering and deaths that occur daily in the Sonoran Desert of Arizona as thousands of undocumented migrants attempt to cross the border from Mexico into the United States. Drawing on the four major fields of anthropology, De Le—n uses an innovative combination of ethnography, archaeology, linguistics, and forensic science to produce a scathing critique of ÒPrevention through Deterrence,Ó the federal border enforcement policy that encourages migrants to cross in areas characterized by extreme environmental conditions and high risk of death. For two decades, this policy has failed to deter border crossers while successfully turning the rugged terrain of southern Arizona into a killing field. In harrowing detail, De Le—n chronicles the journeys of people who have made dozens of attempts to cross the border and uncovers the stories of the objects and bodies left behind in the desert. The Land of Open Graves will spark debate and controversy.

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